About IACCM » Background & History

Click here to see a PDF presentation about us.

Click here to see the IACCM Code of Conduct

Some quick facts:

• Founded in 1999, with support from IBM, British Telecom, Marconi Communications, Hewlett-Packard, Siemens, Lucent Technologies.
• 2000: Introduced the world's first global professional certification program.
• 2001: Announced web-based skills assessment and organizational benchmarking tool
• 2003: Developed the first on-line learning syllabus and commercial contracting 'body of knowledge'
• 2004: Introduced Corporate Member program, attracting more than 120 international companies and organizations
• 2005: First Academic Forum
• 2006: Created on-line 'communities of interest' to support targeted communications and dynamic research
• 2007: Issued Capability Maturity Model to allow robust assessments of organization and process performance

Today we offer:

• Unique 'on-demand' research and benchmarks on commercial contracting topics, organization and professional development.
• Access to a worldwide community - members from over 90 countries and 1,600 corporations.
• A powerful collaborative forum that brings together sales contracting, legal and strategic sourcing experts around the world.

IACCM - Delivering The Power For Change

IACCM Objectives:

• IACCM provides the services and knowledge required to enable organizational and professional excellence in contracting and commercial management
• Define and promote the role of contracts and negotiation professionals in industry and commerce.
• Enhance the skills and knowledge of members by enabling information exchange and ensuring the availability of appropriate, structured education and training.
• Enhance employment opportunities for members and attract and facilitate the entry of new recruits to the profession.
• Sponsor and support the development of working groups and research projects, which benefit individual members and their organizations.

IACCM Today

With members from more than 90 countries and over 1,600 corporations, the association is leading the way in responding to the demands of global networked markets. Our membership is drawn from many industries and is made up of contract and commercial managers, negotiators, attorneys and supply chain professionals. More than 120 companies have now established Corporate Memberships, gaining enhanced services that support their performance and understanding of market trends.

IACCM has formed regional member networks for each major geographical area, and has volunteers around the globe acting as local contacts. Our working groups address the challenges of change and we undertake on-demand research addressing the burning issues that confront our members. For example, we have conducted extensive surveys on measurements, adding value, risk management, functional organization, education and training needs, and required skills, plus many specialist topics such as trends in global sourcing, negotiation, global pricing, Most Favored Customer clauses, the evolution of warranty terms and handling liability limits.

Registered as a "not for profit" organization, the association is managed by a small staff of dedicated employees, overseen by an elected Board of Directors. The Board is made up of senior executives from major international corporations, and includes executives from Europe, Asia and North America. Current and past Board members have been drawn from companies such as Accenture, Booz Allen Hamilton, BNSF, BT, Centrica, Cisco, Chevron, Dell, Fujitsu Services Limited, Hewlett-Packard, Honeywell, Lucent, MassMutual, Office Depot, Rockwell, Roche, Siemens Business Services, W.W. Grainger, TPI, and Wachovia. Board members also come from the academic world, such as Copenhagen Business School, Manchester Business School, and North Carolina State University.

Through our worldwide presence and networked technology, IACCM members gain access to the thought leadership and practical tools that are essential for competitiveness in today’s fiercely contested global markets. We provide insight to the leading-edge contracting and commercial skills, policies, procedures and methods that are fundamental to managing enterprise and individual risks. This insight equips professionals and their leaders to implement best practice governance of contractual commitments and trading relationships.

By joining, you gain access to:

• Original Research: fast, accurate, authoritative, affordable
• Performance Benchmarks: organizational, procedural and individual assessments of effectiveness, contribution and improvement opportunities
• Functional and Professional Development: global access to skills, subject matter experts, networked communities, learning materials, skills assessment and certification
• Strategic Analysis and Insight: premium advisory and analytical services for executive audiences aspiring to competitive differentiation and organizational excellence
• Project and Management Services: methodologies, assessments of tools and services, recruitment support

In the words of our members:

I continue to be very impressed by the level of communication and the focus on value-add that I see coming out of your office. Keep up the good work! (Invensys)

I gotta tell you -- of all the organizations in which I've been involved for the almost 25 years I've been down here practicing law, it is my firm belief that IACCM is what I've been waiting for. You have done a magnificent job in making this organization substantive and actually useful for its members. Others play at it and pretend, but IACCM is the real deal.

I am astonished by the amount of effort that you give to IACCM and the amount of mails, reviews, events, surveys that you are producing and the progress that IACCM is making! (Mitopics)

I'd like to compliment IACCM for building and providing a global resource where Contracting Professionals can participate in gathering information about how we operate, obtain access to that information, share in our commonality and differences, educate ourselves and the Industry in the value we bring to the business and learn from each other how to improve our effectiveness. I wish I had more opportunity to take advantage of your services, because the forum IACCM provides seems especially user-friendly on a real-time basis. (Moog)