“HR professionals must be prepared for anything.  The roles of HR professionals continually change, there will be a continued need to expand their areas of knowledge and expertise.”

Stephanie Runyan

Interviewer: Mariham Magdy

Brief Biography about the Interviewee:

Stephanie Runyan, PHR, is the Director of Learning for the HR Certification Institute (HRCI).  Previously, she served as an HR Content Manager, Recertification Supervisor and HR Products Manager.  She has worked for HRCI since August, 2010.

Stephanie has more than eight years of HR experience and is PHR-certified since 2009.  Previously, Stephanie worked as an HR Generalist for an engineering firm in Virginia and as an HR Manager for a law firm in Washington, D.C.  Stephanie earned a BS in English from the University of North Carolina at Greensboro and an MS in Human Resource Development from Villanova University

HR Revolution Middle-East: Ms. Stephanie, welcome to HR Revolution Middle East Magazine. It’s a great pleasure to have the opportunity to make this interview with you.

The HRCI has recently developed a rich Learning Catalogue for Professionals World-wide in addition to the International Certification Exams. This Learning Catalogue includes diversified courses, covering a lot of important fields, offered to learners to study at the ease of their homes online. As the Director of Learning, can you please share with us how was this differentiated product born?

Ms. Stephanie Runyan:

With the release of HRCI’s upSkill product in 2018, HRCI entered the learning space. Over the past two years, the demand for upSkill has increased. HRCI is now committed to continue offering current and relevant learning options to our global HR professional network. In 2020, this evolved into our establishment of a diverse and affordable learning catalog.

2- HR Revolution Middle East: The HRCI Learning Catalogue offers for Professionals the upSkill™ & the Online Professional Development Certificate Programs & Courses. Can you please explain to us the difference between the two products?

Ms. Stephanie Runyan:

HRCI’s certification exams require a combination of education and experience, as well as successfully passing a rigorous exam.  Upon successfully passing the exam, successful candidates earn a credential that requires recertification every three years. HRCI’s upSkill product is available to anyone, regardless of education or experience. The program offers a timed assessment for upSkill courses. After completion of an upSkill course, a digital badge is issued and does not require recertification efforts.

3- HR Revolution Middle East: We have really noticed that the upSkill™ micro credentials gives the HR Professionals the opportunity to learn about very specific and totally new areas in HR like or example “California HR” & “HR in Social Media”. We would love to learn from you how those products were that intelligently tailored to cover missing areas in the traditional HRM education?

Ms. Stephanie Runyan:

HRCI developed our UpSkill content based on feedback from our certified network of professionals. HRCI offers the PHRca certification, and those who earn that certification offered extensive feedback for the development of learning around California labor and leave legislation. In addition, HRCI identifies new topic areas based on what is happening in the world. For example, HR in Social Media, is a topic that impacts everyone, regardless of location or type of organization.

4- HR Revolution Middle East: The current Learning Catalogue for upSkill™ micro credentials  include California HR, HR in Social Media, Confidentiality and Technology, Risk Management, and Workforce Analytics.  Are you planning to add more specialties for the micro-credentials catalogue? Would you consider tailoring certain micro-credentials for the Middle East?

Ms. Stephanie Runyan:

As HRCI continues to expand its learning offerings, we will continue to evaluate our certification population. Based on such data, HRCI will tailor programs on based on certain geographical areas or needs.

5- HR Revolution Middle East: The upSkill™ is considered by the HRCI a bite-sized e-learning program that allows professionals to efficiently learn from top business experts, gain new skills, and impact decision-making at their organizations. Can you share with us more about how such content is developed and the huge efforts played in the background in order to enrich the market with this unique product?

Ms. Stephanie Runyan:

The entire upSkill development process was based on HR practices from current HR professionals.  We reached out and established micro-panels of experts in each of the content areas to build out the content and assessment for each of our upSkill courses.  In addition, we worked with third-party vendors to fill the gap for additional learning topics and products.   

6- HR Revolution Middle East: The Online Professional Development Certificate Programs & Courses include a variety of courses that don’t limit to the HR only but it even includes certificates in computer applications & cybersecurity. Can we consider this an opportunity from the HRCI to provide reliable courses’ content to professionals from other disciplines as well? Would this product be elaborated in future to turn into certifying professionals from other disciplines?

Ms. Stephanie Runyan:

HRCI continues to explore additional learning areas where HR professionals can expand their knowledge.  While our upSkill courses address specific topic areas, our learning catalog also offers educational opportunities that range from topics such as Agility, Women in Business, Data Management and Business Strategy. As far as learning is concerned, HRCI will continue to explore different disciplines and topics that impact the practice of HR.

7- HR Revolution Middle East: To what extent do you believe HR professionals shall not limit their study to HR related subjects only, but shall expand to learn about related disciplines to excel in their field and serve their organizations differently?

Ms. Stephanie Runyan:

HR professionals must be prepared for anything.  The roles of HR professionals continually change. I believe that there will be a continued need to expand their areas of knowledge and expertise.  I also expect that there will be a desire to learn more about specific industries, in greater detail.  For example, if you have a manufacturing organization, I can easily see HR professionals looking to learn more about the manufacturing industry, it’s competitors, and challenges that a specific industry may face.

8- HR Revolution Middle East: The Product Development dynamics have recently become very aggressive due to the technological disruption, so we would like to ask you finally, to give an advice for product directors and managers; how can they increase their creativity and innovation skills to cope with such dynamics?

Ms. Stephanie Runyan:

My recommendation would be to continue to monitor the needs and wants of your specific audiences.  As the world responds to the effects of the global pandemic, there will be an increased need for virtual capabilities and enhanced technology that can support your organization’s initiatives.

THANK YOU