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Attendance Support
Project Update
Presentation to COSBO
October 2008
Status Update
Project Objectives
Our Approach
Overview of Key Tools Developed
Key Findings
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Project Objectives
Review and assess existing attendance management systems and policies and
their impact on absenteeism in key performing Ontario school boards
Research, analyze and develop recommendations and options as they pertain
to Attendance Management Best Practices for the District School Boards of
Ontario
Ensure that solutions would help boards:
Increase management capacity
Reduce unnecessary costs related to absenteeism
Support student achievement through the development of a healthy work culture and consistent staff attendance
Project Approach
Investigation of leading practices structured through: •Survey Review •Interview Guides / Questionnaires •Board & External Org Interviews Results / minutes are captured in •Excel Interview TemplateResults used to refine:
•Attendance Support Framework •Attendance Support Maturity Model Results used to develop: •Final Report
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Overview of Tools Developed - Interview Guides
Provides a framework for discussion of Attendance Support
Questions aligned with leading practices in both official languages
Can be re-used by boards in self-assessment
Overview of Tools Developed – Attendance Support Framework
The Framework is a basic conceptual structure used to describe a complex issue
Structure used consistently throughout the report and becomes a common language
3 phases in the Attendance Support “life-cycle” : Planning, Monitoring and Evaluating
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Attendance Support Framework Cont.
Each category across each phase contains 10 – 15 leading practices
From Framework to Maturity Model
Content and structure from the Attendance Support Framework used to develop a tool for measuring leading practice adoption
“Maturity” levels are characterized by the number of leading practices adopted vs the number of “typical” challenges still existing
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Attendance Support Maturity Model
4 Maturity Levels:
Implementing – leading practices still being identified or initiated
Building – partially adopted, foundation being built – still evaluating
Refining – implemented to a significant extent, have been evaluated and are just being refined (usually annually)
Mature – leading practices have been adopted to the full extent, have been refined over a period of years
Maturity Model can be used for:
Self Evaluation – Where are we? How far do we need to go?
Planning and prioritizing – What should we do next?
Common language and vision
– How do we define
improvement? Are we on the same page?
Planning Phase - Key Issues
Policy & Guidelines
Unsure of what contents should be
Don’t want to risk interference with collective agreements
Roles & Responsibilities
Limited buy-in from Exec Committee – HR-driven
Limited capacity in HR to design / plan
Limited involvement or interest from Principals / Supervisors
Culture & Environment
Culture of employees’ right to use maximum number of sick days
Union refusal to participate in planning
Assumption that program seeks to violate human rights
Wellness & Benefits
Unsure of what programs would improve attendance
Limited visibility between program managers
Data Analysis & Reporting
System and codes not flexible
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Planning Phase – Leading Practices
Policy & Guidelines
Clearly defined thresholds for intervention, processes, flow charts, guiding principles
Requires collaboration and “endorsement “by stakeholders
Initiatives are included in multi-year Board improvement plan
Roles & Responsibilities
Accountability for Management is clearly defined in policy
Attendance Committee includes all stakeholders (union reps, Principals, etc)
Principals and supervisors required to play a significant role
Culture & Environment
Management training focused on timeliness and consistency of policy enforcement to ensure employee compliance and eventual erosion of entitlement culture
Third-party intervention / analysis of employee needs – (no HR or Mgmt involvement)
Communication Plans designed for positive and consistent message
Intervention process and training assumes that employee requires support for illness/disability first and foremost (less focus on communicating or initiating punitive) steps
Wellness & Benefits
Perform analysis/ benchmarking of organizational wellness, then set targets
Design benefits and wellness programs according to analysis and employee feedback
Data Analysis & Reporting
Perform system review + retrain
Align absence codes with collective agreement language
Design reports for how you will manage employees (and management) and attach them to the policy
Monitoring Phase – Key Issues
Policy & Guidelines
Policy and procedure monitored / applied only on an ad-hoc basis
Roles & Responsibilities
Limited Principal/Supervisor involvement and accountability in monitoring
Limited contact between employees and management during absence
Limited capacity within HR to monitor, coordinate, coach, act as “sentinel”, etc
Culture & Environment
Inconsistent management styles / approach / communication
Wellness & Benefits
Difficulty identifying trends related to attendance
Management perceptions of attendance support or RTW programs are not always positive
Data Analysis & Reporting
Data not timely or consistent (misuse of “other” coding category, inconsistent coding for supply teachers for PD sessions).
Creating and interpreting reports requires advanced technical skills
Limited Site-based self-service reporting available
Reports not being incorporated into management processes
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Monitoring Phase - Leading Practices
Policy & Guidelines
Policy and procedure material distributed to all employees.
Policy applied on a consistent basis through monitoring and support of management as well as employees
Refresher training for employees and management is ongoing
Roles & Responsibilities
Ensuring Principal/Supervisor involvement and accountability through training and personal coaching/planning
Employees must report absence to Principals./Supervisors (Sentinel) in addition to using SmartFind Express (supply auto-dispatch system)
Dedicated resource in HR to coordinate Attendance Support initiatives and act as coach
Culture & Environment
Management is supported by standard templates, real-time coaching and peer support
Actions of management are monitored for consistency through training
Proactive employee intervention when trends have been identified
Satisfaction and Commitment Surveys conducted
Wellness & Benefits
Utilization of programs is measured against attendance trends
Education and statistics provided to all management to improve any negative perceptions of attendance support or RTW programs
Data Analysis & Reporting
System automatically flags employees with paterns of absenteeism
Employees Data entry is site-based and monitored by HR for accuracy (corrected immediately)
User-friendly reports available to management, shared with unions and incorporated into committee meetings
Key Findings – Evaluation Phase Issues
Policy & Guidelines
Limited ability to evaluate effectiveness of policy, program or compliance with policy
Roles & Responsibilities
Difficulty evaluating individual management or departmental performance in supporting Attendance
Limited capacity or accountability for performing and reporting on evaluation.
Culture & Environment
Culture and environment varies and is difficult to evaluate changes or improvements.
Wellness & Benefits
Limited experience in drawing correlation between wellness / benefits use and attendance
No baseline for wellness
No wellness program
Data Analysis & Reporting
Attendance Data not segmented, detailed or accurate enough to analyze
Limited access to financial data necessary for conducting cost benefit analysis
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Key Findings – Evaluation Phase Leading Practices
Policy & Guidelines
Evaluate management and employee feedback through committee
Measure the number and type of program-related grievances,
Roles & Responsibilities
Evaluate absence data entry accuracy / compliance by facility + circulate report to all Principals / Facility Managers
Evaluate caseload and performance of HR
Survey quality of support provided to managers by HR
In the planning phase dedicate a resource to coordinate the evaluation process
Culture & Environment
Evaluation of satisfaction and commitment surveys
Wellness & Benefits
Evaluate usage and satisfaction of programs as well as providers
Evaluate LTD and RTW for signs of change
Data Analysis & Reporting
Evaluate attendance by group not on annual result but month by month comparison with previous year.
Annual cost avoidance used to validate funding for program / resource
Ensure attendance tracking system configuration and other system (financial) data requirements are identified in the plan and someone is accountable for reporting
Attendance Support Implementation Plan
Don’t expect returns on investment or changes in culture in the first year;
Be patient, be consistent and continue to communicate, communicate communicate; and
Ensure the plan is formal , has been approved by the Board and has been incorporated into the multi-year improvement plan
Q1 Q2 Q3 Q4 Q1 Q2 Q3 Q4 Q1 Q2 Q3 Q4
Develop Attendance Support Committee Perform (Self)-Assessment & Benchmarking Develop Attendance Support Policy and Processes Develop Roadmap + Annual Plan
Develop Communication Plan + Support Tools
Ensure Resource Alignment & Capacity
Refine attendance tracking and reporting systems Roll-out Education & Training
Roll-out / coordinate with services (ie. Wellness, RTW, etc)
Ongoing Monitoirng of Perfomance and Compliance Ongoing Communication
Satisfaction & Cultural Surveys
BENEFIT REALIZATION
Year 3
Monitoring Implementation Assessment & Planning
Year 1 Year 2
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