What Counts for Strategic Management Credit?
Anyone whose SPHR certification cycle ends in 2006 or later is required to record 15 strategic management hours to recertify their designation. These hours may be earned in the areas of continuing education, instruction, on-the-job experience and research/publishing.
In addition to the pointers that follow, make sure you review:
Strategic Management Defined
To be considered strategic, an activity must link directly to the "Strategic Management" section of the PHR/SPHR Body of Knowledge. Take note of the specific functional responsibility area (01-11 under "Strategic Management") so you can list this on your application. This exercise alone can frequently help you determine if an activity is strategic in nature.
Generally, activities that help formulate HR objectives, practices and policies to meet short- and long-range organizational needs are considered strategic. Simply making a change to a process within an organization does not necessarily indicate a strategic activity.
Strategic activities do not necessarily need to have an HR component. If you have contributed to organizational initiatives or attended training that increased your overall knowledge of finance, marketing or technology, the activity may be deemed strategic. Your application should include a detailed description that supports your case for why you feel the activity should be awarded strategic credit.
Helpful Questions
Here are some questions to ask yourself when deciding whether an activity should be submitted as "strategic:"
- Did the activity help advance the mission of your organization?
- Did the activity help advance the HR profession?
- Did you perform benchmarking against other organizations before developing and implementing a new initiative?
- Did the new program require that you perform an environmental scan?
- Did you develop or create a new initiative (and not simply implement the initiative)?
- Was the activity grassroots or legislative in nature?
- Did you develop a program that would encourage the company or its employees to give back to the community?
- Did the activity help influence a major organizational change?
- Did the activity include leadership training? Change management? Setting ethical standards for your organization?
A Look at Non-Strategic Activities
It is also important to understand what is NOT considered strategic in nature. Here are some examples.
- Courses that instruct professionals on how to do their jobs, such as communication techniques, customer service or time 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.
- Courses on established HR techniques (e.g., change management). For this to be deemed strategic, the applicant needs to demonstrate that he or she used the knowledge gained to develop a change management initiative.
- 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 laws and/or regulations.
Explain It!
Your recertification application needs to clearly demonstrate why each activity should be awarded strategic management hours.
- Include enough detail in your activity description for the application reviewer to make a ruling 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.
- Cite the specific functional responsibility area (01-11 under “Strategic Management”) when providing a description of the activity in your recertification application.
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 meet the definition of "strategic," it may still count toward general recertification credits.
In addition, some Approved-for-Credit events and Approved Provider programs have been pre-approved by HRCI for strategic management credits. An example is SHRM's Advanced HR Generalist Certificate and Academy programs.
Continuing Guidance
HRCI will continue to offer instructions and guidance on this new policy. Watch your emails and our web site 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.
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