Member benefits and support for independent consultants

No, there have been no changes to our services for organisations. 

Our own services for organisations support them to develop their HR functions in line with the CIPD Profession Map. We provide help to develop HR competency frameworks, access to training, bulk membership and membership assessments, and access to our library of resources. Where we use associates to deliver this work, they are CIPD members. 

These emails have come from our partners at Croner and were part of a ‘try before you buy’ promotion to get potential customers interested in CIPD HR-inform. However, the emails should have been clearer that the intended audience for CIPD HR-inform is HR professionals, and that what they were offering was limited access to the advice line. The emails have now stopped, and related messaging on the CIPD HR-inform website has been removed. 

No. CIPD HR-inform is a self-service online subscription product for HR professionals, with an accompanying advice line for customers to use for questions or short sense-checks. CIPD HR-inform is run as a partnership between the CIPD and Croner. 

We have spoken to Croner about a number of communications that either incorrectly describe CIPD HR-inform services as 'consultancy', or that suggest other croneri services are part of a CIPD offering. They have acknowledged the need to correct all such communications and are now making changes. 

Yes, we do so through representing and championing them in our work with government. Some examples of what we’re doing to support this community include our People Skills pilots and research programme, which was specifically designed to promote policy makers the value that independent HR consultants across the UK can add to SMEs, especially micro and small businesses. And more recently, our recommendations as part of the consultations for the Employment Rights Bill have highlighted the value of independent CIPD qualified HR consultants in supporting businesses with the raft of changes coming. 

We also provide access to discounted indemnity insurance, wellbeing support services, and exclusive communities, all aimed particularly at supporting consultants. Independent consultants are a vital and valued part of our membership community, helping clients to grow and thrive with their expert support.