From the HRINZ Chief Executive: Professional Development Programme Review
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A review of HRINZ's professional development programme is one of the first priorities I have been looking at after two months in the role of Chief Executive. This programme is an important part of our service offering to members and a key catalyst for members to join our HRINZ.
HRINZ has a framework that underpins its professional development offerings which consists of a model of progression through the HR profession and a competency model. The framework identifies entry, intermediate and expert levels of competency for human resource professionals in New Zealand. Of course career journeys are never as a linear as any framework might suggest. HRINZ already has some great offerings at an entry and intermediate level. At this point in an HR professionals career journey it's reasonably easy to create offerings that meet some of the fundamental needs particularly for technical competency areas. However as the HR professional progresses their development needs become more specific to them as an individual and the provision of courses with generic content becomes less relevant. Feedback from members consistently tells us that they want our professional development programme to better cater to the needs of more experienced HR professionals. It's an area we will be paying attention to whilst also strengthening the offerings for entry and intermediate level HR practitioners.
Of course professional development isn't all about attending courses and webinars. We all know that it is our work and life experiences that contribute the most to our development as people and professionals. To that end one of the potentially overlooked development opportunities that HRINZ membership offers is the chance to get involved at the Branch Committee level. As one of our excellent Branch Presidents put it to me, involvement with a local Committee can be an entry point for gaining governance experience. That's a really useful insight.
There are many great opportunities for development that come with involvement with the local Branch Committee. Committee members get involved with marketing, communications, financial management, event management, networking and leadership to mention just a few. In addition it's a great way to learn the formalities of meeting etiquettes and working within the framework of an organisations Constitution. These are important as the fundamentals that need to be understood in future governance roles.
Our Branch network is really the bedrock of HRINZ and the origins of our existence. Our recent member survey confirmed that the networking opportunities at a local level remain one of the most important benefits of membership.
I've been really impressed with the Branch Presidents and Committee members that I have met since starting with the Institute. This is an extremely dedicated group of people who drive a huge amount of our Institutes activity.
From a personal perspective I was a Committee member with the Waikato Branch of HRINZ when I first started out in a human resources role with New Zealand Post. The motivation for me was to get the most out of the networking opportunities from my membership and to contribute to the success of the local Branch. It was a formative experience for me and one which certainly stood me in good stead for my development within the profession and beyond.
As we look to enhance our professional development programme for the Institute it will be important to consider the offerings for those involved in Branch Committees as part of that. What opportunities might there be to provide development support to those who volunteer for Committees and the various roles within that including that of Branch President. For me this is one of the most important areas in which the team in Wellington need to support the growth and development of our membership.
Nick McKissack is HRINZ's new Chief Executive. He is passionate about human resources and comes with a strong track record in people leadership and process management.