Hey all,
I am a level 7 CIPD student, with two units left before I complete my course in July. I am currently employed as a HR Director in a small business (65~ employees), prior to this I worked at very large companies as a "People Professional" in some form, albeit more of an Operations position than an HR position.
Throughout the past 2-3 years of part-time studying, I have had this growing stance on the entire qualification:
The CIPD qualification produces great HR essay writers, not great HR professionals.
Why is there absolutely zero practical work for any of the qualification? It would be so much more enriching and effective it included:
- Roleplays for very challenging disciplinaries
- Mini assignment to plan, manage and roleplay redundancies within an organistion end-to-end
- Tests to create a new organisational chart for a mock company
- Having to write mock letters responding to a tribunal claim process, to develop technical writing.
- Create a new reward structure for a mock company
- Develop and present a company first People Strategy/Plan
There's so much opportunity to real and practical development. Instead every unit feels the same:
- Be assigned unit
- Buy prescribed book(s)
- Read prescried book(s)
- Write a 4000 word essay
I met someone on my course who has received a merit for an essay on the topic of redundancy, but has never actual conducted a redundancy meeting of any kind in their career. This is a bit like me saying I can drive because I passed the theory test but failed the practical.
Does anyone else feel this way? Considering how much stuff I see from the CIPD promoting the use of new technology, staying modern and ahead of the curve etc. the actual qualification seems remarkably old school.
