The IAM Professional Standards
The first edition of the Institute's professional framework is published in exposure draft on Friday 11 September 2026, for comment by members, employers, educators, and the public. Read the drafts, and tell us what should change before they take effect on 1 January 2027.
What is being consulted on
Six documents, one framework
Together these six documents describe the discipline, the ethics that govern it, the grades and CPD that recognise it, and the safeguards behind every decision. They are published as exposure drafts: complete, considered, and open to change. Each can be read online in full.
| Reference | Document | What it does | Read |
|---|---|---|---|
| IAM-PS-2026-001 | Professional Standards for Administrative Management | Seven Competency Domains, four Career Stages, nine Professional Values, and the Progression Matrix against which every grade is assessed. | Read online |
| IAM-COE-2026-001 | Code of Ethics | The nine Principles binding every member, the responsible-use provisions, and the disciplinary consequences of breach. | Read online |
| IAM-MEM-REG-2026-001 | Membership Regulation | The eleven categories, the three routes to every assessed grade, admission evidence and decision periods, Good Standing, renewal, and discipline. | Read online |
| IAM-CPD-REG-2026-001 | CPD Regulation | The 30-hour requirement, the Structured, ethics, and sustainability minima, recording, audit, exemptions, and non-compliance. | Read online |
| IAM-APP-2026-001 | Appeals and Complaints Policy | How decisions are appealed, how complaints are handled, and the administrative review available to refused applicants. | Read online |
| IAM-PIS-2026-001 | Public Interest Statement | What the Institute owes to the public that relies on its credentials, and how it discharges that duty. | Read online |
Start here if you are short of time
The Lite Edition
A condensed edition of the Professional Standards for readers who want the architecture — the Domains, the Stages, the Values, and how the Progression Matrix works — without every descriptor. It is the fastest way to understand what is being proposed before you respond.
How to respond
One form, any number of comments
| Question | Answer |
|---|---|
| Who may respond? | Anyone. Members, employers, educators, training providers, awarding institutions, and members of the public. You do not need to be a member. |
| How? | By email, from the response page. You may comment on one document or all six, on a single clause or the whole approach. There is no minimum and no maximum. |
| By when? | Friday 16 October 2026, 17:00 UK time. Responses received after the closing time cannot be guaranteed consideration. |
| What happens to my response? | Every response is read and considered. The Institute publishes a consultation report for each document alongside its First Edition, setting out what was raised and what changed as a result. Responses are not published individually, and respondents are not named without consent. |
| When are the First Editions published? | 30 November 2026, with the six consultation reports beside them. The framework takes effect on 1 January 2027. |
Read it against your own practice
The Grade Navigator
The Standards are easier to comment on once you have seen where you sit within them. The IAM Grade Navigator turns your qualifications and experience into a grade and route recommendation against the draft Progression Matrix. It runs entirely on your own device and sends nothing anywhere.
The framework is yours to shape
Consultation closes Friday 16 October 2026 at 17:00 UK time.