CHAPTER CERTIFICATION NEWS
Winter/Spring 2009
NC SHRM Certification Director: Paula H. Harvey, SPHR, GPHR
Please contact her at: paula@kandpconsult.com 704-341-4340
WE PASSED THE 100,000 MARK OF WORLDWIDE
CERTIFIED THIS YEAR!!!!!!!!!!!!!
NC Certification Stats as of March 17, 2009,291
North Carolina
GPHR
19
North Carolina
GPHR/PHR
3
North Carolina
GPHR/SPHR
21
North Carolina
PHR
1861
North Carolina
SPHR
1524
North Carolina
SPHR-CA
2
3430
State Total
NC increased certified professional by 129 in the Winter testing window.
World-wide Total Number of Certified Professionals: 100,607
PHR: 56,332
SPHR: 42,488
GPHR: 790
PHR/GPHR 128
SPHR/GPHR 495
PHR-CA 140
SPHR-CA 225
SPHR-CA/GPHR 9
2009 Exam Schedule
Exam
Testing Window
Duration
1st Testing Window
PHR/SPHR
8 weeks
May 1 -- June 30, 2009
GPHR
4 weeks
May 1 -- 31, 2009
2nd Testing Window
Dec. 1, 2009 -- Jan. 31,
2010
Dec. 1 -- Dec. 31, 2009
Application Deadlines
Exam
Late Deadline
Date
Window
Reg. Deadline Date
PHR/SPHR
May 1 - June 30, 2009
March 13, 2009
April 17, 2009
PHR/SPHR
Dec. 1, 2009 - January 31, 2010
Oct. 09, 2009
Nov. 13, 2009
GPHR
May 1 - May 31, 2009
March 13, 2009
April 17, 2009
GPHR
Dec. 1 - Dec. 31, 2009
Oct. 09, 2009
Nov. 13, 2009
Pass rates for the May 2008- Jun 2008 window: (Winter not available yet)
PHR pass rate was 60%.
SPHR pass rate was 54%.
GPHR pass rate was 64%.
The Recertification rate was 74% for 2008, which was close to HRCI’s goal.
The goal for 2009 is 80%.
There are many professionals up for recertification this year, more than usual. Please check
your state council and chapters’ website for recertification program opportunities. Don’t let
all that hard work to get certified go to waste, stay certified!!!
Below are articles on strategic credits and low-cost ways to recertify..
What Counts for Strategic Management Credit?
The Strategic Management domain of the PHR/SPHR Body of Knowledge encompasses those
HR responsibilities that fall OUTSIDE of the traditional human resources function. Generally,
if the subject matter is contained in one of the five other domains of the Body of Knowledge
(Workforce Planning & Employment, Human Resource Development, Total Rewards,
Employee and Labor Relations, and Risk Management), it belongs there and NOT in the
Strategic Management Domain.
Continuing education in Strategic Management is designed to encourage HR professionals to
learn more about "the business" in order to be able to make a greater contribution to
organizational success. Therefore, if the main focus of the continuing education activity is
business-related (i.e. educating the HR professional in relevant aspects of finance,
marketing, information technology, etc) it is considered Strategic Management. Similarly,
information related to the general business environment, such as industry practices and
developments, technological developments, economic environment, and labor
pool/demographic trends, would also qualify. Courses whose primary focus involves
strategic planning, budgeting, corporate social responsibility, corporate governance/ethics
and due diligence for mergers & acquisitions are other examples.
Another component of Strategic Management is the alignment of HR goals with
organizational goals. Therefore, if the primary focus of an activity is aligning human capital
activities with the business plan, it crosses into the Strategic Management domain. Some
examples include developing metrics to measure HR’s contributions, integrating technology
into HR applications, and establishing leadership development systems tied to organizational
goals.
It is important to note that taking a “strategic approach” to an issue or developing a
“strategy” does not qualify an activity for Strategic Management credit. Additionally, if a
course is designated as Strategic Management, it does not mean that it is necessarily a
“senior-level” presentation or one that is more important than another. It does mean that
the primary focus of the course is tied to overall organizational operations and the subject
matter goes beyond traditional “HR-related” topics.
Anyone whose SPHR certification cycle ends in 2006 or later is required to record 15
strategic management hours in order to recertify their designation. Because HRCI receives a
lot of questions about what activities qualify for strategic management credit hours, we
thought it might be helpful to provide the pointers found below. In addition we've compiled
a list of sample activities, essay contest samples and held Virtual Counselor sessions on the
topic.
First, it is highly recommended that certificants review pages 11-17 of the HRCI
Recertification Handbook. Here you will find examples of different strategic-level activities.
It is also recommended that you cite the specific functional responsibility area (01-18 under
the “Strategic Management” section of the PHR/SPHR Body of Knowledge) when providing a
description of the activity in your recertification application. This exercise alone can
frequently help you to determine if an activity is strategic in nature.
When filling out your application make sure to include enough detail in your activity
description for the application reviewer to make a determination on whether the activity
meets the requirement of being strategic. The title of an activity or course often does not
provide enough detail to make a decision.
Strategic management responsibilities are defined as: “Developing, contributing to, and
supporting the organization’s mission, vision, values, strategic goals, and objectives;
formulating policies; guiding and leading the change process; and evaluating HR’s
contributions to organizational effectiveness.”
Here are some questions to ask yourself when deciding whether an activity should be
submitted as “strategic”
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How was the activity grassroots or legislative in nature?
If you developed a program that encouraged your company or its employees to give
back to the community, how did it contribute to your organization's strategic goals
and objectives?
How did the activity influence a major organizational change and how did that impact
the bottom line?
How did the activity influence leadership training, change management following a
major transition, or set ethical standards for your organization?
How did you measure the business impact and the ROI for your organization?
It is also important to understand what is NOT considered to be a strategic management
activity. Here are some examples:
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Courses that instruct professionals on how to do their jobs, for instance
communications techniques, customer service or time management.
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Conventional “HR-related” seminars and workshops. (These will often qualify for
general recertification credit hours, but not strategic management).
Participating in, rather than developing, community-related activities.
Community involvement unrelated to your organization’s mission (e.g., being a Girl
Scout Leader).
Implementing an initiative that others have developed.
Establishing or initiating standard HR programs, such as performance review policies
or selecting a health care provider.
Activities that bring your organization into compliance with established labor laws
and/or regulations.
Remember, your recertification application should clearly demonstrate why each activity
should be awarded strategic management hours. The more detailed a description you give
that supports your case, the more likely it will be awarded strategic management credits. If
it is determined that your activity does not qualify for strategic management credit our
recertification specialists may reassign it toward general recertification credits.
HRCI will continue to offer instructions and guidance on this recertification requirement.
Watch your emails and our website for upcoming webcasts, seminars and helpful hints. You
may also email specific questions to info@hrci.org. Please allow 2-4 business days for a
response.
Sample Strategic Management Activities
The following are samples of activities that could qualify for the strategic management
recertification requirement under the Continuing Education and the On-The-Job Experience
categories. Please note that any activity that is not clearly HR related (e.g. accounting,
marketing, information management systems) must include an explanation on how the
activity added to your strategic knowledge and made you a more valuable contributor to
your organization.
Continuing Education
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Finance for Non-financial Managers
Accounting & Finance for HR Professionals
Building Corporate Culture
Change Management
Business Ethics
HR Metrics/ Human Capital Measurement (How to Measure ROI )
Industry-Related Trends in the Workplace
Upper Level Business Writing
Leadership Development Seminars
C-Suite Communications (e.g., Leadership, Change Management)
Executive Coaching
Marketing Workshops (e.g., Fundamentals, Market Trends)
Information Management Systems (e.g., HRMS, HRIS Trends)
High-Impact Succession Management
Leadership Imperative: Strategies for Building Leadership Bench Strength
Strategies for Building a High-Performance Workforce
On-The-Job Experience
In this category, certificants must demonstrate strategic involvement or contribution in the
process and that the activity affected the organizational culture, bottom line or “way the
business is run.” Recertification credit can only be earned for first-time work experience in
this category. Here are some examples:
• Being an active contributor to the organization’s strategic planning process.
• Participating in merger & acquisition activities (e.g., conducting due diligence, making
recommendations, and/or developing transition plan).
• Outsourcing (e.g., conducting cost-benefit analysis, making a business case)
• Conducting an environmental scan for specific business planning purposes.
• Leading a change management process following a major organizational transition (e.g.,
sale, merger, reengineering process).
• Participating in the establishment of an international business.
• Research, development and implementation of policies that are specific to the
organization’s needs (e.g., developing a school-to-work program, instituting a phased
retirement program due to workforce and business operations).
• Developing an organizational code of ethics.
• Delivering leadership training for management.
• Developing a balanced scorecard metrics to measure effectiveness of the HR department.
In addition to the examples listed above, we also suggest referring to the HRCI Approved
Provider Directory for organizational programs preapproved for recertification credits. The
Society for Human Resource Management (SHRM), an affiliate of HRCI and an Approved
Provider, offers events (e.g., the CEO Exchange or SHRM Academy) that have been
preapproved for strategic management recertification credits. In addition, for all of the
SHRM conferences, HRCI has designated those sessions that qualify for strategic
management credit and international credit as such. These sessions are designated in the
program brochures both online and in hard copy with an SM or GPHR indicator. Please visit
our website at www.hrci.org/CEPreApprovals/DAP/ to view other pre-approved events that
may qualify for strategic management recertification credits.
Low-Cost Recertification Activities
In these tough economic times maintaining your certification is more important than ever. Your
certification is an asset during these times because it will help you differentiate yourself from
your peers to your employer or hiring manager. Certification tells your employer or the hiring
manager that you are committed to learning and staying on top of the ever changing HR
profession.
To help reach this goal, there are many recertification activities that won’t be costly or take you
far from your work or home.
For instance, you can earn many hours through your daily work responsibilities and other
professional activities. In fact, you may already be doing activities that could count for
recertification credit and not even know it!
As you know, sixty credit hours must be accumulated during your three-year recertification
cycle. Credit hours can be obtained through:
• on-the-job experience,
• leadership roles and mentoring,
• research and publishing,
• professional membership in a national HR professional association,
• teaching an HR-related topic within your organization or outside, and
• continuing education (web- or classroom-based)
Here are a few low-cost ways to earn your recertification credits.
Certificants can earn recertification credit by participating in webcasts or downloading podcasts
of HR-related on-line classes. The maximum amount of continuing education credit that a
certificant can accumulate through videoconferences, audiotapes and webcasts is 20
recertification credit hours over a three-year period. For more information about calculating
recertification credit hours, please review the section titled “Calculating Recertification Credit.”
To find webcasts or other continuing education events that have been pre-approved for credit use
our searchable online program directory. It contains hundreds of programs that fit your needs and
have been pre-approved for recertification credit, which you can quickly and easily find.
You may also earn credit by making a formal HR-related presentation made within your
organization (for example, sexual harassment training) or as an instructor of a course, workshop,
seminar or session at a conference.
Recertification credit can be earned for a first-time work experience if that activity adds to the
understanding of the HR body of knowledge. Examples of on-the-job projects that may be
awarded recertification credit include:
• Research and design of a new benefit plan.
• Research, design and implementation of a diversity program.
• Research, design and implementation of a new performance management system.
• Research and implementation of a new HRIS system.
The HR Certification Institute awards recertification credit in leadership for certificants who
support the HR profession by contributing their HR expertise in areas outside of their workplace.
This category recognizes the importance of not only “giving back” to the profession and
promoting excellence, but to contributing one’s professional knowledge to the community.
Listed below are some examples of leadership activities that may earn recertification credit
hours.
Officer positions on
boards
Committee chair
Committee member
Mentoring
Recertification
Credits Per Year
Recertification Credits Per
Year Recertification
Credits Maximum (3 Years)
5
10
5
3
5
10
9
10
For more ways to earn recertification credit please review the Recertification Handbook.
Look HR Smart: Certify
Stay HR Smart: Recertify