FYI - All Canadian Home Inspectors
Several years ago, as part of the National Initiative for Canadian Home Inspectors, the National Occupational Standards (NOS) were created. The NOS were the culmination of hundreds of hours of hard work by many volunteers from all sectors of the Canadian Home Inspection industry. The NOS document defines the ‘basket’ of skills, knowledge and experience that competent home and property inspectors should have, and is the standard on which certification and accreditation are based. As with many documents, the NOS need to be reviewed on a regular basis and improved and updated to reflect industry and housing changes. They were reviewed and revised in early 2008, at which time it was decided to revisit them every five years.
National Occupational Standards (NOS)
“NOS and occupational profiles are forms of labour market intelligence that outline the formal and informal skills and knowledge requirements of occupations, and serve as tools for improving the mobility of labour and transferability of skills in unregulated occupations. NOS are developed by industry with a national objective and require pan-Canadian validation and endorsement by industry stakeholders and form the basis of certification and accreditation regimes.
National standards also help managers and educators design informed instructional training programs, and they support skills upgrading and labour mobility.”
Certification and Accreditation
“Certification and accreditation systems are commonly based on NOS. They help education systems develop and maintain suitable standards, as well as provide industry with credible credential recognition of essential occupational requirements. They also facilitate labour mobility and transferability of skills.”
**The above is referenced from the HRSDC (Human Resources and Skills Development Canada) website. **
The NOS Development Process
National Occupational Standards are developed to identify the competencies required by practitioners based on input from experienced industry practitioners. The development process is based on utilizing the classic Canadian Vocational Association (CVA) DACUM methodology. During the workshop, practitioners are guided through a structured process for developing a five level DACUM analysis. - http://www.dacumohiostate.com/
Standards of Practice
Standards of Practice describe the scope and limitations of a home and/or property inspection. Standards of Practice provide detail as to what a client can expect from a standard home inspection. (For clarification - This is not a call for a common SOP).
Invitation
The NHICC is inviting all Canadian Associations, Franchises, and other interested parties to participate. Since this is an industry initiative we have announced this publicly on as many forums as possible. Additionally, we have sent out invitations to ALL home inspection associations to consider the opportunity to work collectively together in this process.
The role of the NHICC is mainly as a facilitator to help guide this process with the DACUM team. More importantly is the role of each association, in having the opportunity to participate. The open invitation is particularly aimed at those that claim the lack of cooperation and allegations about previous engagements.
Well - here’s your chance to be part of a cooperative effort to dispel those myths and allegations.
The cost
Certainly the cost may be a major distracter for some to participate. Realistically with budget and funding cutbacks, the funding for this initiative is largely based on very little if any financial support from the government or other stakeholders.
**More information is attached regarding the invitation to participate. **