Why are continuing education webinars just sales pitches?
Professional certification holders are forced to sit through promotional spam and sponsored webinars that offer no actual value just to earn renewal credits. This constant barrage of advertising makes maintaining credentials feel like watching endless commercials.
What people tried
Every workaround mentioned in the threads below. We haven’t tested any of them — and nobody here is claiming they worked.
- 1letting certifications lapse
- 2using a throwaway email address and phone number
- 3joining alternative state or independent local organizations
- 4keeping the certification on the resume without continuing to pay for membership
In their words
Unedited, most upvoted first, each linked to the thread it came from.
“I can’t remember the last time I’ve read anything valuable from SHRM or attended a webinar that wasn’t a sales pitch.”source ↗
“This morning alone i received FIVE emails from SHRM and all five are junk - advertising a HRIS, trying to sell me a membership even though i have one, and nonsense webinars that will bring me no value except credits to maintain my cert.”source ↗
“It’s honestly kinda whack how to maintain it you basically have to watch commercials too lol.”source ↗
“Every webinar is a sales pitch for whoever sponsors.”source ↗
Where this came up
People with this problem also raised
- 4Why am I paying for professional certs that barely increase my pay?
- 3How to get live continuing education hours for certification
- 3How to pass work certifications fast with no experience
- 3Should I switch to the new CPA program or rush the old one?
- 13Are professional certifications actually worth the money for a promotion?
- 11How to choose certification study materials I can actually trust