For nearly four decades, the HR Certification Institute (HRCI) served happily as the semi-independent certification arm of HR’s big-dog association, the Society for Human Resource Management (SHRM).

That marriage ended last year when SHRM announced it was launching its own certification exam and credentials—the SHRM Certified Professional (SHRM-CP) and SHRM Senior Certified Professional (SHRM-SCP).

In mid-2014, HRCI packed up its belongings and moved out of SHRM’s Virginia headquarters. The controversy played out in public that summer when SHRM blocked HRCI from exhibiting at the big SHRM annual conference. HRCI was back in 2015 with a small booth at the show.