Certified in Planning and Inventory Management (CPIM) Version 9.0 Examination (CPIM) Exam Blueprint

CPIM

210 minDuration
300Passing Score
Practice Certified in Planning and Inventory Management (CPIM) Version 9.0 Examination on QuizForge

What This Exam Validates

The APICS Certified in Planning and Inventory Management certification evaluates professional knowledge across nine domains in supply chain and operations. Certified by APICS (ASCM), this credential focuses on operational functions including demand planning, master scheduling, material requirements planning, inventory control, distribution management, and continuous improvement strategies across modern enterprise networks.

Who Should Take This Exam

Supply chain professionals, inventory managers, material planners, and operations personnel seeking to validate their knowledge of planning, scheduling, procurement, and inventory control processes within organizational operations.

Skills You Should Be Ready to Demonstrate

How to Prepare

Review the official content outline carefully to define the full scope of the material before testing. Study each content area thoroughly using suggested references, master key terminology, and apply outlined tools, processes, and techniques to your preparation routine prior to taking the official certification examination to ensure complete readiness across all required subjects.

Domain Study Guidance

Supply Chains and Strategy: Study Guidance

This specific domain covers organizational supply chain environments, environmental analysis, strategic scope, strategy development processes, overall performance monitoring, and key performance indicators for business success in operational environments.

Sales and Operations Planning (S&OP): Study Guidance

This domain focuses directly upon sales and operations planning purposes, aggregate demand plans, aggregate supply plans, and effectively reconciling sales and operations plans across your entire organization to achieve strategic alignment.

Demand: Study Guidance

This section addresses demand management processes, various sources of demand, advanced forecasting methods, and evaluating overall forecast performance within the operational framework established by industry standards to support planning.

Internal Supply: Study Guidance

This segment covers functional operational strategies, facility environments and layouts, master scheduling, rough-cut capacity planning, material requirements planning, and additional capacity requirements planning principles for modern manufacturing organizations.

External Supply and Key Support Functions: Study Guidance

Candidates examine suppliers, procurement practices, purchasing maintenance, risk management, sustainability strategies, the waste hierarchy, and reverse logistics operations required for supply chain resilience and modern business continuity planning throughout every organizational level.

Inventory: Study Guidance

This module focuses extensively on inventory planning, inventory costs, basic accounting principles, costing metrics, inventory management techniques, and effective inventory control systems utilized within warehouse and operational facilities.

Detailed Schedules: Study Guidance

This content covers planning detailed schedules, scheduling and production activity control methods, creating reliable production and service schedules, and scheduling materials efficiently to support manufacturing and delivery timelines.

Distribution: Study Guidance

This domain addresses planning distribution operations, replenishment strategies, order management, tracking procedures, tracing methods, and distribution key performance indicators to optimize logistics networks and fulfill customer orders efficiently.

Quality, Business Investments and Continuous Improvement: Study Guidance

This final extensive domain examines quality control, capital equipment investments, facilities management, advanced technology adoption strategies, and continuous improvement methodologies to drive operational excellence across the entire supply chain enterprise network.

Exam-Day Guidance

Read all directions carefully before answering questions. Approach questions in order, utilize the provided time limit efficiently, and answer every question since there is no penalty for incorrect answers.

Frequently asked questions

How many questions are on the exam?

The examination consists of a total of 150 questions, which includes pretest questions used for statistical purposes that do not contribute to your final score.

What is the passing score?

The minimum required passing score to successfully pass this certification test is 300 points, measured on a scaled score range extending from 200 to 350 points.

How long is the exam?

Candidates taking this certification are given a strict 210-minute time limit to complete all portions of the official examination according to the established testing guidelines.

What version of the exam content manual applies?

The examination follows version 9.0 of the APICS exam content manual, which features nine content domains spanning supply chain strategy, planning, inventory, and operations.

Sources and Verification

Verified 2026-09-13

How this page was made

This page was built using verified facts from official APICS certification documentation, the Version 9.0 Exam Content Manual, and module outlines.

Exam Domains

1.0 Supply Chains and Strategy Weight not published
2.0 Sales and Operations Planning (S&OP) Weight not published
3.0 Demand Weight not published
4.0 Internal Supply Weight not published
5.0 External Supply and Key Support Functions Weight not published
6.0 Inventory Weight not published
7.0 Detailed Schedules Weight not published
8.0 Distribution Weight not published
9.0 Quality, Business Investments and Continuous Improvement Weight not published