What is the Best Continued Professional Development Training for Directors?

What is the best continued professional development training for directors?

Continued professional development for directors is crucial in helping them make impactful changes within an organisation and bridging gaps in essential skill sets. Directors, as the leaders of an organisation, must continually develop their leadership and company-wide skills to positively impact businesses in an ever-changing world.

These crucial skills are best achieved through a well-structured professional development plan. Engaging in continuing professional development allows directors to enhance their leadership capabilities, strategic thinking, and overall effectiveness. Here are some key areas where continuing professional development is essential:

Learning business strategies to drive organisational growth
Building and empowering teams
Identifying risks and managing them
Turning new emerging technologies into a competitive advantage
Gaining a deeper knowledge of financial organisation workings

In this blog post, we will outline the best continuing professional development training courses for directors, showcasing different types of manager courses, including both certified and non-certified programmes.

What continuing professional development training courses are there for directors?

There are both certified and non-certified programmes available for directors seeking continued professional development. Certified programmes often include recognised manager courses from leading institutes like the Institute of Leadership and Management (ILM) and the Chartered Management Institute (CMI).

Non-certified director programmes are equally beneficial, offering specialised training for specific skill development. These courses cover a range of competencies, including Finance, Leadership, Strategy, Governance, Marketing, Operational Excellence, and Non-Executive Director programmes.

Why are continued professional development training courses important for directors?

Engaging in continuing professional development is vital for directors and the organisations they lead. A professional development plan ensures that both academic knowledge and practical skills are continually updated, keeping directors at the forefront of their fields.

The official CPD Certification Service describes continued professional development as ‘lifelong learning’ that ‘allows for individuals to continually ‘up skill’ or ‘re-skill’ themselves regardless of their occupation, age, or educational level.’

Continuing professional development training enhances directors' skills and workplace performance, enabling them to make better decisions for their organisations, ultimately leading to business growth. Here are some reasons why continuing professional development for directors is important, along with relevant training courses:

Increases competitive advantage – Directors Strategy and Directors Finance Programmes
Improves business standards – Director Governance and Operational Excellence Programmes
Futureproofs the business – Directors Strategy Programmes
Encourages better decision-making – Directors Strategy and Directors Leadership Programmes
Enhances teamwork and employee motivation – Director Leadership Programmes

The best non-certified continued professional development training programmes for directors

Many training providers offer continuing professional development training for directors in both virtual and face-to-face formats. Some universities also provide such training, so it's worth reaching out to local institutions or your alma mater, which may offer alumni benefits.

When choosing a director training course, it's important to consider the five main areas directors should master to understand the day-to-day running of an organisation and to acquire the skills necessary for high performance:

There are also three other continued professional development training for directors that you should take into consideration:

Collectively, these director training programmes will shape you into a well-rounded, successful director, enabling you to achieve excellent results in a dynamic world. A programme like the Directors Development Academy exemplifies this comprehensive approach to training.

Many training providers offer the option to accredit your non-accredited director training if you meet the required standards.

The best certified continued professional training options for directors

The top certified continuing professional development training for directors is offered by two leading institutes: the Institute of Leadership and Management (ILM) and the Chartered Management Institute (CMI). Both institutes offer high-quality leadership and management courses, but your choice may depend on your specific learning goals.

9 in 10 learners said they were able to apply the leadership and management skills learnt through ILM to their day-to-day job role and would recommend our qualifications, programmes and/or apprenticeships.

80% of managers said that a CMI qualification is a key part of becoming a professional manager.

The ILM and CMI both offer a selection of renowned accredited programmes starting from Level 2 and going up to Level 7. A Level 7 is equivalent to a Masters Level, which is the standard directors should aim for in their professional development plan.

There are slight differences when thinking about which institute to go with. Typically ILM accreditations are more practical and have shorter modules than a CMI accreditation. This allows you to study many core competencies at once but in less depth.

ILM accreditations are typically more practical, with shorter modules, making them ideal for directors who need to gain knowledge in multiple areas simultaneously.

A CMI accreditation on the other hand is better if you are wanting to gain a deeper knowledge of professional leadership and practice for directors. You will study fewer modules, but they will be in more depth.

CMI accreditations tend to be more strategically focused letting you develop a greater level of strategic thinking. So, it entirely depends on what you want out of your continued professional development as a director and what you and your organisation need in skill sets.

Non-accredited and accredited continued professional development training for directors is extremely important in giving you that wider knowledge to successfully succeed both professionally for yourself and your organisation.