As the 31 May CPD deadline approaches, Moonstone Business School of Excellence (MBSE) says a familiar pattern plays out every year: advisers and financial services professionals realise they still have hours outstanding and then try to complete everything in one final push over the closing weekend.
However, starting today, there are still six business days remaining – from Thursday, 21 May, to Friday, 29 May – before the deadline weekend arrives.
According to MBSE’s operations manager, Monique Brummer, that creates an opportunity to make meaningful progress now rather than trying to complete an entire year’s CPD requirement in one sitting.
The institution’s suggestion is straightforward: use the time that already exists in the day more deliberately.
For example, professionals who use one lunch hour across each of the six remaining business days could already accumulate six CPD hours before reaching the final weekend – reducing pressure and creating more flexibility for any remaining hours.
The point, Brummer says, is not that six hours will satisfy everyone’s requirement.
“It is that breaking the remaining workload into smaller sessions may be more realistic – and more useful – than trying to absorb multiple courses back-to-back at the last minute.”
Instead of treating CPD as an end-of-cycle catch-up exercise, Brummer suggests combining shorter online courses during lunch breaks and quieter administrative periods and then building remaining hours around those sessions.
Start with shorter wins
MBSE has identified several shorter online courses that can be completed in one to two hours and combined over multiple days depending on how many hours remain.
For professionals looking to make immediate progress, one-hour options include:
- Effective Communication Skills (1 CPD) – focused on improving communication inside organisations and strengthening engagement with colleagues and clients.
- Getting to know POPIA (1 CPD) – designed to build practical understanding of information governance and privacy obligations inside organisations.
For slightly longer sessions:
- Getting to know FICA (1.5 CPD) – covering anti-money laundering, greylisting, reporting obligations, and compliance responsibilities. This course is also available in isiXhosa.
- How to manage your time effectively (1.5 CPD) – focused on practical tools and strategies to improve productivity, planning, and workload management.
Two-hour options include:
- Protecting your Information (2 CPD) – focused on protecting data both online and offline, with practical coverage of privacy legislation, cyber security awareness, and information governance.
- Business Continuity Planning (2 CPD) – covering disaster recovery, succession planning, and practical approaches to reducing operational disruption and business continuity risk.
- How to service and retain customers (2 CPD) – exploring customer expectations, customer experience, and practical strategies for improving retention and long-term client relationships.
- How to manage conflict of interest (2 CPD) – providing an overview of governance principles, regulatory obligations, and practical scenarios for identifying and managing conflicts ethically.
MBSE’s broader CPD guidance this year has focused less on simply accumulating hours and more on selecting courses that strengthen capabilities advisers already use every day.
Topics such as communication, conduct, governance, regulatory awareness, and customer outcomes remain relevant across most advisory environments regardless of product category or specialisation.
The final stretch
With only days remaining before the deadline, MBSE’s message is simple: if you still have hours outstanding, start now.
“A few focused sessions completed over several days may be easier – and ultimately more useful – than trying to complete an entire CPD requirement in one sitting,” says Brummer.
The MBSE team will remain available to provide support until Friday, 29 May, at 4.30pm.
However, there will be no support available on Saturday, 30 May, or Sunday, 31 May, so professionals are encouraged to leave enough time to complete any outstanding courses, assessments, or administrative queries before the deadline weekend.
MBSE’s CPD courses remain available individually through the online platform or through the institution’s subscription offering.
Flexible e-learning options
MBSE’s CPD courses stand out for their accessibility, offering flexible e-learning options that can be completed on a computer, tablet, or smartphone, anytime and anywhere.
Other features are:
- access to user-friendly, printable training material that is broken up into smaller units, supplemented with relevant multimedia content;
- access to MBSE’s helpdesk – queries are answered within three business days; and
- regular self-assessment to monitor progress.
Students can access and print their certificate once they have completed all the course activities and passed (at least 60%) the assessments.
Click here to sign up for an MBSE CPD course before time runs out.
