Consider these three statements. The CIPD has robust, global standards against which we can benchmark what it takes to be a credible and effective HR professional – at all stages of your HR career. We have a vision of the future of the HR profession, one that will position us ever more clearly as the crucial business discipline we are, not simply a people discipline. The CIPD understands who its existing and potential customers are, and is better placed to serve professionals, whether they are specialists or generalists, new entrants or experienced practitioners, whatever their sector or geographic base.
I wouldn’t have been able to reel off those three statements with such confidence four years ago, before Jackie Orme accepted the role of CIPD chief executive. Indeed I wouldn’t be sitting here today as CIPD president if I didn’t have this confidence – because those facts were central in convincing me to take on this role.
It’s against this backdrop that I and the rest of the CIPD board are now embarking on a task I never expected to happen “on my watch” – the task of recruiting a new chief executive for the institute. Jackie, as she focuses single-mindedly on her battle against pancreatic cancer, has asked to stand aside from her duties as chief executive. The intention is that she is able to return, when her health allows, to a different role at the CIPD and in the service of the HR profession. But Jackie was clear that it was right for the institute, and right for her, to commence a search now for someone to continue her work.
Jackie has delivered substantial change at the CIPD. Her successor will take on the leadership of a professional institute that commands the respect and support of business leaders and HR practitioners at all levels, and on an increasingly global scale. That’s why we are now looking for candidates with the vision and credibility to play a significant leadership role in the global HR profession. We seek someone who is a strategist and business leader with international and board level experience: someone who can be an opinion former and voice for HR in the world of business and employment policy.
This high profile role offers the opportunity to lead an HR profession that is more confident, more global, more business-focused, and contributing ever more value to the organisations it serves. It is an exciting role, and I look forward to appointing and working closely with a new leader of the institute and the profession.
I just didn’t expect to be leading a search so soon, and under these circumstances. I’ve been touched by the overwhelming good wishes and support we have received for Jackie over the past few months. My thoughts remain firmly with her and her family as she continues her fight back to good health.
Better apprentices
The CIPD has strongly supported the revitalisation of apprenticeships under this and the previous government. To mark National Apprenticeship Week, we’re publishing a major new guide to support HR professionals in developing and running high-quality apprenticeships that will enhance the credibility of this route into occupations and professions. Our thanks to the skills minister, John Hayes (pictured), for endorsing the guide, which you can get on the CIPD website from 6 February. I urge you to give it a read and link it to all your determined efforts to help young people into work.
Revising reward
So much heat is being generated on the topic of executive pay – but not enough light. Without doubt there have been shocking examples of reward for failure. But where do the real solutions lie? For us in HR, it shouldn’t be as intractable as the heated debate sometimes suggests. Systems of reward should be simple and transparent. And they should be clearly focused on rewarding behaviours and actions that deliver long-term, sustainable performance, not just short-term results. For me, what is required is openness about performance criteria (while being sensitive to market issues) and the discipline to make sure total reward and performance are clearly linked.
This blog is based on the View from the CIPD article in PM’s February issue.
Hello Gill,
Please convey my regards to Jackie. Hope she gets well soon.
In these uncertain times, I believe HR teams have a much stronger and important role to play in improving productivity and reducing operating costs. The team needs to be more global and aligned to the business goals of the organisations it serves.
Thus I pray that you find a suitable person for this high profile role as the opportunity to lead Europe’s largest HR organisation could not have come at a more crucial time.