Companies in S’pore with over 200 employees must have certified HR professional from July 2028
Vihanya Rashika
The Straits Times
Sept 24, 2026
Organisations with more than 200 employees will be required to have at least one suitably certified human resources (HR) professional from July 1, 2028, as part of a wider push to raise HR standards and help businesses and workers navigate changes in the workplace.
The requirement is among a series of initiatives arising from recommendations by the Tripartite Workgroup on Human Capital Capability Development (TWG-HC), which the Government has accepted.
Responding to queries from The Straits Times, Institute for Human Resource Professionals (IHRP) chief executive Aslam Sardar said the certification requirement would help create greater consistency and quality in HR practices, as HR professionals increasingly make decisions involving workforce strategy, skills and organisational transformation.
A common professional baseline would also give employers greater confidence in workforce decisions, he added.
The TWG-HC, co-chaired by the Ministry of Manpower, National Trades Union Congress and Singapore National Employers Federation (SNEF), launched its report on Sept 24 at the IHRP’s People Behind People forum.
In his welcome address at the forum, Sardar said the flagship event was “by far the biggest” that had taken place since its inception. Its inaugural edition was held in December 2020.
The report that was launched on Sept 24, titled Opportunity By Design: Strengthening Human Capital In Every Workplace For Every Worker, said a good job is defined not only by the role or salary it offers today, but also by the opportunities it creates for workers over time.
It also said workers increasingly want fair treatment, room to grow, flexibility to accommodate other priorities in their lives and careers that can last.
It added that “opportunity is not a matter of chance but of design”, with top-performing organisations in the Singapore Opportunity Index distinguished by deliberate choices about how jobs are designed, employees are developed and leaders act.
On artificial intelligence, the report said businesses that fail to pay sufficient attention to their people may struggle to turn AI investments into lasting value, while workers may experience the changes mainly as disruption.
When adopted deliberately, however, AI could augment workers’ roles, improve performance and create better opportunities for them.
IHRP head of professional standards and development Karina Kuok, in response to separate queries, said HR professionals would need to understand when to use AI, how to challenge its outputs and “when a human decision must remain at the centre”.
The TWG-HC was convened in February 2025 to address trends reshaping work and workplaces, including rapid technological advancement and rising longevity.
Over 1½ years, the work group engaged more than 1,000 employers, workers, HR professionals and representatives from trade associations and chambers, HR institutions, academia and government agencies.
Its recommendations aim to benefit more than two million workers, support at least 2,000 enterprises and build the capabilities of 20,000 HR professionals and people leaders.
Under the new requirement, organisations with more than 200 employees must have at least one HR professional certified at the IHRP Certified Professional (IHRP-CP) level or higher.
Equivalent certifications from other international HR professional bodies recognised by IHRP will also be accepted, subject to bridging requirements.
Minister of State for Manpower and Trade and Industry Foo Cexiang said in his opening address at the forum that certification would give employers confidence that their HR teams can advise leaders well, while giving workers greater assurance that decisions affecting their careers are guided by recognised professional and ethical standards.
“As technology makes workforce decisions more complex, this foundation of trust matters much more,” said Foo.
He said the move, together with other tripartite efforts, is expected to grow the pool of certified HR professionals from 9,000 to around 18,000, or 40 per cent of the HR workforce, by 2030.
He added that the TWG-HC’s five recommendations, which the Government has accepted, fall under three broad thrusts: making opportunity visible and measurable, putting people at the heart of business transformation, and strengthening the HR profession and people leadership.
Additional support to encourage certification
The Government will also provide additional support to encourage HR professionals to obtain certification ahead of the requirement.
On top of existing subsidies for Singapore residents, an additional $100 subsidy will be provided from Oct 1, 2026, to June 30, 2028.
This will bring the fees down to $163.50 for IHRP-CP certification and $272.50 for IHRP Senior Professional certification. Both certifications are valid for three years.
Organisations will be able to use their SkillsFuture Enterprise Credits to offset the remaining out-of-pocket fees for their HR professionals.
The work group’s other recommendations include initiatives aimed at helping companies redesign jobs, adopt AI and create better career opportunities for workers.
AI ‘starter kits’ for HR
One initiative is the People-Centred AI Transformation for HR, or PATH, a multi-agency effort to help businesses and HR professionals navigate the impact of AI on jobs, skills and workforce practices.
Under PATH, IHRP and the Skills and Workforce Development Agency will develop AI “starter kits” for HR, bringing together suitable AI solutions with practical implementation guidance, consultancy, training and funding support to help enterprises apply AI to HR use cases.
IHRP will also work with training providers to introduce more accredited programmes aligned with 12 new IHRP AI Fluency Skills Badges.
Adrenalin Group managing director Jeremy Tan, in response to separate queries from ST, said the biggest challenge for small and medium-sized enterprises was “bandwidth”, with lean teams already juggling growth, costs, customers and manpower needs.
He said AI adoption and workforce development should be “the same journey”, with AI used to remove repetitive work and allow employees to focus on higher-value tasks.
Foo cautioned that companies have to consider how AI adoption affects the development of workers, particularly those starting their careers.
“If we automate every entry-level task, we may improve efficiency today but weaken the pipeline of expertise for tomorrow,” he said.
Companies should instead redesign jobs and learning pathways together, using AI to augment experienced workers while giving newer workers structured exposure and progressively more complex responsibilities.
“There is no shortcut to judgment. Before we can expect workers to connect the dots, we must make sure they first have the opportunity to collect the dots,” Foo said.
Another recommendation centres on the Singapore Opportunity Index launched in 2025 as a national benchmark for the opportunities that employers create for workers.
Using verified administrative data to measure how career mobility is shaped in the workplace, the index aims to help workers make more informed career decisions and employers assess the impact of their human capital strategies.
‘Good workforce practices do more than fill jobs’
Foo added that workers should look beyond salary and job titles when evaluating opportunities, including whether employers provide opportunities to learn and progress.
“Good workforce practices do more than fill jobs. They widen horizons and shape careers,” he said.
The remaining recommendations include helping enterprises build people capabilities into their growth strategies and developing people leaders for the future.
An inaugural human capital programme by the Human Capital Leadership Institute and its partners will be launched in 2027 to develop the next generation of senior people leaders. The Government will provide funding support for Singaporean HR and business leaders.
Separately at the Sept 24 forum, Ngee Ann Polytechnic unveiled its new Centre for Workplace Well-being, or coWELL, to help organisations support workers through change and build a more resilient workforce.
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