apwa accreditation. what is apwa accreditation? the purpose of accreditation is to promote and...
DESCRIPTION
Accreditation Objectives Evaluate what you are doing well and what you could do better Develop new policies, practices or procedures Prepare documentation to support what you are doingTRANSCRIPT
APWA Accreditation
What is APWA Accreditation? The purpose of Accreditation is to
promote and recognize excellence in the operation and management of a public works agency utilizing a three step process.
Accreditation Objectives• Evaluate what you are doing well and
what you could do better
• Develop new policies, practices or procedures
• Prepare documentation to support what you are doing
PHASE ONESelf-Assessment
PHASE TWOImprovements
PHASE THREEAccreditation
Accreditation• Increase professionalism
• Instill pride within the department
• Continuous updating and improvement
APWA Accredited Agencies• 102 United States Agencies
• 2 Canadian Agencies
104 Total Agencies
Agencies Under Contract 33 United States Agencies 1 Canadian Agencies 2 KC Metro Agencies
Shawnee, KS just completed site visit and will become the 105th
Raymore, MO
Agencies Expressing Interest in KC Metro Area
Blue Springs, MO Kansas City, MO Mission, KS Fairway, KS Shawnee, KS
Lee’s Summit’s ExperienceLength of Time Self-assessment
Initially started in 1997 but stalled due to lack of priority in department Lack of organization “Daunting task” perception Mixed employee reactions
Re-started efforts in 1999 Implemented chapter leader concept to spread
responsibility and accountability through the organization
Lee’s Summit’s ExperienceInitial Self Assessment Findings
(1999)Total Practices: 462Practices Specific to LSPW: 421
50% Compliance – By Actual Practice and Written Documentation
70% Compliance – By Actual Practice
Lee’s Summit’s Experience During improvement and
implementation phases of process Chapter leaders actively solicited
support from other staff members encouraging participation throughout organization
Over 40 of 110 employees were directly involved in the process
Resulted in employee “buy in”
Lee’s Summit’s Experience Accreditation
Received full accreditation in 2004 First KC metro agency, 2nd in Mo
1st Re-accreditation 2008 after approx 12 months of review and
updating 2nd Re-accreditation
2012 after 18-24 months which included creating internal Wiki site
Several LS PW practices are now identified as APWA model practices.
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Lee’s Summit’s ExperienceBenefits Focused department on both short
and long-term planning - proactive vs. reactive
Practices, documents, policies and procedures assembled for accreditation became complete department operating manual
Now housed on Wiki site Available to all employees through
computer access at work or at home
Lee’s Summit’s Experience Creating documentation from
employee knowledge was invaluable to capture institutional knowledge
Found practices not fully compliant with standards resulted in staff recognizing a need to improve
And…
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We ended up with really snazzy bowling shirts!
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