CPD Certification: What Is It and Why Is It Important

CPD certification is a familiar concept to employees dedicated to their professional growth. They are looking for accredited programs that will have a genuine influence on their career development.

This is your sign to implement CPD courses into your training program and achieve the CPD accredited standard. Explore this guide to understand CPD certification and its close relationship with certificate makers.

What is CPD certification?

CPD stands for Continuing Professional Development, and it’s all about keeping your knowledge and skills sharp in a fast-paced professional world. In practice, it’s ongoing training activities and professional development plans to maintain and expand skills in a business context. It includes a range of ways to acquire these professional skills – workshops, seminars, online courses, webinars, and collaborative events like conferences.

CPD Standards as a course quality guard

It’s easy to assume that all professional courses fall into the CPD category. However, to define a certain training program with the CPD Standard, it has to meet specific requirements set by professional bodies or external agencies. Upon completion of such structured programs, official certificates are provided.

In short: CPD Standards guarantee that the learning is structured, relevant, and impactful. It verifies that any activity labeled as CPD meets a certain quality.

Note: CPD courses are temporary. It means that employees in regulated sectors (e.g., healthcare, accountancy, social work) can lose their licenses. They must attend training courses regularly or complete self-directed learning activities to earn CPD points – and keep their license up. 

Benefits of accredited CPD courses

You'll get a lot of benefits from CPD certification. And so do your course participants.

• Credibility and validation – this stamp of approval tells potential participants that experts in the field back your training.

• Wider reach – professionals looking to boost their skills tend to choose accredited CPD courses because they know the content matches current trends and best practices to acquire professional qualifications.

• Good for participants – when individuals finish accredited CPD courses, they tend to have better job roles and opportunities, an easier path to success, improved work performance, and a higher chance of getting hired.

• Partnership opportunities – courses with CPD Standards can open doors to potential partnerships with accreditation institutions, industry associations, education colleges, and professional networks.

How to provide CPD courses to increase the value of your training?

Whether you are an employer, a specialist training provider, or a small business owner with a unique training program, this can help you understand how to develop CPD certification. And if you do not aim to achieve the CPD label, these steps can still help you improve your training program's quality. See how.

Note: If you need support in the assessment process, you can take advantage of the professional CPD service. From April 2023, Certifier is the CPD Standards Office partner. As a result, its members are entitled to an exclusive range of benefits and services (including discounts, priority support, and personalized onboarding).

#1 Align with recognized CPD Standards

The CPD courses must meet the current set of requirements. It’s the official confirmation that your training program is up to the highest content standards. All of that can literally boost credibility in the eyes of potential participants.

There is no way back. Once you achieve the CPD certification standard, you have to update your training program constantly to keep the label next to your course title.

How to keep your courses accreditation compatible? Check updated information on official CPD websites, such as CPD UK or CPD Standards.

#2 Offer flexible hands-on learning

Although theoretical knowledge is crucial, practical qualifications truly enrich the learning experience and deliver the best level of service. Include workshops, case studies, and real-world simulations in your training program. A diverse learning experience keeps you fresh and competitive (and engages your learners!).

Also, recognize the varied needs of professionals. Offer flexible learning modes like online self-paced online programs, webinars, or even modular courses that allow learners to take classes at their own pace and learning time.

#3 Provide verifiable certificates

Upon CPD course completion, you have to provide your participants with the verified certificates to meet qualitative standards. It not only gives participants tangible proof of their efforts but also increases trust in your training programs. Credentials are official document that shows their qualifications in a particular job role, something that they can share with their network or include in their curriculum to boost career opportunities.

Tip: If you’re looking for a tool that allows you to create verified certificates in a matter of minutes, Certifier is a reliable tool to use. If you want to meet all the norms, you can use ready-made templates and then modify them as needed. It provides an intuitive built-in editor and automates the whole sending process so that you can send even hundreds of certificates with one click. See how swift and efficient it can be to manage CPD certifications with certificate makers.

#4 Invite industry experts

Collaboration with industry leaders or experts as guest lecturers is a strategy that is extremely valuable. Experts' first-hand insights and experiences enrich the content of your course and provide a practical dimension that participants deeply appreciate. The real-world knowledge they bring to the table not only validates the credibility of your course but also offers participants a glimpse into the challenges and opportunities within the entire industries.

#5 Apply for comprehensive assessment and verify your course

Once you have met all the points above, you can apply to official institutions and request an assessment of your course program to become CPD accredited training provider. According to the CPD Certification Service, the whole process takes you 3 simple steps.

• Step 1: Apply for accreditation online by filling out the form. You have to provide brief information about your organization, your offerings, courses, training, and events.

• Step 2: Wait for a response. The CPD accreditation team will contact you to get more information and explain the features of CPD membership and the benefits you receive as a CPD provider.

• Step 3: Now, as a CPD provider, you can easily submit your courses and learning for review and approval to get CPD certification.

Through a comprehensive assessment, you guarantee that your course is thoroughly reviewed and aligned with industry developments and best practices. This step not only elevates the value of your course but also positions you as a provider dedicated to offering exceptional educational experiences.

The critical role of certified certificate makers for CPD training providers

High-quality CPD programs go in paired with verified certificates. They’re the official confirmation of actual hours that participants spent on a commitment to skill development. Labeled as CPD certification, your courses need additional safety measures. Certified certificate-maker tools are of paramount importance here.

Security and authentication of your courses

Keeping your participants’ data safe is crucial (especially since fraud is a click away). The best certificate makers have built-in complex security features, from watermarks to unique identifiers and QR codes. All of that guarantees the authenticity of each issued certificate. And thanks to Certifier, you don’t have to worry about GDPR compliance or any other procedures. Aside from that, you can host all your certificates on one secure page with a custom URL.

Boosted brand image for course providers

Perception is everything. A beautifully crafted, compliant certificate not only validates the learner's achievement but elevates the reputation of the course provider. Even better if they’re easy to share. For example, with Certifier, you can send emails with certificates that contain Facebook, Twitter, and LinkedIn sharing buttons. You can create relationships with your participants as well as reach out to a broader community.

Streamlined and efficient certification process

Creating certificates manually, which could lead to errors, is a thing of the past. Modern certificate makers make it possible to generate thousands of certificates in bulk, error-free. Some of them (Certifier does!) even provide integration with Google Sheets or Excel to automatically pull over the recipients’ data from the spreadsheet. That sounds useful, right?

Administrative burdens reduced

Let’s face it, administrative tasks can be a drag. Commercial training providers know they can reduce their administrative burden and get more time to focus on, e.g., training quality. Certificate makers hold the key to this secret. Under one Certifier dashboard, you can organize all your certificates. It can be your managing panel to handle such stuff as sending, creating, sharing, and tracking credentials. To make your CPD courses even more professional experience.

Certifier and CPD: a symbiotic relationship

CPD certification guides professionals toward excellence and constant development. The certificate makers help authenticate and recognize this journey.

For you, as a CPD educational provider now, it is vital to supply learners with certificates that are secure. Certifier helps you do that with its customizable design, robust security, and automated system. Get started for free and see how it streamlines your work.