At last an online Continuous Professional Development (CPD) scheme for the PR profession. It’s a neat feature that’s included within the spec of the CIPR’s new site.

The PR industry isn’t certified like some other professions but the CIPR CPD scheme requires professionals to collect a total of 60 points per year across four areas of professional expertise (I’ve nailed 30 so far this year).

Points are accumulated from attending breakfast briefings, conferences, training courses, participating in CIPR activities and online training.

“Now that it’s online, membership of the CPD scheme is growing fast. The key now is to link this to professional development programmes and performance objectives with outcomes […] at all stages of a career. What’s important is the commitment to continued development,” said CIPR President Jay O’Connor.

The PR industry has just taken a step closer to growing up and truly becoming a profession.