Our governance | CIPD Asia

The CIPD is a registered charity. Our charitable purpose, as prescribed in our Charter and Bye-laws, is to promote the art and science of the management and development of people, for the public benefit.

CIPD Board members govern the strategic direction of the CIPD and as charity trustees are entrusted with ensuring that it is solvent, well run and delivering on our charitable purpose in compliance with Charity law, as well as our Charter and Bye-laws.

The Board is supported by the CIPD Council and three Committees with delegated powers. The day to day operational management of the CIPD - and development of its strategy - is delegated to the Chief Executive, who is supported by the Senior Leadership Team.

The CIPD Council is an advisory body made up of one representative from each of our branches across the UK and Ireland, as well as the CIPD's Board members. Council meets at least twice per year and is consulted on a range of strategic decisions, including the setting of membership fees, on which it has the final say.

The CIPD Board has three Committees to which it delegates certain powers:

The Audit and Risk Committee
The Nominations Committee
The People, Culture and Remuneration Committee.

Read our Regulations below for more detail on the role of these committees and how the powers of the Institute are put into practice through various terms of reference and governance procedures.

CIPD Charter and Bye-laws

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CIPD Regulations

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Corporate responsibility

Our Business Principles set out our expectations of ourselves and all suppliers, partners and clients we work with. We have identified areas which matter most to us in supporting our purpose of championing better work and working lives. We are starting to assess ourselves against these principles to see where we fall short, where we meet them and where we believe we can exceed them. By setting the same expectations for businesses we work with, it is our hope that we will help influence environmental, social and governance standards in how businesses operate more broadly.

Our Business Principles are that companies should:

Comply with all legislation, regulations and directives applicable to their business and the countries in which they operate
Not be sanctioned by the UK government or involve the CIPD in countries sanctioned by the UK government
Agree to or aspire to the Principles of the UN Global Compact, that businesses should:

            1. Support and respect the protection of internationally proclaimed human rights;
            2. Make sure that they are not complicit in human rights abuses;
            3. Uphold the freedom of association and the effective recognition of the right to collective bargaining;
            4: Uphold the elimination of all forms of forced and compulsory labour;
            5: Uphold the effective abolition of child labour;
            6: Uphold the elimination of discrimination in respect of employment and occupation;
            7: Support a precautionary approach to environmental challenges;
            8: Undertake initiatives to promote greater environmental responsibility;
            9: Encourage the development and diffusion of environmentally friendly technologies; and
            10: Work against corruption in all its forms, including extortion and bribery.

Anti Modern Slavery statement

This statement is made on behalf of the Chartered Institute of Personnel and Development (the 'CIPD') pursuant to section 54(1) of the Modern Slavery Act 2015 (the 'Act') and constitutes our group's slavery and human trafficking statement for the financial year ending 30 June 2021.

Our business and structure

The CIPD is the professional body for HR and people development. We are not for profit and hold a highly respected Royal Charter. We are a registered charity in England & Wales, Scotland and Ireland with public benefit that includes our ability to influence public policy and promote progressive HR and people management practices.

We are the parent company of CIPD Enterprises Ltd and CIPD Asia Ltd. CIPD Middle East FZ-LLC is a wholly-owned subsidiary of CIPD Enterprises Ltd. Across our group we have over 300 employees in the United Kingdom, the Republic of Ireland, Singapore and Dubai.

Purpose and voice

As an organisation whose purpose is championing better work and working lives, we wholeheartedly endorse the legislation as a crucially important development in tackling slavery and human trafficking and we will not trade or partner with any business or organisation which is involved in this shocking practice however remotely or indirectly.

Furthermore, we are the voice of a worldwide community of almost 160,000 members who have a stewardship obligation to demonstrate and promote fair and reasonable standards in the treatment of people who are operating within their sphere of influence.

Our supply chains

Our supply chains include publishing and printing services, IT services, conference and venue suppliers, training providers and consultants, and marketing and PR services. We have reviewed the risks that these supply chains can present and whilst we consider our exposure to modern slavery to be limited, we expect our suppliers and contractors to demonstrate a zero-tolerance approach to exploitation.

To this end, all new contracts and those renewing, now include a clause requiring that our suppliers, and their subcontractors, comply with the Act, and include the CIPD’s right to terminate in the instance of any breach of this obligation.

Taking action

As part of our procurement process, we will only engage with suppliers and contractors who confirm their compliance with the Act. This financial year, we will again contact all suppliers where our spend is in excess of £5,000 to raise awareness and seek assurance of compliance with the Modern Slavery Act 2015.

Our people

We have promoted to all our employees that modern slavery is a global problem that affects us all. We have shared examples of how individuals can unwittingly be part of the cycle. We have highlighted that everyone has a vital role to play in tackling the issue.

We have adapted and re-promoted our existing corporate policies to incorporate modern slavery and human trafficking issues, including our whistleblowing policy which allows employees to report any concerns confidentially.

All staff across the entire organisation are required to complete a specific training course every two years (or for new hires, within one month of joining and every two years thereafter) to increase their awareness of modern slavery and human trafficking so that they are able to understand, identify and be able to report on these risks. This training course is reviewed regularly to ensure that it is up to date and incorporates any legislative amendments. The most recent all-staff training took place in the last financial year 2020-21.

Valerie Hughes-D'Aeth
Chair of the Board

Environmental and sustainability policy

As an organisation we’re committed to become more environmentally conscious. We’re working with our staff, members, partners and stakeholders on our approach to sustainability across all our activities, recognising our environmental impact and carbon footprint.

This work is being led by an internal sustainability group, formed of individuals from across the organisation who are passionate and dedicated to minimising our environmental impact. The group is sponsored by a member of our senior leadership team to ensure it has the mandate and support needed to make change happen.

We continue to make changes with sustainability in mind, most recently the repackaging of People Management to improve recyclability.

Risk Appetite Statement

The CIPD is committed to championing better work and working lives. Its approach to doing this is to build professionalism and professional capital, underpinned by operational excellence to ensure it can sustain and support its operations effectively.

It operates within a low overall risk range, with its lowest risk appetite relating to compliance and the welfare and wellbeing of people. A marginally higher risk appetite is accepted for finance, delivery and technology risks. Its highest risk appetite relates to achieving its strategic objectives and to increase its reach and impact. For these, the CIPD is willing to accept measured risk in undertaking new business development opportunities globally and in speaking out on topics relating to the world of work, the people profession, and to building professionalism and professional capital.