Why people professionals must influence others

Assessed under 5CO03 AC 1.3, this video centres on why the ability to influence others is not a peripheral skill but a defining requirement of the people professional role. Drawing directly on the CIPD Profession Map, it examines the core purposes that HR, L&D and OD practitioners are expected to fulfil — advising leaders, advocating for employees, addressing compliance, and driving evidence-based improvement — and makes the case that none of these purposes can be achieved without active, confident contribution to discussions and decisions.

The video addresses two specific behaviours named within the CIPD Profession Map: the thinking performer and the courageous challenger. It considers what is at stake when people professionals remain silent, including the marginalisation of workforce perspectives in strategic planning, the erosion of professional credibility, and the risk that ethical concerns go unchallenged. These consequences are set against the positive organisational outcomes that follow when practitioners do speak up and communicate their expertise effectively to decision-makers.

Alongside the case for why influence matters, the video also introduces the communication techniques through which that influence is exercised — covering the use of volume, tone and pace; gaining attention; summarising and checking understanding; listening and questioning to engage with different viewpoints; and constructing evidence-based arguments supported by facts and data. The importance of recognising context and adapting content to suit a particular audience runs through this discussion, grounding AC 1.3 in both the professional rationale for speaking up and the practical means of doing so with clarity and confidence.