Evaluate the advantages and disadvantages of Continuing Professional Development to professional associations, employers and employees.

With the rapid pace of change, many people may find that their skills and knowledge, acquired over the recent past, are outdated. In order to update their members, many professional groups have introduced the concept of Continuing Professional Development (CPD). (Foot and Hooks, 2002). The Royal Town Planning Institute (2001) holds that CPD is the means by which members of professional associations maintain, improve and broaden their knowledge and skills and develop their personal qualities required in …

…where possible, a fellow professional act as a mentor to facilitate the CPD of employees, as helping individuals improve their performance will improve overall business results. There are no hard and fast rules for the amount of time to be spent on staff development. It is the benefit of an activity to a particular employee rather than the activity itself that is important and all learning opportunities, however informal, should be seized when they arise.