The claim in Personnel Today (31 October) that the Chartered Institute of Personnel and Development (CIPD) ignores business management experience when assessing applications to upgrade from chartered member to chartered fellow is plain wrong.
Chartered fellowship is recognition that a person has progressed beyond the operational and has worked at a strategic level over a sustained period. The assessment is not simply about time served the emphasis is on the strategic impact of their role, and how it influences people management and development throughout the business.
Far from not taking it into account, we actively encourage HR professionals to demonstrate relevant business experience. A third of our professional qualification is about business management and leadership, not just the people dimension. More than 1,000 people have upgraded from chartered member to chartered fellow in the past year, and many of these have drawn on experience they have gained outside the HR function.
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As Geoff Armstrong, the CIPD’s director-general, said in his closing speech at the annual conference, effective HR leaders think and act like business leaders first, and functional specialists second. That should stand as a clear indication that no-one should be put off applying if they feel they can demonstrate the necessary strategic experience by referring to time they’ve spent working outside HR.
Christine Williams
Membership development manager, CIPD
