Stepping into a brighter future01 December 2006

Committing yourself to a long-term professional career is a major undertaking in itself. Sustaining and developing that career through a myriad of changes and challenges is quite another. Without the latter investment, such a career may do little more than tread water and, in time, even sink without trace.

Any professional fortunate enough to have a deeply engaged professional body behind him or her will recognise the benefits and payback from consistently striving to enhance their journey along the path chosen. Certainly, the Society of Operations Engineers is deeply committed to its members' career development and, in support of this, actively promotes life-long learning in the form of CPD - continuous professional development.

CPD is regarded within the SOE as essential to maintaining and developing professional competence. From the SOE's point of view, CPD helps members to learn, not only how to apply their knowledge and understanding, but also professional judgement. Nor is the definition of what constitutes CPD in any way proscriptive. Essentially, it embraces any formal or informal learning activity, as long as it is business related and can clearly demonstrate what has been learnt.

"Although many engineers and technicians will have achieved a formal education," points out Mark Organ, head of the SOE's membership and professional standards, "changes in technology and business practice mean professional competence must be enhanced on an on-going basis. CPD really is a fundamental way of ensuring that."

The SOE prides itself on the way in which it engages with its members in pursuit of CPD, nowhere more so than through its registration process. The SOE is one of a number of professional bodies licensed by the Engineering Council (UK) to register people at the three levels of Engineering Technician, Incorporated Engineer and Chartered Engineer.

Optimum development
Everyone registered is then encouraged to carry out CPD and achieve their optimum development, depending, as Organ explains, "on their engineering and academic qualifications, and the profile of their responsibilities". The SOE promotes parity of esteem across the three levels. "In fact, they each depend on one another to a great degree, in terms of the roles they fulfil," he adds. "As far as academic qualifications are concerned, for an Engineering Technician this will be up to HND level, for an Incorporated Engineer the requirement is a BEng degree and, for a Chartered Engineer, an MEng degree, which has been accredited by a licensed EC (UK) professional body.

"EC (UK) registration is an additional opportunity to gain professional recognition in your industry and the wider engineering community," he comments. "It is also beneficial to members employed outside the UK, as it is recognised internationally. Moreover, SOE is one of the few professional bodies able to offer registration at all three levels - EngTech, IEng and CEng."

Across the register itself, the different levels and benefits for individuals is very much about professional recognition through the sustained demonstration of currency of competence, a process regarded by the SOE as an essential part of anyone's continued development. Undeniably, the rate of change within engineering and technology is rapid and, as the SOE is at pains to underline, everyone is employed for what they can do now, not what they could do in the past.

"An average career is around thirty-five years," the society stresses, posing the following questions to its members. "Could you do what you do today, if you relied on the training gained in 1975? Perhaps, but it is doubtful. So what are you doing to ensure that you can do what is required, not just now, but in the future?"

This is very much where the benefits of registration enter the equation, argues Organ. "We all have a need for life-long learning in order to maintain our current skills and capabilities, and expand these both within and beyond engineering."

As part of the registration process, applicants undertake a professional review, during which personal development is assessed. In accordance with the EC UK Standards, this is concentrated on the following three elements, where individuals have to demonstrate their competence, according to fixed criteria of threshold standards:

- Academic proficiency
- Initial Professional Development (IPD)
- And the professional review interview itself.

"However, the SOE has another role, too," says Organ, "in that we can accredit and approve courses for registration - an area that is expanding rapidly. For example, we have recently approved five basic training courses for the RAF's Engineering Technicians whereby, on completion of the training, they can gain Engineering Technician registration.

"We are also running a pilot scheme with Metronet [which, under a public private partnership agreement, has responsibility for upgrading, replacing and maintaining two-thirds of London Underground] to do exactly the same for all of their charge-hand track engineers, up to Level 3 NVQ, which potentially involves up to one thousand London Underground technicians in the longer term."

What is apparent is that businesses are increasingly recognising the value of working closely with the SOE when it comes to seeking endorsement of the training they are providing. "We've also assessed engineering surveyors Allianz Cornhill's training package as further learning from HNC up to IEng level as meeting the required standard. Since then, four other major engineering surveyor companies have involved themselves in similar approval schemes. I believe we are one of the first professional bodies to achieve this."

The SOE completed a similar project last year with the Armed Forces' Royal Electrical and Mechanical Engineers (REME) Artificers. "The Artificers have achieved HND level and may now go on to do continuation training over the next two years, which we have approved as meeting the IEng academic criteria."

Despite the advantages CPD offers, only around one-third of the 16,000-plus SOE membership are registered with the Engineering Council (UK). Organ concedes that registration is not a straightforward process. "You have to write what is essentially an extended career history report, carry out a cross-mapping exercise of your experience and, through an interview, demonstrate that you are working at the correct profile."

Yet he believes that registration, while not an easy option, is one that members will increasingly have to embrace in future. "While not everyone may have the motivation or drive to follow that path, those that are registered have the clear benefits of professional recognition. Indeed, many vacancies now advertised require a higher level of professional achievement.

"I have absolutely no doubt that people who embark on the right work-based courses and degrees are investing in their futures in a way that one day will be repaid by increasingly lucrative career opportunities. The more we are working with industry to approve work-based training courses, the more popular they become.

"From there, it will blossom, as other organisations will want to follow their lead, because they need to compete. By investing in their people, they are promoting the competence of their engineers, their training and their services. It's a situation where everyone, employee and employer, is being offered a winning hand."

More information at: www.soe.org.uk

Quote
"Professional competence must be enhanced on an on-going basis. CPD [continuous professional development] really is a fundamental way of ensuring that"
Mark Organ, SOE

The mechanics of safety and competence in action
irtec is a recognised safety and competence qualification in the maintenance and repair of vehicles in the light and heavy goods, service and passenger carrier vehicle industries, pioneered by the Institute of Road Transport Engineers (IRTE) Professional Sector. Through the irtec scheme, technicians and mechanics working in the road transport industry can add to their qualifications and demonstrate that their skills and knowledge are up to date. Now in its fourth year, the scheme incorporates a new framework to provide greater flexibility and meet the changing needs of the road transport industry.

"The updated irtec scheme has been developed in close co-operation with the road transport sector," says David Oakeley, head of irtec development, "resulting in massive support for the proposition from vehicle manufacturers and operators. irtec will support enhanced levels of competence, reflecting the need within the industry to recognise best practice and rectify bad."

Under the new structure, irtec will offer two additional levels of licence for advanced and master technicians to support the existing base-level licence, better reflecting an individual's job role and experience. Once an irtec licence is issued, the technician will be listed on a new national register and be bound by a Code of Conduct.

Whilst the qualification itself is 'owned' by the individual, and travels from job to job as a measure of his or her experience and ability, employers recognise the rewards they can reap, too. BIFFA Waste Management, for example, which provides waste collection, treatment and recycling, and disposal services to around 80,000 local and national customers in the industrial, commercial and municipal sectors, bought into the scheme in 2005 and has already registered hundreds of technicians.


Key to best practice
- Continuous professional development (CPD) is essential to maintaining and developing professional competence
- Membership of a deeply engaged professional body such as the SOE helps individuals in the quest to enhance their careers
- On-going learning ensures engineers and technicians keep up to date with changes in technology and business practice
- EC (UK) registration is an additional opportunity to gain professional recognition in their industries and the wider engineering community
- The SOE can accredit and approve courses for registration, thereby qualifying and endorsing on-going training that businesses are providing to their employees

SOE

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