Continuing Professional Development (CPD) and Professional Development Units (PDU)
Due to brisk developments in information technology (IT), the shelf life of the library and the information study degree is becoming shorter and shorter. New competencies are required by information professionals to maintain their competitive edge and work effectively in a rapidly changing environment.
Engaging in Continuing Professional Development ensures that both academic and practical qualifications do not become out-dated or obsolete, allowing individuals to continually ‘up skill’ or ‘re-skill’ regardless of occupation, age or educational level.
A structured, practical and methodical approach to learning helps employers across industries to retain key staff and develop the skills & knowledge in their organisations to maintain a sustainable and competitive advantage.
Continuing professional development is the intentional maintenance and development of the knowledge and skills needed to perform in a professional context. This could mean honing current skills, it could mean developing them to a new level, or it could mean learning new ones that will allow an employee’s job role to expand or prepare them for potential promotion.
CPD obligations are present in most professions. Most companies and organisations now prioritise them because they ensure a constantly developing workforce.
Structured CPD gives employees a clear path to success within their current role and progression to future ones. Employees in regulated industries (e.g. healthcare, accountancy, legal work) can lose their license to operate if they don’t maintain their CPD.
CPD activities can range from formal educational activities such as instructor-led training courses, workshops or seminars, to more informal approaches such as work-based learning or mentoring. CPD can also include self-directed study such as e-learning courses and structured reading.
CPD enables learning to become conscious and proactive, rather than passive and reactive. CPD is the holistic commitment of professionals towards the enhancement of personal skills and proficiency throughout their careers.
CPD combines different methodologies to learning, such as training workshops, conferences and events, e-learning programs, best practice techniques and ideas sharing, all focused for an individual to improve and have effective professional development.
The unit used to measure ongoing development in the blockchain space is called Professional Development Units or PDU. One clock hour is one Professional Development Unit.
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Majid, S. (2004). Continuing Professional Development (CPD) Activities Organized by Library and Information Study Programs in Southeast Asia. Journal of Education for Library and Information Science, 45(1), 58–70. https://doi.org/10.2307/40323921
https://www.cpdstandards.com/what-is-cpd/
https://cpduk.co.uk/explained