Connect Case Study – Continuous Professional Development (CPD)

In the early stage of the Connect ‘Establishing Union Learning Representatives Project’ 2006, the union commissioned a piece of research work from Cardiff University to explore how the role of the ULR would fit into managerial and professional work environments. The result of the survey indicated a clear need for the ULR role and this has subsequently proved to be so in practice. The ULR work has concentrated both on members’ professional and personal learning needs.

The unionlearn definition of CPD is,

“Any process or activity that provides added value to the capability of the professional through the increase in knowledge, skills and personal qualities necessary for professional and technical duties.”

This fitted the Connect approach. Connect members are highly skilled and qualified so CPD needs are individual and varied. At the beginning of the project, the expectation was that most of the CPD needs would be directly related to the members’ present roles. However it has turned out that there are more queries relating to learning that might lead to new careers in the current business or elsewhere.

Circumstances change and in the current climate BT have a voluntary redundancy scheme which has tempted people to take the package and leave the company, leading people to look for additional or different skills and knowledge for life outside of BT. Consequently the project has focused on providing career and professional skills development.

Kirsi Kekki, the ULF Project Manager, said,

“Most ULRs mention taking up the ULR training course and role as a CPD opportunity for them. Some BT ULRs have included the role in their Personal Development Plans. A piece of good practice can be found in the Midlands region where one ULR has taken an interest in his fellow reps’ CPD as representatives and that has resulted in regular training slots in Regional Committee meetings. We have started to build relationships with providers like Open University (OU) and Birkbeck College on the basis that they offer Higher Education that would fit members’ needs. Some of our ULRs have explored how professional bodies like the British Computer Society and Institution of Telecommunication Professionals work could benefit ULRs’ and members’ CPD.”