themselves HR professionals and those
who are members of the HR profession.
PROFESSIONALIZATION OF HR
We can examine what it means to be
an HR professional and a member of
the HR profession through the prism of
three pillars of professionalism: education;
attitudes, values and behaviours; and
regulation.
Education and training
Being a professional involves the application
of a conceptual or theoretical
body of knowledge and requires extensive
training and education to acquire.
Most professions involve degree-level
education offered through the formal
educational system, which focuses on
the theory necessary to qualify for the
profession’s credentials.
After an individual has mastered the
theory, they learn how to apply it through
a period of on-the-job experience (articling,
internships and supervised practice)
that transforms academic knowledge into
professional competence.
Upon completion of the supervised
work experience period, they typically
write a final exam of one kind or another,
and if successful, become licensed to
practice their profession – although
sometimes the exam is written before
completion of the supervised work experience
component.
The entire process is regulated by a professional
body overseeing standards of
entry to the profession.
A good example would be the route
taken to become a lawyer. After someone
completes a bachelor’s degree, they apply
to law school (that’s been accredited by the
provincial law society) after having passed
the law school admission test (LSAT).
After learning legal theory during three
years of law school, would-be lawyers
complete an articling period alongside a
licensed lawyer who guides them on how
to apply theory to law practice and how
to act, behave and conduct themselves as
lawyers. After completing their articles,
they must pass a provincial bar exam to be
duly licensed to practice.
Similarly, HRPA is evolving a process to
mold HR students into HR professionals.
For its Certified Human Resources Leader
(CHRL) designation – its professional-
level designation – members complete
a course of theoretical study (its
post-secondary academic program), followed
by a knowledge exam, a three-year
supervised HR experience period, a jurisprudence
exam and, finally, a case-based
final exam to ensure all candidates are
ready for independent professional practice.
Starting Oct. 1, 2016, there will also
be a requirement to complete a two-day
professional program that looks at business
ethics and the values and behaviours
expected of HR professionals.
Attitudes, value and behaviours
When the topic of professionalism comes
up in HR circles, there are two common
responses. The first goes something like,
cover feature
Continued on page 27
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