Beyond Manitoba
Academic credentials are often automatically included in job requirements because they are seen as minimum standards for skills and knowledge.
But current practice in Europe is placing increasing emphasis on recognizing learning in the workplace because that is where the rubber hits the road in terms of effectiveness.
John Konrad has been tracking these issues for several years as a vocational instructor and an internationally recognized researcher.
Manitoba Hydro - RPL Processes for Human Resource Professionals at Manitoba Hydro
Overview of Project
To strengthen its succession planning, Manitoba Hydro launched a Recognizing Prior Learning (RPL) project for human resource professionals.
The project was sparked by a national trend requiring increasing education credentials for Human Resource professionals and a commitment within Hydro to strengthen the capacity of its HR professionals to play a more strategic business function.
The project developed a customized assessment and review process that serves as a comprehensive workplace RPL model.
Needs/Opportunities
In keeping with national trends, Manitoba Hydro was looking for inreased minimum levels of education for its HR employees. At the same time, Hydro had a number of employees with long years of service – and the accompanying experience, who were candidates for progression but could not meet new minimum education requirements. For many, pursuing a multi-year university degree option was not realistic.
Applying RPL
The project applied RPL principles and practices to design and implement a comprehensive process that:
- Defined the knowledge and skill requirements – ie. competencies.
- Developed an effective process to demonstrate and assess current competencies.
- Recruited and supported qualifying employees to demonstrate and document their competencies against the requirements.
- Implemented relevant training and education strategies to meet gaps.
Impact
Manitoba Hydro has strengthened its succession planning, increasing the pool of qualified HR employees available for progression.
The customized approach helped set clear organizational expectations for skills and academic development, led to skill recognition for employees who met the internal standard, and provided employees with opportunities to gain valuable practical and formal learning that would assist in career progression.
The result is a comprehensive workplace model that can be applied to other areas of the organization.
Lessons Learned
Organizations and participating employees need to be clear about the purpose of RPL – it is not job performance evaluation, but rather a process for assessing knowledge and skills in relation to job standards.
Participants may initially be skeptical – which can be addressed by a process that is objective and transparent.