Q A jared, can you describe what's happening with professional certification within HR?

• Position: Outlook - Interview

OLSEN: A few years ago there was some talk amongst the SHRM national board and HR Certification Institute to create a competency-based certification. HRCI didn't move forward with it. They took their time ... So a few months ago, SHRM announced it would be offering a new certification. They didn't have all the details, but they knew it would be something competency-based--real-world skills that you have to apply immediately. It would also hit on all the different key aspects of human resources. HRCI's side of the story is it blindsided them, so lots of questions have been raised about what this means for our current certification today and for future HR practitioners ... Nothing is changing with the [HRCI] PHR, SPHR and GPHR certifications. The renewal process will still be the same.

Now there is another option you can get through SHRM. They are a behemoth within the HR community, so they can put a lot of pressure on their certification being successful. That's exactly what they are doing.

You will have to decide, "Do I want both of these certifications or do I want one? If I want one, which one do I want?" HRCI has proven it's not changing and it's not going away. You can stay with that because it's recognizable within the industry. People don't know what the new certification is going to look like and if it's going to work. SHRM has been very open that it may take five to seven years for it to be as popular as HRCI.

We have to decide what we want to put our emphasis on. Employers are going to be instrumental in the decision. What are we going to put on that job description? What are we going to be looking for--a PHR or a SHRM-CP certification?

WHALEN: My organization is ... attempting to stay neutral in this. We approach this unfortunate acrimony with the prism of what is in the best interest of the HR practitioner in the field. Clearly what is not in their best interest is a lot of conflict and confusion, which is the current state of affairs. Certification is critically important, and it does differentiate job applicants for an HR...