The benefits of Continuing Professional Development, whatever your profession, are fairly clear for anyone to see – but for some professions, like accountancy, CPD isn’t so much a “good idea” as a necessary part of your career path.
There are several different regulatory bodies for accountants, and for membership with many of these to be valid, they require that a minimum amount of hours of relevant CPD per calendar year are recorded.
The number of hours varies from body to body, with some like the CIMA and ICAS not requiring a set number of hours- only requesting that their members do participate, to others like CIPFA and CPAI requiring 120 hrs in any given calendar year. They may also specify types of CPD that are needed to qualify asking that there be a set time of verifiable activities, or structured CPD.
If you are unsure of the amount or type of CPD you should be doing then it would be best to check with the regulatory body that you are registered with, and once you have that information you can then go about finding training companies who can help you meet your needs.
There are lots companies that run accountancy training courses which can help you with the CPD you need to keep your membership valid, and there are many ways they can help you do this, from in-house training, webinars, and courses and seminars held at their offices.
They cover a range of subjects that cover all aspects of accountancy, including Accounting and Finance, Business Law, Corporate Governance, Internal Audits, Risk and control, as well as Taxation, Vat and Treasury courses allowing you to tailor your CPD to the areas of most benefit to yourself and your career.
Many accountancy training firms offer discount schemes, allowing you to “bulk buy” course places and save money in the process – ideal whether you have a large company with many employees to keep up to date, or an individual who needs to meet a set number of hours.
To find the best company for your accountancy CPD training needs you can explore various options, “word of mouth” is always a good place to start – ask around your peers, see if they can recommend a company that they have had personal experience with, but you can also look online or use your local phonebook. Don’t be afraid to ask questions about the training you choose to ensure it is something that will be of benefit to you. You can tell the company you approach which of the regulatory bodies you are registered with and they may well be able to advise you on the best courses to take to satisfy your CPD requirements.