Congratulations to Chris Ward from Parity, the first recruitment professional to achieve Level 3 of our Recruitment Practice Standard (RPS) examination. As some of you may be aware, the RPS assessment has been developed to promote excellence throughout the professional staffing industry. Each examination has been created to be thorough, challenging and a benchmark for industry excellence, creating the highest possible standards of trading practice. Here Chris gives his view of the accreditation:

“When I first heard about the RPS, I thought receiving the award would be an ideal way to enhance my professional reputation and reinforce Parity’s brand presence. Alan Rommel, my Managing Director suggested I take the RPS level 3 exam as I have eight years’ experience with the company. The syllabus was relevant to my role as an Account Manager, and although some questions referred to recruitment project management and competency interviews, of which I have no great experience, I understood the fundamentals through working with large clients such as AXA long-term.

In my opinion, the test itself is well written. The competency based questions were geared towards ensuring customer satisfaction and delivering world class service. And by abiding by the RPS those who receive the accreditation demonstrate they stand for the same values as APSCo.

I believe that as a learning and development tool, RPS is incredibly worthwhile. Line managers receive feedback of results which can then be passed to the training team. This allows continual and targeted career development by allowing staff to receive guidance on particular areas suited to them. In addition, accreditation shows clients and contractors that Parity understand the standards of best practice.

Those in more junior roles at Parity seem excited to take the Level 1 exam. It’s a morale booster for those who have been in the industry little over a year to know their practices fit with APSCo’s code and ethical standards.

I think that the exercise has challenged the way I think about different situations, and has given me confidence in my approach to managing professional relationships.

Anyone who passes the award shows they are committed to ethical recruitment and best practice, and accreditation showcases your professionalism to colleagues, clients and candidates. I would certainly recommend it to anyone considering this route.”