The Importance of Continuous Learning
As the world’s industries continuously evolve, it gets increasingly difficult to overstate the importance of continuous learning, enabling individuals to reinforce and enhance their current skills while reducing any knowledge shortfalls.
A continuous learning approach enables individuals to take charge of their career development and aspirations and can translate directly into improved work performance. This benefits employers too, as staff are likely to be more motivated and loyal to a company that invests in them and supports their development.
Continuous learning ensures that both academic and vocational qualifications do not become obsolete, allowing individuals to continually up-skill and develop their proficiencies, regardless of their age, occupation or educational level, in order to meet prevailing market demands.
At its core, continuous learning helps individuals, organisations and entire industries maintain and develop knowledge and skills, but it also helps employees adapt to change. Continuous learning fundamentally enables up-skilling and provides the perfect solution for adaptation to meet new work or industry requirements.
Zip-Clip have over 16 years of experience designing, manufacturing and supplying high specification wire rope suspension solutions for all electrical, HVAC, mechanical, acoustic and radiant panel and signage needs across an ever-increasing range of sectors and members of our team have many more years’ experience in associated industries.
Courses and learning activities offered as part of Zip-Clip’s Club 35 learning programme are available to individuals or organisations and are prepared and presented by industry experienced, time-proven experts in their field. Zip-Clip offer a range of both fully CIBSE accredited CPD courses and non-accredited courses and can even tailor course content to specifically meet the requirements of your team and their learning needs.
“Education is not the learning of facts, but the training of the mind to think” – Albert Einstein.
Continuous Learning – The Structured Approach
In order to improve skills and knowledge while working, professionals usually opt for recognised and approved Continuous Professional Development (CPD) programmes. This is because at this level, they have already earned academic or professional qualifications and are now working in the industry of their choice. CPD helps professionals learn in a structured and practical way that boosts their overall skills and knowledge. It also helps them gain the knowledge and skills they need within as short a time period as possible.
An introduction to CPD structured learning
So, what is CPD? CPD is the term used to describe the learning activities professionals engage in in order to develop and enhance their knowledge, skills and general abilities.
CPD combines several different methodologies to learning, such as training workshops, conferences and events and, especially in the current climate, e-learning programs and online training sessions, all focused for an individual to improve and have effective professional development.
A structured, practical and methodical approach to learning helps employers across industries to keep key staff and develop the skills and knowledge in their organisations to maintain a sustainable and competitive advantage.
Engaging in continuous learning, be it accredited CPD learning or other forms of quality training/learning, ensures that both academic and practical qualifications and working practices do not become out-dated or obsolete; allowing individuals to continually ‘up-skill’ or ‘re-skill’ themselves, regardless of occupation, age or educational level. Continuous learning is essential in ensuring individuals, organisations and even entire industries keep skill levels and knowledge up to date.
CPD accredited training courses, workshops and events allow professionals to use the learning time towards individual CPD requirements. Many organisations have staff with CPD obligations as members of professional bodies. Association with, and membership of many professional bodies requires the completion of 35 hours of CPD study a year.
In circumstances where internal CPD training resources are low, organisations frequently use outsourced CPD training providers to meet staff requirements. Outsourced CPD providers are typically training companies, online learning resources, events and conference organisers or highly experienced industry specialists such as Zip-Clip. They are experts in their field and provide practical learning opportunities through CPD events, seminars and accredited CPD courses.
CPD can be split into formal CPD and informal CPD
Formal CPD learning involves participating in organised activities, such as courses, seminars, workshops, conferences and group meetings. Courses can be taken face to face, online or via an electronic delivery method. Attendance at these events can be evidenced.
Informal CPD involves activities undertaken by the individual, like non-accredited training courses, workplace learning, reading and research. It can be difficult to gain third-party evidence for informal CPD, so it is recommended that individuals’ records are kept and self-evaluated.
Professional engineer, Richard Denning (Safety and Reliability Society - SaRS), is quoted as saying the following:
Many people see CPD as being about formal training activity, be that classroom based, computer based or book based. I see it as being much more than this and would estimate that maybe 10% of development in recent years has been formal.
I have also developed from working with great people where some of their approach to problems has rubbed off and where they either show me how to do something or more likely have helped me to tackle a new area or experience. Much more of my development has been through trying new things or taking on new activities.
Of course, many development opportunities can be a combination of all three, trying something new, getting a friend to assist or perhaps research a better way of doing things.
To me CPD isn’t just about learning or doing the new thing, it is about structuring what you do by proactively seeking out opportunities to either improve on weaknesses/gaps or to reinforce existing strengths and then reflecting on what you have learnt, and of course recording this so that if you do get audited, you have the records of what you have done.
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The Role of CPD Varies by Global Region
Click to read more at cpdstandards.com
Australia & New Zealand: CPD in this region follows a similar model to the UK, with many professionals led by professional instates, bodies and regulators. CPD is highly valued, with various training schemes, events and online services available.
Africa: CPD is an emerging practice with many individuals and professionals keen to undertake CPD for ongoing educational purposes.
America: CPD in the United States can be referenced using slightly different language. CE stands for Continuing Education; CPE is Continuing Professional Education; CME is Continuing Medical Education; and CLE is Continuing Legal Education. However, different states have varying requirements in place for the time individuals should be spending on CPD, depending on industry.
Europe: CPD requirements in Europe vary from country to country. There are a large number of professional bodies and institutes in Western Europe, while in Eastern Europe professional bodies are starting to be more established.
Middle East: There is rising demand for CPD training within the Middle East. The Gulf region is focused on delivering high quality education and increasing standards of professionalism and competence.
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Continuous Learning Provided by Zip-Clip 'Club 35'
Chartered Institution of Building Services Engineers (CIBSE) Accredited CPD’s:
- Wire Support Solutions – The Alternative to Threaded Rod
- Zinc Whiskers – Awareness, Understanding and Dealing with the Problem
- The Environmental Benefits of Considered First Fix Building Services (NEW)
Other courses offered by Zip-Clip:
- Reducing Prime Costs of Services Suspension Installations
- Material Finishes of Services Containment Solutions
- Cable Management Systems
Courses and learning activities offered as part of Zip-Clip’s Club 35 learning programme are available for individuals and organisations alike. We run a monthly programme of courses on set dates open to all but are also able to offer tailored courses to specifically meet the requirements of your team and their learning needs.
For further information on CPD accredited courses and other learning opportunities available from Zip-Clip please complete the LEARNING ENQUIRY FORM , email learning@zip-clip.com or call us on +44 (0)1686 623366.
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Published 29/03/2021
