Tier 3 · Strategic
CHCS
Certified Human Capital Strategist
Assessed by examined case analysis.
Advanced strategic capability — aligning workforce strategy with business objectives through leadership influence, analytics, and organizational transformation at executive level.
The Specification
What the qualification requires.
Syllabus units
From the CHCS Qualification SpecificationAll 8 units are mandatory — there are no optional pathways. Full learning outcomes and assessment criteria are set out in the CHCS Qualification Specification, available from GHCA on request.
- 01Strategic Human Capital Management and Business Alignment
- 02Workforce Strategy, Total Rewards, and Future Workforce Planning
- 03Organizational Development, Transformation, and Agility
- 04Leadership and Strategic Influence
- 05Human Capital Analytics, Digital HR, and AI
- 06Employee Experience, Inclusion, and Wellbeing Strategy
- 07Talent Strategy and Succession Planning
- 08Governance, Risk, and Compliance in Human Capital
Who it is for
Is this the right level?
Entry requirements are a floor, not a filter — if you meet them and the description below sounds like your work, this is your level.
- Senior HR leaders and heads of function
- Consultants advising on organizational design
- CHCP holders moving into strategic accountability
- Executives responsible for human capital at board level
How you are assessed
You pass by meeting a fixed, published standard — never by outperforming other candidates in your sitting.
Identity verification, a monitored session, and a result that cannot be changed without a record of who changed it and when.
Reasonable adjustments change how you access the assessment, never what is assessed. Requests open 15 working days before a sitting.
The credential is valid for 3 years. To keep it you either record continuing professional development across the cycle and submit the evidence, or sit the current version of the examination again on the same terms as a first attempt.
A result, a malpractice finding or an adjustment decision can all be challenged — free at the first stage. How appeals and complaints work.
Fees
Who you pay.
You pay your training provider, not GHCA. An Authorized Training Provider delivers the course, registers you for CHCS, and sets its own price for doing so — which is why it is worth comparing providers rather than assuming one figure applies everywhere.
What that price includes is the same everywhere: your registration on the GHCA register, your examination sitting, and your certificate on a pass. GHCA’s own fees are charged to the provider under their authorization agreement, not to you.
Ask your provider for their fees in writing before you enrol, including what happens if you need to re-sit. Find an Authorized Training Provider →
The Framework
Where CHCS sits.
Start with CHCS.
Registration runs through an Authorized Training Provider, or directly with GHCA. Tell us which and we will point you to the right route.