Developing Core Professional Behaviors for Positive Working Relationships and Employee Wellbeing

Case Study

This unit focuses on how applying core professional behaviours such as ethical practice, courage and inclusivity can build positive working relationships and support employee voice and well-being. It considers how developing and mastering new professional behaviours and practice can impact performance.

You are currently you are working in the People Practice Team and are working on your CIPD qualification. Your Line Manager is running a break-out session at one of the CIPD Conferences, showcasing the work of various organisations. The focus of the presentation is on how personal and ethical values can be applied, including the key role of people practice professionals in contributing to (if not driving) discussions to influence others with confidence and conviction. The presentation also aims to explore issues around the human and business benefits of inclusive behaviours ensuring that people are fairly treated at work. In addition, the presentation is designed to highlight examples of how this can build positive working relationships and lead to performance
improvement.

Refer to the indicative content in the unit to guide and support your evidence. Pay attention to how your evidence is presented, remember you are working in the People Practice Team. Ensure that the evidence generated for this assessment remains your own work. You will also benefit from Reflecting on your own experiences of learning opportunities and continuous professional  development. Reading the CIPD Insight, Fact Sheets and related online material on these topics. Don’t forget to Complete the front cover sheet and place at the front of your assessment. Use the bullet points below each task as headings and sub-headings so your marker can see where your answer begins.

Presentation pack

Slide deck (1-2 slides per assessment criteria)
Presenter notes (1,250 words)
Briefing document (1,000 words, refer to CIPD word count policy)

Your manager has asked you to prepare a presentation in readiness for delivery to colleagues on the importance of ethical practice and the business case for such people practices. Your Presentation Pack must include presentation slides, the evidence you have gathered, and presenter notes. It is expected that your presentation pack is aimed at the appropriate audience and is of business format. You should ensure that your presentation includes a review of the various influences on ethical practice as well as details of a robust business case for the ethical people practices. You also need to provide a Briefing paper as a handout for delegates covering the main points of the presentation in an accessible, easy to read way. Your presentation should include the following and should refer to the CIPD Profession Map wherever appropriate:

Preparation for the Tasks

1) Define the term professional and explain the requirements of a people professional. 
2) To help explain what is meant by ethical values, give at least three examples of your own personal values and how this affects how you work and develop working relationships. 
3) Drawing upon work or personal examples, analyse how you could/have Contributed to discussions to ensure people practices are applied. How you can effectively communicate to engage and influence others. How you might raise issues with situations such as organisational policies or the approach to leadership that conflict with legislation or ethical values.
4) Drawing on relevant theory provide a robust argument that includes both the business and human benefits of people at work feeling included, valued and that they are being treated fairly. 
5) Identify a people practice initiative that has been put in place in response to some form of internal or external feedback, set out the purpose of this initiative and explain how you would evaluate the impact of this initiative paying particular attention to levels of engagement within the organisation.

The purpose of this task is to evidence your approach to Continuous professional development as a people practice professional in conjunction with the CIPD Profession Map. The task combines a number of activities which should be presented as a CPD portfolio. As an introduction to your portfolio it is important to set the  scene to your personal learning journey.

How the role of a people professional is changing?
What impact are these changes having on our CPD?
What are the key characteristics of a good-practice CPD?

The first stage of your CPD should be to understand where you’ve come from, where you are and where you want to be. Using the Standards from the CIPD Professional Map, carry out a self-assessment of your
competency against the Ethical Practice Core Behaviours. You should only be focusing on the Associate Level descriptors. From this Self-assessment, plus other forms of feedback identify your strengths and weaknesses setting personal development objectives to be included within a Professional Development Plan You now need to consider how you can meet these development objectives, to complete your PDP. Consider the range of learning opportunities available to you and for each development objectives decide on the most appropriate initiative to support your learning journey. We would encourage you to submit this assessment criteria as a draft so you ensure you are on the right track with your objectives (3.3).

A key element of our PD is reflecting on our everyday experiences to learn from these, capturing what went well or not so well and how we can learn from such situations.

 

Your reflections should focus on the following scenarios.
Identify at least two examples when you have taken responsibility for your work/actions, paying particular attention to recognising any mistakes you might have made, how you rectified these mistakes and what you believe you learnt from these experiences. (1.4).
Identify at least two examples that highlight your approach to working inclusively, plus how you have built positive working relationships with others. Your reflections need to focus on what you did, and the skills and behaviours demonstrated. (2.4)

A CPD portfolio including a Personal Development plan and record of your learning. (1,000 words).