The construction industry needs to ensure that the knowledge and skills of construction professionals are maintained to ensure they remain professional individuals and stay up to date. This could mean improving on current skills, developing them to a new level, or it could mean learning new ones that will allow that professional’s job role to expand or prepare them for potential promotion.
For many years, the construction industry has increased its commitment to ongoing development. Many professional bodies and institutions have introduced mandatory CPD requirements and different methodologies for doing CPD.
For example, the Royal Institute of British Architects (RIBA) requires all chartered members to undertake at least 35 hours of CPD per year. The RIBA regularly audits member records to check compliance.
The CPD undertaken could include:
- Online and F2F training courses
- Reading reports, magazine, websites or other publications
- Attending conferences, seminars or workshops
- Supervising apprentices/students
- Training other members of staff
Technology is continuously developing so there are new methods of construction always being introduced and therefore a need for training and development of these skills is necessary. CPD gives professionals the opportunity to increase their understanding of the industry and keep up to date with latest changes and product developments. Lifelong learning is the new normal with so many updates and new developments happening all the time, thus why CPD is so important to a career in the construction industry.
With advances in technology, changes in regulation, and increasing specialisation in various fields, CPD is becoming the normal for many construction professionals looking to get ahead in their careers, and also for many employers who are hoping to meet their business objectives.
Construction being a fast paced industry, it needs to keep the profession up to date on workplace changes and education for all professionals aligned to building and construction. CPD is a widely recognised and successful method of education which highlights the importance of undertaking CPD requirements aligned to each professional body. This requires companies who provide training to be able to issue CPD points so that learners can put this to their CPD record, thus why having your training activities is more important than ever.