A few weeks ago, I was in London, meeting with some of WorldatWork’s global partners in education and professional development. After discussing our plans for the upcoming holidays, one of our partners asked me a question that I’ve been thinking about ever since. What keeps a CEO up at night during this time of year?”
Most of us do a lot of reflection toward a year’s end — and it’s rarely just because of those “best of/worst of the year” lists and predictions for the year ahead that pop up across our newsfeeds as one year ends and another begins. We’re essentially clearing one slate and starting with a fresh canvas on which to make our mark, so it’s natural to process not only the goals we were able to achieve, but also the successes, the losses and the opportunities ahead of us.
WorldatWork Turns 70 in 2025
The upcoming year is a big one for WorldatWork and, in full transparency, it’s definitely kept me up a few nights. Not from fear or anxiety but because we’re facing a significant milestone as an association. In 2025, we’ll be celebrating our 70 th anniversary.
Don’t get me wrong, I’m excited and thrilled to see all we can do in such an important year — as well as how much our 70 th anniversary can become the foundation for growth and innovation leading up to our next major milestone, when we celebrate our 75 th anniversary in 2030.
What lingers with me is a very specific question, however: As stewards of this association, are we doing enough to further the profession, support our members and encourage the growth of future compensation, benefits and rewards leaders?
There’s always more to do, of course. At the same time, I’m proud of the work we’ve done for the past several years that positions us to make the most of what’s ahead in 2025.
The CCP and GRP: Empowering Compensation Professionals
Many of our members may have heard references to — or helped us develop — important updates to two of our most influential education curricula, the Certified Compensation Professional (CCP) and Global Remuneration Professional (GRP) certification programs.
Our efforts with each of these programs were a massive undertaking that involved dozens of people across the WorldatWork team and hundreds of practitioners from around the world who provided crucial guidance and gave valuable feedback. They pointed out not just what compensation professionals always need to consider, but what will help emerging rewards professionals future-proof their compensation practices and the profession itself.
When we set out to amend the CCP and GRP programs, our focus wasn’t just to improve them. It was to provide a significant reframing of the programs to make them as relevant, approachable and career-defining as possible.
During 2024, we conducted pilots and tests of the updates before finalizing the curricula. We’re so excited to fully release to professionals around the world these fully updated certification programs, which have — for decades — been acknowledged as the premier qualifications in compensation management. Our CCP and GRP programs deliver unmatched impact for professionals, their organizations, and ultimately, the broader world of work itself.
With this critical update to these vital programs, we are trying to make sure learners can earn their certifications quickly, easily and with confidence. That has included condensing and combining some courses. The redesigned CCP program now has eight courses instead of 10; the GRP program has nine courses instead of 10. Everything — including preparatory materials, coursebooks, exams and learning options — have been carefully designed and created to set up all learners for success.
Why did we go all out?
The impact that compensation and remuneration professionals have on their organizations is often downplayed by other fields. Practitioners know that our influence on our teams and our organizations is what has led to rewards professionals having a growing seat at the table. Our profession gives us a unique view across organizational systems. The levers at the core of total rewards can reshape a company, employee experience, outcomes and more.
Just as the CCP and GRP originally set a new standard for our profession, our updated programs will set a fresh global standard for how, what and why we deliver as compensation professionals.
It's one of the reasons it’s increasingly commonplace to see human resources and total rewards leaders become CEOs or to influence CEOs like never before.
Learning how and when to adjust the levers of rewards practices is both an art and a science, and the importance of that balance is why the CCP and GRP designations have been so central to the profession. Just as the CCP and GRP originally set a new standard for our profession, our updated CCP and GRP programs will set a fresh global standard for how, what and why we deliver as compensation professionals. As an association, as a community and as a source of learning, we’ve been shaped by and will continue to shape the evolving world of compensation.
By updating our curriculum, the material in the courses, the number of courses within each program and how we deliver the courses to learners, we’re preparing compensation and rewards professionals for not just what they need to know now in the crossover from 2024 to 2025, but also well into the future. We’re proud to be stewards of the future of compensation and rewards today.
Looking Forward, Together
I can’t wait to share these programs with professionals around the world. If you’ve considered working toward your CCP or GRP, I hope 2025 will be the year you decide to take that step — not only for yourself, but for the future of rewards and of work. The confidence, knowledge, understanding and career growth that these certifications deliver are among the things we’re most proud to share with the world of total rewards.
The forthcoming updates to the WorldatWork CCP and GRP programs are just part of the value that I’m most looking forward to bringing to our community and profession this new year. We have so much more to share with you over the next 12 months and well into the future — and I can’t wait to tell you more of what we have planned for the year ahead. At the same time, our mutual desire to see rewards professionals thriving, growing and connecting will always have me asking, “ Are we doing enough?”
If there are new ways you’d like to see WorldatWork supporting our members and professionals everywhere, please don’t hesitate to reach out. If you are working toward your CCP or GRP and have any questions about what our program updates mean for you, please know we are here to support you each step of the way. Our customer experience team is prepared to answer any questions you may have about your in-progress courses.
Until then, I’m wishing you a safe, happy and healthy holiday season. And here’s to a rewarding 2025 for the profession we serve — and an impactful 70 th year for WorldatWork!
Editor’s Note: Additional Content
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