CMT Association

Do you have an interesting topic, idea, or technical concept that you'd like to share with the larger membership community? Educational events offered by the CMT Association are an excellent way to reach likeminded professionals to exchange and enhance ideas. 

Technically Speaking newsletter is a monthly periodical distributed to the CMT Association membership in digital format. Technically Speaking highlights a variety of topics in market analysis, asset management, and trading. The newsletter features articles, techniques and research written by members of the CMT Association and wider financial community, book reviews, and interviews with recognized industry professionals. 

Technically Speaking actively sources new material to highlight each month. If you are interested in submitting your work, or if you have an accomplishment or job opportunity to highlight in our Association Updates section, please complete the form below.

 CMT Program, Assistant Director

The CMT Association seeks to fill a newly created position for an Assistant Director of the CMT Program. The Assistant Director will work directly with the CMT Program Director on all aspects of the CMT Program.

The CMT Association plans to fill the position with a current CMT Charterholder, or a candidate for the charter who has successfully completed all three levels of the CMT exams and is awaiting only the professional work experience to earn the charter.

This is a full-time position that will require availability for calls and meetings during US hours. In addition, there may be some restrictions on the Assistant Director’s activities outside the CMT Association that conflict with the security standards necessary for a credentialing program or otherwise conflict with the mission, standing, or credibility of the CMT Association and the CMT Program.

The work of managing the CMT Program falls broadly into three categories: Policies, Texts, and Exams.

Policies

· Completion of a Jobs Task Analysis (JTA).

· Policies related to exam administration, including security and candidate identification.

· Vendor relationships including psychometricians, test administration, and publishing.

Texts

· Ongoing editing and maintenance of the curriculum, including researching and correcting reported errors.

· Identification of topics and authors for new Association-owned content.

· Long-term evolution of the curriculum.

Exams

· Expansion of the Level I and II item banks.

· Monitoring production of Level I and II exams for semi-annual administration windows.

· Managing construction of semi-annual Level III exams.

· Managing Level III grading following each exam window.

The initial duties of the Assistant Director will fall primarily, but not solely, in the area of Exams.

The Assistant Director, alongside the Program Director, will interact with several key groups of CMT Association members/volunteers.

· The Curriculum and Test Committee (CTC) which is the ultimate arbiter on matters related to the content of the texts and exams.

· The Subject Matter Experts (SMEs), a select group of members who are tasked with writing exam questions (all levels), reviewing additional exam content, and other functions related to CMT Program content.

· The Level III graders who read the candidates’ exam papers and assign grades based on the SMEs’ answer keys and their own judgment.

· Authors working on content for the CMT texts. There is an ongoing project to augment the CMT texts with custom-written content.

· Other CMT Association staff, particularly on matters of CMT Program operations, marketing, and candidate/member communications.

As noted above, the Assistant Director’s initial responsibilities will be in the management of the content and delivery and grading of the CMT exams. Under the direction of the Program Director, the Assistant Director will be tasked with:

· Analysis of the current Level I and II item banks to determine areas of weakness and inadequacy.

· Organizing and tasking SMEs with creating new content for Level I and II based on that analysis.

· Editing and supplying content citations for the Level I and II item banks.

· Managing the SMEs who write the Level III content.

· Organizing and tasking graders with their assignments for Level III grading.

· Compiling, reviewing, and verifying the Level III results.

The ideal candidate should have experience in several key areas critical to the ongoing management of the CMT Program.

The Assistant Director is expected to have competence with several common software products and be prepared to learn to use several others.

· Microsoft Office – Word, Excel, Teams

· Adobe Acrobat

· TechSmith Snagit

· Charting software such as Optuma, StockCharts, and others.

Project management and coordination – The work of producing and grading exams and creating exam content, as well as editing and producing texts, requires coordination of the CTC, SMEs, graders and vendors, in addition to other Association staff. Management of these tasks requires clear and consistent communication with those working on the task, including instructions and deadlines, and availability for questions and corrections. Creation of document templates and maintenance of consistent formats are critical to ease the burden on member-volunteers and on Program staff in managing the work.

Writing and editing – The Assistant Director must be proficient in writing and, most importantly, in editing exam and other content. In addition to grammar and syntax, exam content must conform to best practices such as accurate and consistent nomenclature. Content must be written and edited to comply with the Program’s policy of avoiding slang and idioms that would be difficult for non-native English speakers to analyze.

If you meet these requirements and are interested in being considered, please submit your resume.

Published by the CMT Association, the Journal of Technical Analysis publishes long-form research that reflects professional interests of the global membership. Please read the below submission guidelines carefully before submitting your research for review.

1 Eligibility

Submissions to the Journal of Technical Analysis are open to anyone with an interest in technical analysis. By submitting a paper, the author consents to the following terms of the Journal’s double-blind peer review process.

2 Deadline

Submissions to the Journal of Technical Analysis are accepted on a rolling basis for publication in the next issue of the Journal that is not currently under review. When the Volunteer Committee tasked with reviewing Journal content closes submissions for an upcoming issue, all research submitted past that closing date will be automatically considered for the next issue.

3 Standards of Review

A.) A paper will be reviewed according to the following standards:

1. The paper is based upon the concepts of technical analysis and provides a complete and practical application of the topic being presented
2. The subject of the paper should be directly related to a topic included in the Body of Knowledge of the Chartered Market Technician program.
3. If feasible, testing should be done to demonstrate the value of the idea. The test period should include data from at least one complete market cycle to allow for the evaluation of the idea in bull and bear markets. The amount of data needed will vary with the timeframe being tested. Tests of monthly data will usually require a longer test period than tests of intraday data to include a complete market cycle. All tests should include a sufficient number of signals to demonstrate the concept is statistically significant, generally at least 30 signals.
4. All tests should include recent data with the end of the data being no later than one year before the paper submission deadline.
5. The writing meets generally accepted standards of style for professional publications and academic level writing.
6. The analysis and conclusions are useful, and enhance the understanding of market action.
7. A paper should be written so that an audience of knowledgeable technical analysts can apply the principle defined in the paper based solely on the content of the paper.

B.) Materials that have been prepared for specific research purposes, in addition to longer form research previously included in the CMT Association’s monthly newsletter Technically Speaking, are eligible for submission.

Examples of materials prepared for research purposes include: materials prepared for academic websites or academic research journals, materials published on non-commercial sites, and papers prepared as research for clients (i.e. whitepapers).

Work that has been published for commercial exposure (i.e. work that has already been published in non-academic magazines, newspapers, or commercial websites) is not eligible and as such, will not be considered.

4 Authors’ Copyright and Permission to Produce and Distribute Copies

The author(s) of any submissions to the Journal of Technical Analysis shall retain the copyrights to the submission, but shall permit the CMT Association to produce and distribute copies in any medium of all or part of a paper.

5 Waivers for Previously Published Materials

Authors must sign a waiver acknowledging that there are no restrictions of the CMT Association’s publicizing efforts should the paper be included in an issue of the Journal. This shall be signed upon initial submission to the Journal, and finalized when the author(s) is notified of selection.

6 Style & Format

The text must be a persuasive and conclusive presentation of the subject. Charts, tables, and figures should be used to exemplify or supplement the text and should not be the primary means of conveying the author’s points.

Charts, tables, and figures should be placed in appropriate sections of the text and shall be individually labeled in numerical sequence. When it is not possible to do so, they shall be presented in appendices.

Statistical supplements are encouraged. Papers should generally be between 4 and 20 pages in length with additional supporting material placed in statistical supplements as needed.

All references to the author’s name shall be removed from the text, footnotes and all supplementary material. All references to other materials and indicators created by the author shall be removed or disguised in such a manner that the editorial board of reviewers cannot identify the author.

The submission committee will not consider any paper that does not comply with these guidelines.

7 Submission Process

To submit a paper for review, complete the submission process below.

8 Double-Blind Peer Review Process

The Editor of the Journal will receive research submissions, void of the author’s identifying information, at the start of the peer review process. The Editor will then distribute the submissions to members of the Editorial Board, who will review the papers and decide whether to recommend them for publication or rejection. Members of the Editorial Board will generally be presented with papers within their realm of technical specialization, to provide readers with the most advanced degree of review possible within the broader discipline of technical analysis.

No author shall ask for or receive assistance of any kind from a member of the Editorial Board after submitting their final work.

9Decisions of the Editorial Board

After a work has undergone the peer review process, the Editorial Board will recommend to the Editor whether the work should be published or whether publication should be declined. The Editor will then make the final decision on which submissions are included in the Journal. The decisions of the Editor are final and without recourse for reconsideration by any member of the CMT Association or the author’s sponsoring organizations. Prior to announcing a decision on publication, the Editor may in their discretion ask an author to revise a submission.

10Decisions of the CMT Association

The CMT Association may publicize the Journal of Technical Analysis, its authors’ names (but not necessarily their places of employment) and all or part of the content of the Journal Issues. Published Journal authors may publicize their research in an appropriate manner without undue enhancement.

Professional Membership is reserved for individuals who practice technical analysis professionally. You must be a Member in order to apply for and use the CMT designation. To qualify for Member status you must have a minimum of three (3) years of Approved Professional Work Experience. Approved professional work experience is defined as someone who:

• Administers, or adds value to, theoretical or practical application of technical analysis as part of the investment decision making process
• Supervises, oversees, or manages individuals or teams who practice such activities
• Teaches, trains, or coaches such activities
• Publicizes such activities as a member of the media

In addition to the three (3) years of professional experience, applicants must have three sponsors who have Member Status with the CMT Association and successfully completed all three levels of the CMT exams.

Work must be fulltime, and you must receive compensation for your services. Managing your own or your family and/or friends investments (without compensation) does not constitute Approved Professional Work Experience.

*Sponsors must have Member status with the CMT Association and no more than one sponsor may be affiliated with your current firm.

If you wish to check on your own membership status, charterholder renewal status, or the status of another member, please send an email with the details of your request to admin@cmtassociation.org.