Planning is the essence of successful CPD. Robin Wood suggests the content and structure of a CPD plan
Probably one of the most common dilemmas anyone faces in a profession is what counts as CPD and how can it be planned.
This often causes considerable confusion among those charged with the responsibility of planning CPD activity for staff or for themselves.
The object of this week's CPD is to understand more about the value attached to an event or activity and how to plan ahead.
First check with any of the institutes, associations or societies with whom you are affiliated. Take it as read that you will be expected to keep a CPD log for each relevant person.
Here are two key questions: does the body insist on approving an activity for it to be acceptable as CPD? If not, does the body have any guidelines?
In the absence of any rules or guidelines this is what you should consider. Make a list of all the activities in generic form. Examples are: technical training; soft skills training; reading industry related material; being involved with industry related organisations; attending events and learning courses.
Key test
Specific activities may then be allocated to each heading. One of the key tests is: "Does the material being learned improve a person's ability to work in the industry?"
A good example is that of an evening class in French. If the person is likely to need the knowledge in the industry then it could be CPD. So for someone who is never likely to use French in his work the answer is no.
For example, if the course is not just to learn French for holidays, but to learn business French, then as a general rule any foreign language learning should be encouraged and credit should be given.
Next, code each activity. There are three codes - structured, unstructured and a combination of both.
If the activity has an agenda with defined learning objectives it is classed as structured. Ideally the activity should include some form of assessment and define to whom and at what level the activity is aimed.
The unstructured type of learning is ad hoc learning, or with an agenda, but with no defined learning objectives.
For the combination of the two, the activity may include both of the above.
Now, a time value should be allocated. Bear in mind that this may be possible only after the activity is completed. For example, the CII might suggest a time value of 40 hours for a structured examination course. But someone who studies more slowly might take more time than someone who has good recall and reading skills.
A good tip is to give structured learning a full credit and unstructured 50% credit.
For example: Reading Insurance Times each week - 30 minutes (unstructured) is recorded as a 15 minute credit.
But reading Insurance Times each week and extracting all technical articles for reading and retaining in a learning and reference file - 1 hour (structured) is recorded as a 1 hour full credit.
The relevance of the learning material can also be allocated in the form of a rating guide to assist you or your staff. For example you might split activity into three levels of difficulty, basic, medium and high.
Technical:
Soft skills:
Industry awareness/involvement:
A major factor is that you should identify the cost of each activity.
Now you can devise a CPD plan for yourself, or for your staff if you have that responsibility. This is this week's exercise.
What do you think would be a good minimum of CPD to set for yourself over the next year?
What should be the split between technical, soft and industry awareness?
What should be the split between structured and unstructured?
Let us consider some possible answers:
I would like to spend two hours per week on CPD.
I am intermediate technical and would like to improve this towards high.
I am hopeless at dealing with people and as a start would like to improve my basic telephone skills.
I have been asked if I would organise lecture evenings for my trade association.
I would like to split my CPD equally between these.
I want 75% structured and will limit unstructured to one hours regular reading of trade press etc per week.
If you are completing this exercise as structured CPD you should now be spending up to say an half an hour making your own bulleted list.
Diary note
It is difficult to plan for more than six months as things change and new activities arise all the time. Unless you are signing up to an ongoing activity, such as exam study, look at the next six months and make a diary note to plan the following period in say five months' time.
So how does your matrix look when set against the list of activities you have drawn up? See table for a typical CPD matrix.
Using the example above we might be able to construct the following plan
For a six month period this is a balanced plan that exceeds your laid down minimum and is readily affordable.
Do be careful that the plan does not encroach too much on work time, but never be afraid to allow a member of staff to take say an extended lunch, each week for the exam study. CPD is about give and take.
Finally, and a key learning point, it is the individual who should complete the plan. If you are constructing the parameters for others - perhaps staff - that is fine. But ultimately it should be the individual who, knowing and understanding the rules, should choose set the scene for their own CPD.
This page is edited by RW Associates, specialists in training, competence and compliance. Email to:
ruy.lopez@rwassociates.softnet.co.uk.
Using this CPD page
For the vast majority of practitioners and indeed support and supervisory staff in our industry, CPD is about regular learning and study that is planned, recorded, timed and evaluated.
If you are a member of a professional body with a CPD requirement then there will be certain rules regarding the quality and nature of study material, and the way in which it is recorded.
For staff of GISC members this means recording on your individual training file what the learning was, who provided it and when.
It might be structured, such as a course, a learning programme or exam study. But it can be unstructured. This form of study encompasses reading the trade press, technical material or taking part in activities to support your professional body.
Some CPD requirements are points related (a little antiquated) and others require a time value to be allocated.
For example, it might take one hour to read Insurance Times each week. Most of that could be put as a time value but, in reality, perhaps only an half hour was devoted to learning something. The rule is to be honest with yourself and record the time that is relevant.
Always take time to make a note of what you felt you gained from the activity. This is useful information for anyone else considering the same activity.
In response to the popularity of our CPD programme each week's CPD page can now be downloaded from our website. We will be preparing a binder for you to keep these in alongside the results of the exercises.
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