We recently asked some of our IET members to tell us about their approach to Continuing Professional Development (CPD).

 

Here’s a little taster of what we found out:

 

What motivates you to continuously improve your skills and knowledge?

 

"I think it’s because I apply the constant drive to want to improve things to myself as well, which I think is appropriate as I’d be a hypocrite if I only expected others to change!"

Sean Moules CEng FIET

 

"My motivation for CPD comes from a desire to continuously learn and to keep up with modern technology and changes in engineering standards and practice. Every engineer has something new to learn from the outset of his or her careers to retirement."

Eur Ing Andrew Dodd CEng FIET

 

"I have never been the sort of person who works simply to earn a wage (although that is very important!). I recognise the need for continuous improvement to help me rise to the new challenges. It also gives me a significant amount of job security."

David Parr CEng MIET

 

 

What types of CPD activities do you undertake?

 

“I find that variety works for me and has hopefully made me a more rounded individual, so schedule permitting I periodically attend a range of seminars, workshops, personal development and training courses”

Sean Moules CEng FIET

 

 

"Continuous study, training, seminars and learning through a “hands on” practical approach to problem solving and product / system development. At no stage in an engineering career should we be afraid of “getting our hands dirty”. To really learn and understand it is important know how things work and this should not be seen as any less relevant in CPD terms as studying."

Eur Ing Andrew Dodd CEng FIET

 

 

Using IET Career Manager to record CPD:

 

“This level of recording and reflection is not at all onerous, and the CPD section of Career Manager is very easy to use. I was very pleasantly surprised at how easily and quickly a CPD record can be produced.”

Brian Thorne CEng MIET

 

 

“I’ve recently used the IET’s Career Manager system to try and get myself up to date; it’s a great way of storing your records and reviewing how much CPD you’re doing.” 

Richard Briars CEng FIET

 

"Being so intuitive and easy to use, there is little effort involved in recording all my CPD activities. I find it really useful to be able to reflect on how it went, and jot my thoughts straight into the tool, immediately after the CPD event - five minutes, and it’s done! I can come back again at any time and improve it further if I want to. Even better, I can create a report/record covering whatever period I wish at the push of a button, exporting this data for use in appraisals etc."

David Parr CEng MIET

 

 

Read more about IET members’ career stories and approach to CPD in our case studies.

 

If you would like to share your story to feature as a case study please email us at profdev@theiet.org or why not share your experiences by commenting below?