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The concept of certification in HR is a curious one. Unlike some professions, there are no formal or universally ap plied requirements to practice HR. Of course, many employers expect their HR teams to have specialist qualifications, but can a qualification really "certify" someone to practice in a particular field?
Most employers look for more than a qualification when recruiting HR practitioners; they look for a symbol of professionalism that indicates an individual's commitment to raising his or her standards of knowledge, capability, and ethical practice. In the U.K., and increasingly in other parts of the world, particularly Southeast Asia and the Middle East, that mark of professionalism comes in the form of chartered membership in the Chartered Institute of Personnel and Development (CIPD). Headquartered in the U.K., with more than 140,000 members worldwide, we're among only a handful of professional bodies in the world that awards HR and L&D professionals with chartered status.
All chartered members of the CIPD must demonstrate that they have the technical knowledge, skills, behaviors and experience outlined in our body of knowledge, the Profession Map.
The Profession Map was first published in 2008, after a large-scale research program involving organizations all around the world, and we've been continually updating it ever since. As well as defining the building blocks of effective people management practice across 10 professional areas or specializations, including L&D and organization design, it also describes eight fundamental behaviors that underpin good HR regardless of your specialty (see chart).
A range of CIPD qualifications help provide individuals with...