Coverage of STMP™ Exam
Generally, the questions appearing in TMI exams aim to check and validate examinees' awareness and knowledge about the general frameworks of Talent Management, key practices and trends in 21st century Talent Management, and critical issues, challenges and opportunities in the discipline today. TMI exams – in keeping with the TMI framework TMI-UKF™ and the TMI Body of Knowledge – steer clear of Human Resource Management topics, and stay focused on Talent Management. Examinees are expected to already be aware of Human Resource Management to be able to get recognition further for their readiness for Talent Management.
TMI certification exams feature questions drawn from a wide selection of Talent Management areas, a knowledge in which the TMI body of knowledge defines as essential–to–have for individuals intending to be recognized and credentialed by TMI. The framework or scope of content and coverage of TMI exams is defined reasonably well by the TMI text prescribed for the STMP™ exam–takers – The Talent Management Handbook for Practitioners. More specifically, the following topics have been prescribed by the TMI Professional Certification Board in which the knowledge of examinees are tested.
| Knowledge Dimensions Covered |
Total Questions |
PART A: Defining Concepts & Perspectives in Talent Management
Consists of questions from five mandatory knowledge dimensions including management, business and Talent Management imperatives of the 21st century, the Talent Management ecosystem, talent‐need analysis, and talent competence assessment frameworks for organizations. |
7 |
PART B: Elements of Strategy & Leadership in Talent Management
Consists of questions from 10 mandatory knowledge dimensions including Strategic Talent Management, building competitive advantage through integrated Talent Management, sustainable talent development, talent pipeline building, executive onboarding, identifying and assessing high-potential talent, developing leadership talent, and managing leadership talent pools. |
21 |
PART C: Critical Focus Areas of Talent Management Practice
Consists of questions from eight mandatory knowledge dimensions sweeping across areas like Talent engagement, building functional expertise, managing and measuring Talent Management effectiveness, global Talent Management, talent supplies in global organizations, succession planning, performance management, and technology deployment in Talent Management. |
17 |
PART D: International Talent Management Experiences & Insights
Consists of insights, experiences, and cases focused on talent development, integrated Talent Management, talent practices, Talent Management adoption, and boardroom view of Talent Management in some of the world’s most enduring business corporations. It also covers CHRO perspectives on Talent Management as well as perspectives on critical research issues and the future of Talent Management practice. |
10 |
PART E: Talent Leadership Capabilities
Consists of questions from 11 mandatory knowledge dimensions covering aspects like strategic mindset, decision making, thinking and analytics, growth, global management skills, change readiness, personal leadership philosophy, boardroom capabilities, and thought leadership. |
5 |
| Total Number Of Questions |
60 |
Structure & Nature of a Typical STMP™ Exam
A typical STMP™ exam includes a mix of Type A, Type B, and Type C questions for a total of 60 questions.
TYPE A - GENERAL UNDERSTANDING OF CONCEPTS
Questions directly test the examinees' ability to correctly and precisely recollect concepts, principles, techniques, and generally accepted practices in contemporary Talent Management. The answers to TYPE A questions will reflect examinees' awareness and comprehension of critical Talent Management concepts, elements, and issues as enshrined in the TMI body of knowledge. TYPE A Questions are facts–based with the answer–options being clear statements – either clearly correct, or incorrect. There is only one CORRECT answer to TYPE A questions, and examinees are scored only if the correct options are selected/ checked.
TYPE B - ABILITY TO APPLY UNDERSTANDING & KNOWLEDGE
Questions directly test the examinees' ability to APPLY and DEPLOY their awareness, understanding, and appreciation of the concepts, principles, and techniques in real–life practice of Talent Management. The answers to TYPE B questions will reflect examinees' capacities for critical analysis, judgment, and objectivity in measuring and gauging Talent Management challenges scientifically and devising approaches, plans, and programs to resolve them with accountability and a higher degree of success and effectiveness. TYPE B Questions also have four answer–choices and ONLY one of these four would be INCORRECT. The rest of the THREE of these ANSWERS would be principally correct, but they represent varying levels of suitability for the situation expressed in respective questions. The best of these THREE answers carries the maximum 10 marks, and the least suitable receives 5 marks. The third correct answer with mid-level suitability carries 7.5 marks. Examinees have to choose only ONE of these FOUR answer choices and they are scored 0, 5, 7.5 or 10, depending on their choice of answer–option.
TYPE C - UNDERSTANDING OF ISSUES AND ELEMENTS OF PRACTICE IN GLOBAL CONTEXTS
Questions directly test the examinees ability to RECOLLECT, APPLY and DEPLOY their awareness, understanding and appreciation of unique global forces and elements that demand using the concepts, principles, and techniques in real–life practice of Talent Management in a specially informed and mature manner. The answers to TYPE C questions will reflect examinees' capacities for critical analysis, judgement, and objectivity in measuring and gauging Talent Management challenges in large, complex global organizations with diverse workforces, and tackle them with accountability and higher degree of success and effectiveness. TYPE C questions, like TYPE B ones, also have four answer–choices and ONLY one of these four would be INCORRECT. The rest of the THREE of these ANSWERS would be principally correct, but they represent varying levels of suitability for the situation expressed in respective questions. The best of these THREE answers carries the maximum 10 marks, and the least suitable receives 5 marks. The third correct answer with mid–level suitability carries 7.5 marks. Examinees have to choose only ONE of these FOUR answer choices and they are scored 0, 5, 7.5 or 10, depending on their choice of answer-option.
The Objectives and Principles Underlying the Design of STMP™ Exam
The TMI exams aim at validating the registrants' potential and capacity to effectively perform a breadth of Talent Management roles and functions in complex, large organizations operating within a transnational business/ non–business system. The TMI exam system validates this potential through assessing registrants' knowledge about Talent Management theory and practice as well as their ability to apply this knowledge to achieve excellence in their performance of the roles assigned to them. These exams are designed on standards derived from the TMI Standardized Knowledge Architecture for Practice Excellence. TMI-UKF™ is the capstone TMI framework on which the TMI Body of Knowledge has been fleshed out to redefine the profession of Talent Management in the 21st century.
TMI exams test registrants on their knowledge of the state–of–the–art principles, theories, techniques, tools, and generally accepted practices of Talent Management as laid out in TMI-UKF™. These exams expect that individuals being assessed for their TMI Credentials read the material contained in the TMI Starter Kits and maintain familiarity with the latest in Talent Management theory and practice by reading journals and books; attending podcasts of experts; and participating in professional development programs and events.
Qualifying for the STMP™ Exam
Usually, an aggregate score of 65%-70% on STMP™ certification exam can be deemed qualification–worthy, however, an examinee’s real, individual scores do not determine the recommendation for credential award. Instead, the final recommendations for the STMP™ award are given by the TPCB after considering the benchmarked scores. These scores are derived by scaling the actual scores of examinees on a particular exam section and contrasting their score against the entire pool of examinees in the same exam section. The TPCB certification award recommendation system works on the affirmative–action approach, ensuring that examinees across various exam regions do not suffer or gain because of the uncontrollable systemic or environmental elements.
Preparing for the STMP™ Exam
If you are preparing for your STMP™ certification exam, you must first evaluate the expectations of Talent Management understanding, knowledge, and perspective that employers will have of you. On-the-move HR professionals looking to shine must realize how important it is for TMI to assess and validate your potential and capabilities before the award of the STMP™ Credential. It is critical for all STMP™ aspirants to focus on building up their knowledge on Talent Management to be able to practice the profession at its best . While the STMP™ Resource Box contains reading-books as well as guidelines on how to study for the STMP™ exam. Studying from only these can will not completely prepare you for your exam.
Talent Management is an evolving discipline and will never become an exact enough science to contain all its completeness in one single textbook. Attempts to understand such disciplines through one book or a set of books restricts our understanding of them across all dimensions that they need to truly be understood. TMI has evolved its landmark essential knowledge model into what is the world’s largest and most extensive project on defining knowledge essentials for excellence in Talent Management. As the world’s foremost standards and credentialing body in Talent Management, TMI shoulders the onerous responsibility of covering the entire landscape of contemporary Talent Management, and everything else that may be connected to it. Only then can TMI claim it has assessed and validated individuals across all areas that impact or have the potential of impacting their professional capabilities for practicing Talent Management.
To ensure that all STMP™ registrants groom themselves into the most dynamic and perceptive of young HR leaders of tomorrow, TMI advises they read extensively on the subject from as many sources as possible. For external resources and modes you can use to expand your understanding of Talent Management and better prepare for your STMP™ examination, please refer to the TMI Exam Preparation Guidelines available for download under the TMI resources tab of your myTMI account.
While STMP™ examinees are clearly advised to use the official TMI publication – The TMI Practitioners’ Handbook on Talent Management– as the master reference for preparing for their exams, the handbook is in no way assumed to prepare an examinee completely for the TMP™ examination. Although a sizable number of questions in a typical STMP™ exam are certainly drawn from content which is available in the Handbook, the rest of the questions in the exam are drawn from content from other sources. The topics of all exam questions are covered in the handbook, but their treatment is not extended or detailed enough to offer the necessary depth. TMI therefore strongly advises all STMP™ examinees to tap other online and offline resources to brush up their concepts and awareness about how Talent Management impacts business, but also how businesses and organizations today expect talent-focused human capital management to help them navigate successfully into the future.
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