Boosting Your Expertise With Irrigation Certification

As a landscaping professional, you know the difficulty of obtaining and retaining clients. You’re constantly searching for innovative ways to market yourself, attract those coveted customers and ultimately bolster your business.

An irrigation certification may be the answer. This certification allows you to demonstrate your industry expertise, differentiate from the competition and enhance your professional knowledge.

Motivation for certification
In the economy’s weakened state, it may seem tougher to sell your services and there is constant pressure to either lower your rates or risk losing customers.

Larry Rohlfes, the executive director of the Sacramento, Ca.-based California Landscape Contractors Association (CLCA), says obtaining an irrigation certification is advantageous in the unstable economy. “The pressures are so intense to hire the cheapest person available,” says Rohlfes. “[An irrigation certification] is a way to separate people who are doing a good job and hopefully save the client in the long run.”

Sherrie Schulte, the education/certification manager of the Falls Church, Va.-based Irrigation Association (IA), says getting certified authorizes a landscaping professional’s aptitude.

“People are trying to raise the bar and instill a level of professionalism,” says Schulte. “The certification differentiates you, and shows that you’ve taken the steps to be considered an expert in your field.”

Obtaining your certification
Regardless of your landscaping title, you can get certified through the IA. The IA offers six nationally recognized certifications: Certified Irrigation Contractor (CIC), Certified Irrigation Designer (CID), Certified Landscape Irrigation Auditor (CLIA), Certified Gold Irrigation Auditor (CGIA), Certified Agricultural Irrigation Specialist (CAIS), and Certified Water Conservation Manager-Landscape (CWCM-L).

According to Shulte, these specialized certifications are an official authorization of your skills.

“It shows the expertise and experience in a particular area,” says Shulte. “It also gives a third party validation that you know what you’re doing.”

Landscapers do need to meet specific qualifications before obtaining an IA certification. The CWCM-L certification has the most stringent requirements. To qualify to take the exam, landscapers must have at least three years of irrigation experience (or two years of experience plus one year of education) and a current IA Auditor certification. To apply for a CGIA or CLIA certification, you only need one year of irrigation experience. Once you’ve applied, obtaining the certification is fairly simple. Most certifications require written exams, and some involve an additional contractor course.

The IA isn’t the only means to obtain a professional certification. Associations such as the CLCA accredit regional workers who pass written tests and hands-on field tests of landscape skills. Industry newcomers may particularly benefit from these certifications since the requirements aren’t as stringent. Anyone is eligible to take the exam to be a Certified Landscape Technician (CLT), as long as he or she has at least one year of on-the-job experience.

Extra education through certification
Even if you’ve been in the industry for years, you may not be conducting your water management services in the most efficient manner. Rohlfes says that the certification shows professionals how to perform specific job skills accurately, which keeps their services current and recognizes them for doing so. .

“Anybody can say they can do water audits, but can they really do water audits?” says Rohlfes. “There’s a certain way to do an audit, and it takes learning how to do it properly.”

The IA further ensures that a professional’s services are updated through an annual renewal of Continuing Education Units (CEUs). There are several ways to earn CEUs, such as conducting irrigation audits or attending a green industry trade show.

Although obtaining an irrigation certification requires additional effort, Rohlfes says the outcome makes the legwork worth it.

“ The outcome from participation in a certification program would be recognition and hopefully more clients and financial success for the certified individual.”