Becoming Chartered: The Professional Review Process

Benefits

A c​​​ommitment to achieving Chartered Director status is a clear message to your colleagues, customers and network that you are serious about your role and the contributions you make to your organisation. Becoming a Chartered Director is an endorsement of your skills, professionalism, and knowledge of corporate governance best-practice.

Chartered Directors demonstrate continuous commitment and ongoing professional development to maintain the level of effectiveness and practitioner excellence that exemplifies Chartered status and an outstanding contribution to their boards and organisations.

Eligibility Criteria

To apply for the Professional Review Process, you must:

• Be a full member of the Institute of Directors
• Have passed the Certificate in Company Direction and Diploma in Company Direction examinations
• Demonstrate at least three years’ experience, within the last five years, as a board director
• Be a member of an autonomous and formally constituted board (or equivalent) comprising at least three directors (executive and non-executive) who meet a minimum of four times per year
• Your organisation needs to have a minimum turnover of £250,000
• Your organisation needs to have a minimum of five employees, excluding the directors.

The maximum time for applying to become a Chartered Director, having passed the Certificate and Diploma in Company Direction, is ten years. Roles or experience that exceed five years from the point of application will not be accepted. The role(s) that you put forward should include at least one that has been held in the last five years. For any queries regarding the validity of professional qualifications, please contact the training team on chartereddirector@iodireland.ie.

The Professional Review Process

• Stage 1: Fill in the Application form
  • Submit an application form to IoD Ireland which is reviewed and passed over to IoD UK on behalf of the candidate.
• Stage 2:  Portfolio of Experience
  • Once eligibility is confirmed by IoD UK, applicants will continue with the Professional Review Process where they submit a portfolio of experience to IoD UK.
  • The portfolio includes a record of an applicant's employment history as a director, together with certain information about the boards on which they have served, and a written self-assessment of their experience.
• Stage 3: Interview 
  • Attend an interview with two peers drawn from an IoD UK panel consisting of Chartered Directors, Members and Fellows of the Institute. Interviews may take place, by arrangement, in the IoD offices in London or, alternatively, in Dublin.
  • The purpose of the interview is to obtain further information about the applicant's experience and contribution as a director, as outlined in the portfolio of experience. 

Fee 

Please note: The Chartered Director Programme offered by the Institute of Directors in Ireland does not include the fees required for the application process for the Profession Review Process step. This fee is payable to IoD UK with the candidate’s application. The current fee for the professional review process leading to Chartered Director accreditation is £720.

Accreditation 

• The IoD UK awards both the Certificate and Diploma in Company Direction under the provisions of its Royal Charter and leads to qualifications credit rated by the Scottish Qualification Authority (SQA).
• The SQA, under Scottish Government legislation, is both an accreditation body and an awarding body, providing a wide range of high quality, internationally recognised qualifications and associated services. For further information and details on awards and qualifications, visit the Scottish Credit and Qualifications Framework section of the SQA website.
• Chartered Director (CDir): The Professional Accreditation of Chartered Director is awarded by the IoD UK and is obtained following successful completion of the Professional Review Process. This requires you to provide evidence on how you work within the context of your board, how you use your knowledge and skills to the benefit of the organisation, and how you discharge your duties as a director.  The qualification comprises three stages which assess your practical experience as a director. These include: application; portfolio of experience; and formal interview conducted by two Chartered Director interviewers. Before you can apply for the Chartered Director qualification you must meet both the pre-requisite requirements and the eligibility criteria. These must be met before proceeding to the application stage.