Best Practices Committee Update

The USP Best Practices Committee acquired three new members this month, which means that we have more stakeholder engagement going forward. The committee does the important work of reviewing suggested changes to the National Best Practices and taking part in the consensus-based process that determines what our guiding best practices will be. It is critical to the integrity of that process that the highest number of stakeholder groups possible are represented at the table. No single interest group can fully understand the most important elements in keeping people safe, so every group’s viewpoint needs to be considered. We all have a stake in safety.

To fully appreciate how best practices come to exist, let’s take a look at the process. I wish I had a little Schoolhouse Rock video like “I’m just a Bill” to describe the path of a transaction record through to becoming a best practice, but an illustration will have to do. There is a detailed flow diagram in Appendix B of the National Best Practices, but here is a simplified version:

As you can see from the illustration, there are critical points in a TR’s journey to becoming a best practice where thoughtful consideration and debate takes place, both regionally and nationally. At each of those debates, it is important to have as wide a range of viewpoints as possible. If the best practices of your industry matter to you, consider joining a regional best practice committee where your opinion can make a difference. At the very least, if you want to see a change to the best practices, download a Transaction Form and submit it to the USP Best Practices Committee by emailing it to Info@UtilitySafety.ca.

For more information about the Best Practices Committee, visit our page here.

Sher Kirk – Operations Director, USP