Charting a new path

As APM begins a new era as a Chartered body, Project looks at what the new status means and talks to a number of other professional bodies about their own experiences as a maturing Chartered profession

At the APM Project Management Conference in April, APM President David Waboso spoke about the importance of the award of a Royal Charter for developing the profession. Outlining what it means for both for individual members and for the wider general public, he said: “It is a significant milestone. It will help to build more public confidence and trust in the project profession and helps provide coherence in establishing excellence in your skills and methods. And, it improves the delivery of real benefits and outcomes for projects for the public.

It is this trust that is perhaps the most compelling aspect of Chartered status – it is a mark of quality assurance and those who achieve it have reached a standard of professional excellence that the public can relate to and put their trust in. A 2015 survey carried out by the Chartered Institute of Building backed this up with 65 per cent of respondents agreeing that membership of a professional body would increase their trust in a professional.

Sharing knowledge
An important aim for APM as it evolves to meet the new demands of today’s economy and society will be collaboration with other professional bodies. As Waboso commented, “We must be joined up – collaboration will be a focus for APM.”

To find out more about the benefits of the Royal Charter for members and the profession as a whole, Project spoke to a number of professional bodies that have had Chartered status for a varying length of time. We asked for their insights about what Chartered means and to hear more about their experiences as a maturing profession.

Laura Harrison, director of strategy and transformation, Chartered Institute of Professional Development (CIPD), Awarded Chartered status: 2000

Being awarded a Royal Charter is a significant milestone for any organisation that aspires to credibility as a 'standard setter’. At the CIPD, the professional body for HR and people development, we achieved this recognition in 2000 and have been on a mission before and since to champion the status of our profession, and its professionals.

But receiving the Charter happens at a point in time. Credibility, at that important moment, is no guarantee of ongoing relevance. So at the CIPD, we are faced with the continual challenge of ensuring that our standards are up to date and represent the most progressive HR practices, so that when professionals carry our designation of 'Chartered Member of the CIPD’, those individuals represent the best of professionalism.

What does that mean? Well, we've interpreted that to mean that they are on top of a relevant body of knowledge, operate within a clear code of conduct and are prepared to put the interests of the profession and the wider world ahead of their own.

As you'll be aware, HR practitioners can have a huge influence on the lives of any organisation’s workforce, and that organisation's performance. So it's critical our Chartered professionals operate ethically, and are skilled in balancing the often complex and competing interests of the long term and the short, of customers and shareholders, as well as their employees and other workers. That's no small feat, it can mean being unpopular, sticking your head above the parapet, or working behind the scenes for very little recognition. And that's why, as a professional body, we take our public voice so seriously.

We also believe there is no room for complacency. A Chartered body could seem stuffy and irrelevant to a younger generation, more thrilled by peer recognition online than a stamp of approval from a professional institute. But it's up to us to face that challenge, because with the threats and opportunities posed by automation, Brexit and countless other big issues, it has never been more important to unite as professionals for better work and working lives.

Phil Morgan, deputy chief executive, Chartered Institute of Public Relations (CIPR), Awarded Chartered status: 2005

As well as the boost our Royal Charter gave to the recognition of PR as a profession, it also provided the opportunity for the CIPR to create individual Chartered Practitioners. Chartered status is a widely understood accreditation and our intention is that it should become the primary status among PR practitioners in the UK. Our purpose as a body has been reinterpreted as “creating a predominantly Chartered profession” in 10 years’ time.

In terms of the public interests benefits of being a Chartered body, the public has a clear interest in the regulation of professions. Our Royal Charter establishes the CIPR as the body responsible for the regulation of professional standards in public relations. Public relations professionals should be accountable for their technical competence and their ethical competence, in so far as their skills and abilities are use in pursuit of an objective, this should also done in a way which is consistent with a code of conduct.

Our Royal Charter has created a public expectation that the profession will develop in a direction that is consistent with the objects of the Charter itself. This has given the CIPR the opportunity to galvanise its purpose and focus resources on to the primary objective of driving PR to become a predominantly Chartered profession. In doing so, the industry should anticipate a change in its standing.

In creating a predominantly Chartered profession in public relations, we are seeking to increase the uptake of professionalism and spread best practice and accountability. The term “chartered” is easily understood by the public as a signifier of professionalism. Our hope is that this would fully establish PR as a profession and deliver better results for clients and employers.

Richard Hayward, head of PR and communications, Chartered Institute of Trade Mark Attorneys (CITMA), Awarded Chartered status: 2016

Our members provide vital support to business and the creative industries, and the public and businesses need to know that they are receiving the highest level of service – a Royal Charter is that badge of quality recognised by the public.

As we only became a Chartered body last year, it is probably too early to say how the status is evolving our profession, but initial feedback has been positive. It’s really pleasing to see just how many members are using the new title on their profiles, business cards and websites.

We want it to act as a seal of quality that our members are proud to display and our members can use to promote the services they provide, distinguishing themselves from those who are not regulated. We hope the new status will also help to raise awareness of intellectual property and its importance to business, both new and established.

We already had a very good relationship with governmental organisations including the Intellectual Property Office here in the UK, but the Royal Charter does give us greater gravitas. It continues our long and rich history as the pre-eminent organisation for trade marks and designs in the UK dating back to the 1930s and we pride ourselves on being able to help shape and influence developments in the law and practice in our area.

To APM I’d say this is a once in a lifetime opportunity for the organisation to reaffirm its position of pre-eminence and standing in the minds of its members, key stakeholders and the general public. Embrace the change and maximise the opportunities it presents. Make sure members have the tools they need to be able to share and shout about the organisation’s new status. And for those members who are ‘Chartered’ to be able to proudly display their title.

Setting the standard
APM is currently undertaking a wide body of work to establish the new Chartered standard and will be consulting widely with stakeholders throughout this process. As this work continues, a recent blog by APM chair John McGlynn set out a list of 10 key characteristics the Chartered standard will represent:

1. A recognisable mark of quality, setting standards of professionalism and performance.
2. Commitment to continuing professional development and a code of ethics.
3. Professional recognition of expertise.
4. Practical experience combined with theoretical knowledge.
5. Relevant to the needs of industry that allows Chartered practitioners to have greater influence with their employers.
6. Raising competence and improving project management skills.
7. Offers a clear professional development route.
8. Complements other professional accreditations.
9. Accredited project management professionals provide assurance to employers, contractors and the public.
10. The enhanced status of project management as a means of delivering effective change that improves our economy and society.