regulation matters
Continuing Professional Development
A BEGINNER’S GUIDE
By Mara Berger
Continuing professional development (CPD) is an impor-tant
process to ensure members of the Human Resources
Professionals Association (HRPA) continue learning in
a profession impacted by economic, social, business and
legislative changes. As such, designated members are required to
complete 66.67 hours of CPD activities every three years. These
activities can be completed through external providers of CPD ac-tivities,
various HRPA events or on one’s own.
There are five main categories of CPD that have maximum
hours per category:
■■ Continuing education (webinars, seminars, etc.) – 66.67 hours
maximum
■■ Leadership (mentoring or being mentored, volunteering, etc.)
– 46.67 hours maximum
■■ Instruction (developing and presenting courses, etc.) – 46.67
hours maximum
■■ Significant work projects or initiatives – 50 hours maximum
■■ Research or publication – 33.33 hours maximum
WHAT ACTIVITIES QUALIFY?
HRPA staff cannot confirm whether a specific activity quali-fies
for CPD hours. That is a determination that only the CPD
Committee can make if you are selected for an audit. Typically, we
suggest that you should ask yourself, “Does this activity further
my skills and abilities as an HR practitioner and strategic busi-ness
partner?” If the answer is “Yes,” then log the activity.
There should be a direct and describable link between the com-pleted
activity and your professional growth as an HR practitioner.
In order to successfully manage this process, it is strongly recom-mended
that you should construct a professional development
plan by tracking your activities as they occur, rather than logging
activities at the last minute. By doing so, you can alleviate the bur-den
of having to locate information at the last minute when the
log is due. You are also encouraged to develop a professional
plan that outlines an annual schedule and development
goals, as well as the kind of activities that will assist
you in achieving your professional goals.
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