Through the COA, you can help your colleagues, students, or clients to achieve their goals and work effectively at each of the six levels of culture.
The certification for Cultural Orientation Approach (COA) provides a sound foundation for building the capabilities of the individual and group for cultural competence through theory and practical application in a classroom setting.
TMC offers two ways to become certified:
- Virtual: Four live, virtual webinars combined with online self-paced study, peer and trio exercises and the COA Mastery Exam
- Face-to-Face: A 2-day program, and the COA Mastery Exam
TMC offers three levels of certification:
Level 1: The Individual Approach
After Level 1 the COA Certified Practitioner will be able to:
- Describe culture using accurate examples from today’s business environment
- Articulate the Cultural Orientations Model with theory and example
- Recognize the four key cultural skills when used in a COI assessment conversation
- Interpret an individual’s COI assessment results
- Explain the use of the Cultural Navigator®
Level 2: The Group Approach
After Level 2 the COA Certified Practitioner will be able to:
- Demonstrate the program objectives as described for level one practitioners
- Conduct a debriefing session based on an individual’s COI results
- Analyzing the diversity of a group by facilitating a discussion on the results of that group’s COI aggregate report
- Use the COI gap analysis report to diagnose and activate the effective application of the four key cultural skills
- Make use of the Cultural Navigator®
Level 3: COA Master Practitioner
After Level 3 the COA Master Practitioner will be able to:
- Certify other practitioners in virtual or face to face programs in the Cultural Orientations Approach (Level 1 and 2)
- Gain key insights in achieving the objectives for Level 1 and 2 certification (challenges, opportunities, observations, best practices)
- Facilitate the Level 1 and 2 COA certification programs according to the expectations of TMC
- Teach others through knowledge of adult learner methodology
The level 3 certification is based on a individual/coaching approach and specific pre-requisites need to be met, please contact helpdesk@tmcorp.com for more information.
The level 1 and level 2 certification follows a comprehensive learning process of:
Online Preparation
In order for you to prepare for the classroom/online sessions, you must first develop an awareness of your own cultural preferences and how they may impact your work environment. As part of the COA Certification, we provide you with a one-year license to the Cultural Navigator®, TMC's online application for building cultural competence, to complete your COI assessment and review the Cultural Orientations at Work web course.
For more information on the Cultural Navigator, take the online tour!
Classroom/Online Sessions
Once you have completed your online preparation, you will be taken through a series of classroom or online sessions which will further explore the COA and how you can apply it to your organization, educational institution, or clients. These sessions include real-world scenarios and discuss the four key cultural skills that you can utilize to help others develop their own cultural awareness and explore how their cultural preferences may impact them at each level of culture. The skills associated with debriefing the COI are also covered, ensuring that you feel comfortable exploring each cultural preference with your target group.
Practical Application
Once you have completed your classroom/online sessions, the final step to becoming certified is an online final examination that tests your comprehension of the topics and skills covered throughout the COA Certification. Upon successful completion of the COA Final Exam, you will be provided access to the COA Practitioner website and will become an official member of the COA Practitioner Community.
As a COA Certified Practitioner, you will enjoy an extensive array of benefits to help you apply the Cultural Orientations Approach in your work, including:
- Ability to leverage the COI Assessment and Profile in your work
- One-year license to the Cultural Navigator
- Access to the COA Practitioner Website & Material Resources
- Lifetime membership in the COA Practitioner Community
- Administrative access to COI tools and results for your users
- Access to the COA Practitioner Store
