The value of professional registration to employers

Organisations that employ professionally registered engineers or technicians can enhance their competitive advantage. Many customers, both in the UK and overseas, will require evidence of your employees' engineering competence when tendering for new business.

Engineering Council registration is an internationally recognised way to satisfy this requirement that will increase your ability to win potential business.

To gain professional registration, each engineer or technician must submit evidence of education, training and professional experience to their institution. These are scrutinised by a panel of senior engineers, including industrialists and academics.

For those applying for Incorporated Engineering (IEng) or Chartered Engineering (CEng) a formal face-to-face review is then undertaken, drawing on detailed real project submissions judged by the candidate to exemplify the competences achieved.

During the registration process all documentation submitted by the candidate is verified. Evidence of academic qualifications is checked with the issuing authority. Statements of experience gained and career path are verified by at least two sponsors, who are contacted separately for private reports.

A key benefit for Engineering Council registrants is that the quality of the UK Professional Titles is widely recognised by the rest of the world. There are also a number of specific mutual recognition agreements and European laws that guarantee acceptance of these titles overseas.

Membership of a Licensed Professional Engineering Institution provides access to a structured Continuing Professional Development (CPD) programme.

As part of a staff development strategy, the institutions’ structured CPD programmes, including mentoring, provide a potentially cost effective solution to delivering career development, either individually or alongside any internal training activities.

Many institutions also provide members with an online CPD system to plan, record and review their CPD.

Employing professionally registered engineers and technicians, and supporting your staff in achieving these titles, shows a commitment to staff development.

Organisations that employ professionally registered engineers and technicians can have the confidence that, should a serious accident or incident occur which requires legal investigation, they have tangible proof that employees are suitably experienced and qualified, which can therefore strengthen their case. It may also help to reduce insurance rates.

Registrants are expected to observe and keep up-to-date with the requirements of the Code of Conduct of the professional engineering institution they have joined. Institutions are obliged to respond to allegations of infringement of the code. They may suspend or remove membership and Engineering Council registration if infringement is proven.

ISO 9001:2008 (in 6.2.2.a) states that:

"The organisation shall determine the necessary competence for personnel performing work affecting conformity to product requirements." 

Professional registration contributes to demonstrating that employees have suitable and necessary competences.