BENEFITS OF CONTINUING PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT (CPD)

The term CPD is being used both locally and abroad for the ongoing self-development of professionals. In effect CPD requires that professionals undertake learning activities that develop and maintain capabilities to perform competently within the professional environments.

The market looks at the members of any professional body with an expectation for updated knowledge and skills and will not accept  any member of a professional association that does not conform to some form of CPD. Members of the professional associations thus have a professional duty to develop the skill and knowledge base for themselves.

DEFINITION

The following definition can be applied to CPD.

 “CPD is the means by which members of professional associations maintain, improve, and broaden their knowledge and skills and develop the personal qualities required in their professional lives.”

BENEFITS

Planning, doing and recording your CPD will allow you to: -

• Provide evidence of your commitment within your profession and of your continuing competence;
• Have an excellent reference document for both updating your own CV and in providing a base of future reference of topics you have studied;
• Hold a useful aid for career development and allow you to plan, record and review your relevant activities;
• Have an awareness of your shortcomings and a strategy to overcome them;
• Exploit change and not be driven by it;
• Identify your skills and assist others in acquiring similar skills;

The professional association in particular and the profession in general will benefit by having: -

• Efficient and skilled members;
• Motivation to develop and learn increases members performance which  contributes to business objectives of the organizations they are working for;
• Create the image of a progressive and committed organisation that maintains development following professional qualifications;
• Members who are able to adapt more readily to changing demands within their profession.

The market will benefit from: -

• The assurance that the professionals are maintaining skills and developing new skills whilst also ensuring that their skills are passed to other members;
• Establish a quality benchmark of the competence of all members.

DEVELOPMENT ACTIVITIES

CPD is about improving your own performance and those of others at work, enhancing your career prospects, increasing your capacity for learning and being more efficient and confident when faced with challenges.

Your CPD activities would include: -

• Attending training courses, seminars, workshops and conferences;
• Serving on committees and technical committees of your professional association;
• Undertaking distance and open learning packages and qualification;
• Technical authorship of papers, teaching and facilitating or preparing of lectures for organised events.