Level 3 to Level 7

Interesting series of posts which for me illustrate some very different perceptions of what the CIPD level 7 qualification seeks to do, and there really are two very different schools of thought displayed in this and other recent posts. Both schools agree that the qualification aims to confirm that the holder has acquired the technical knowledge that is a prerequisite to undertaking certain tasks, but they seem to differ in the following way :

• The first school also seems to hold an underlying belief (wish?) that the qualification also certifies that a demonstrated ability has been tested, showing that the person knows how to apply these skills appropriately in a range of different professional environments.
• The second school differs in the belief that simply having acquired knowledge is in itself no guarantee of an ability to apply it appropriately, and that ultimately this competency can really only be acquired by facing a variety of real-life situations;  this usually calls for several years of work in a more senior position, applying personal professional judgement, where "right" answers rarely exist, and specific business contexts will drive the selection of the most appropriate solution..

My own experience of teaching the comp & ben parts of on an MBA in international HR, and also acting as examiner/assessor for certifying specific competencies in the Comp & Ben area has allowed me to see brilliant students who sailed through the academic qualification with no problems, but then ran into a brick wall when faced with orally assessed case studies which called for abilities like :

• selecting and coordinating multi-functional teams on a major HR project
• identifying appropriate sources (internal and external) to be called upon to undertake a position analysis requested by senior management in an area where legislation is about to change or has recently changed (not an unusual situation).
• .......

Students with little experience in applying this knowledge in varying operational situations were often at a loss to explain how they would proceed with this type of (fairly basic) problem - consequently although they passed the MBA examinations, they failed to achieve a certification of particular professional applies skills. Some of them came back 3-4 years later for certification tests, and after having had the chance to cut their teeth applying the knowledge, had less difficulty in being certified.

Interesting post Ray, I agree there are definitely two different schools of thought here, but please don’t think I am saying that someone who can study Level 7 can then perform in the workplace to the same level as an HR Director or equivalent with extensive experience. I believe that operational experience is far more important than the theoretical knowledge that can be acquired through Level 7, but it is a chicken and egg situation.

I have seen so many job adverts for HR Advisor or HR BP roles that look for CIPD Level 7 qualifications. How can this be right or fair if the qualification is only designed for Senior/Directors? If someone is looking to move into these types of role I would absolutely encourage them to study Level 7 as it is my firm belief it is attractive on the CV to employers and something that they have come to expect, rightly or wrongly. Therefore if the OP has a desire to step up/progress, I feel it would be wrong to discourage her from studying Level 7.

@ Sophie

It is exactly divergence of vision that creates the problem that you outline. My point really is that the level 7 qualification is not IMHO a certification that the appropriate level of specific competencies have been acquired to use these skills in an operational context.

I have no problem with people wanting to increase or improve on their technical knowledge - that will almost always be a good thing. The real challenge for them will be to get themselves in a situation where this deeper technical knowledge will be of operational use in the job that they have or even the next one in their career.

The other side of the issue is one of companies who recruit and overstate the level of qualification that is needed for the job in question, in the belief that the qualification guarantees the existence of appropriate operational competencies - not a rare occurence, believe me. Often this can produce 2 results :

• frustrated new employees who are under-utilised, 
• frustrated employers when their new employee is seen as not operating at the expected level

To be honest, the different membership grades offer a sound opportunity to obtain the equivalent of a competencies certification, and a level 7 qualification without MCIPD would provoke some deep questioning from me at interview stage. Both routes are relevant for different purposes - knowledge via examination and certification via membership levels.

@ Sophie

It is exactly divergence of vision that creates the problem that you outline. My point really is that the level 7 qualification is not IMHO a certification that the appropriate level of specific competencies have been acquired to use these skills in an operational context.

I have no problem with people wanting to increase or improve on their technical knowledge - that will almost always be a good thing. The real challenge for them will be to get themselves in a situation where this deeper technical knowledge will be of operational use in the job that they have or even the next one in their career.

The other side of the issue is one of companies who recruit and overstate the level of qualification that is needed for the job in question, in the belief that the qualification guarantees the existence of appropriate operational competencies - not a rare occurence, believe me. Often this can produce 2 results :

• frustrated new employees who are under-utilised, 
• frustrated employers when their new employee is seen as not operating at the expected level

To be honest, the different membership grades offer a sound opportunity to obtain the equivalent of a competencies certification, and a level 7 qualification without MCIPD would provoke some deep questioning from me at interview stage. Both routes are relevant for different purposes - knowledge via examination and certification via membership levels.