Excellence Canada Progressive Excellence Program® FAQ
Questions & Answers About Excellence Canada’s Progressive Excellence Program® (PEP). These comments are generic, and apply equally to all versions of PEP.
- What is Excellence Canada’s PEP?
- How Much Does it Cost to Apply for Excellence Canada PEP Certification?
- Do we have to be an Excellence Canada Partner to be in PEP?
- What is the Linkage Between Excellence Canada PEP Assessment Scores, and the Canada Awards for Excellence (CAE)?
- How is Progress on the Excellence Canada PEP Journey Recognized?
- Is Certification Forever?
- How do we Assess Ourselves Past the Final Level?
- What is the Best Way to Explain PEP to my Senior Management Team?
- What is Covered in Each of the Excellence Canada PEP Levels?
- What are the Benefits of Implementing Excellence Canada PEP in Our Organization?
- How Does ISO9000 Fit into Excellence Canada PEP?
- Where do Other Programs Fit into Excellence Canada PEP (e.g., Health Canada's Workplace Health System and the Canadian Healthcare Accreditation)?
- How does the Federal Government’s Management Accountability Framework (MAP) fit into PEP?
- How does the Accreditation Program of Accreditation Canada (formerly the Canadian Council on Health Services Accreditation) fit into Excellence Canada PEP?
- What Training is in Place for Excellence Managers to Learn More About the Journey?
- How do we get Started?
Excellence Canada PEP is the Progressive Excellence Program, a four-level implementation program for organizational excellence leading to the Canada Awards for Excellence.
Excellence Canada PEP is an implementation roadmap, which takes the full Canada Awards for Excellence Criteria and organizes them into logical, sequential steps that build one upon the other to develop and sustain organizational excellence. In order to assist the organization on its journey, Excellence Canada provides the PEP Package which includes a copy of the Excellence Canada Criteria, a Guidebook to assist in the interpretation of the Criteria, and a Self-Assessment Workbook to assist with team input and dialogue when completing an assessment against the Criteria.
Excellence Canada PEP assists an organization to build improvement plans and to measure how they are doing at each step of the way. A self-assessment is conducted at each level of the journey. If the rating at each level is acceptable, the organization can be certified by Excellence Canada, and the organization can celebrate its achievements and move on to the next level. At the 3rd and 4th Levels (once reached), organizations may qualify for the Canada Awards for Excellence – Canada's highest, most prestigious recognition for outstanding work on quality and/or healthy workplace factors.
Adoption of the Excellence Canada Criteria helps nurture a strategic approach, building on the work already in place in the organization. It helps “connect the dots” on existing initiatives. It also offers external recognition for the organization through the Canada Awards for Excellence (CAE) program.
A submission to Excellence Canada costs between $600 and $2,000 depending on the particular PEP program, and the size of the organization. If an on-site verification is required, it costs between $1,600 and $13,000, depending on size, program, and the Level for which the organization is submitting. This amount includes the application fee.
While it is not a mandatory requirement, we highly recommend it. Excellence Canada partners can network with each other, have access to an international database of best practices, and can get significant discounts off services and training. In addition, at higher levels, Partners can participate on Excellence Canada site verification teams.
What is the Linkage Between Excellence Canada PEP Assessment Scores, and the Canada Awards for Excellence (CAE)?
Organizations can take two routes to achieve a CAE Award. For organizations that are just starting their quality and/or healthy workplace journey, or for those organizations that want to use a step-by-step approach to continuous improvement and be recognized along the way, Excellence Canada’s Progressive Excellence Program (PEP) is the answer. It’s not an “either/or”; it can be a combination. That’s because those organizations in Excellence Canada PEP can now be linked to the Award as they make progress. The following chart demonstrates the linkages.
CHART
Excellence Canada provides external validation of progress. It reviews an organization’s submission and grants certification for the Level(s) successfully completed. An organization can apply for certification for a single Level, or for a combination of Levels, as long as previous Levels have been certified, or are included in the submission. Certification for PEP Level 4 requires prior certification for PEP Level 3.
For PEP Level 1 recognition, the organization provides a written submission only. PEP Levels 2, 3, and 4 require a written submission and, if provisionally approved, a one-day site verification visit. Site verification is conducted by a verification team appointed by Excellence Canada. The verifiers will engage the executive and representative groups of employees in focus groups. The verifiers will ask questions in the focus groups, and review documents to validate the submission. Depending on the size of the organization, more than one site may be visited in the verification process. Excellence Canada grants certification if the application is successful, and provides high-level feedback.
No. Certificates for Levels 1 to 3 are valid for two years, and the certificate for Level 4 is valid for three years. Allow us to explain the rationale for this. First, this gives you motivation to move forward to the next Level. Secondly, if, for whatever reason, you hit roadblocks (for example, leadership or market changes, etc.), re-certification at the same Level helps to get you back on track. Re-certification would also occur if you did not move forward beyond the current Level within two years. To keep your certification at Level 4 (and the CAE Award, if received), the organization would need to make a submission against the Excellence Canada Order of Excellence Criteria every three years.
This is when Excellence Canada assessment workbooks and techniques play an essential role, helping you to assess the organization against the Order of Excellence Criteria each year. This keeps you on track and sustains the good work already achieved.
The best way is to think about implementation. All senior managers want action. They want things done right away and they are normally very "outcomes driven." Talking about the full CAE Criteria can be overwhelming for busy senior management. The way to refer to them is that the full Criteria represent a journey to excellence and/or a healthy workplace.
The implementation of the Criteria through PEP breaks the journey into practical and manageable chunks. Senior management can quickly understand this progressive implementation roadmap because it consists of levels they can work on and accomplish. Also, assessing against Level 1 is far less complicated than assessing against all 4 Levels. Ease of use through progressive implementation is the point to reinforce.
PEP Level 1
The first Level focuses on commitment. Commitment is the logical place to start because at this level the organization secures a strategic leadership approach. Organizations typically take about 6 – 12 months to implement PEP Level 1.
The first Level focuses on commitment. Commitment is the logical place to start because at this level the organization secures a strategic leadership approach. Organizations typically take about 6 – 12 months to implement PEP Level 1.
PEP Level 2
Level 2 builds on the solid commitment of Level 1. Level 2 ensures that the organization has a systematic planning process in place and that this process is responsive to needs. A focus on process management through quality assurance and system stability is also highlighted. Organizations typically take about 1 – 2 years to implement PEP Level 2.
Level 2 builds on the solid commitment of Level 1. Level 2 ensures that the organization has a systematic planning process in place and that this process is responsive to needs. A focus on process management through quality assurance and system stability is also highlighted. Organizations typically take about 1 – 2 years to implement PEP Level 2.
PEP Level 3
In Level 3, the plans are rolled out, programs are implemented, and key processes are continually improved. All of this is monitored, and progress is measured. Employees at all levels are engaged as active participants throughout. Organizations typically take another 1 – 2 years to implement PEP Level 3.
In Level 3, the plans are rolled out, programs are implemented, and key processes are continually improved. All of this is monitored, and progress is measured. Employees at all levels are engaged as active participants throughout. Organizations typically take another 1 – 2 years to implement PEP Level 3.
PEP Level 4
In Level 4, leadership continues to improve their approach to managing the organization, and the organization evaluates levels and trends in order to measure results, continue making improvements, and respond to emerging needs and changes. Organizations take another 1 – 2 years to implement PEP Level 4.
In Level 4, leadership continues to improve their approach to managing the organization, and the organization evaluates levels and trends in order to measure results, continue making improvements, and respond to emerging needs and changes. Organizations take another 1 – 2 years to implement PEP Level 4.
Business Case:
- Lower attrition rates (normally ½ the rate of the respective sector)
- Lower sickness and absenteeism
- Lower payments to Workers Compensation
- Reduction in employee grievances
- Reduction in staff turnover
- Savings in operating cost through increased productivity
- Reduction in cycle times
- Increase in customer satisfaction
- Increase in employee satisfaction/morale
- Decrease in injuries
Other Benefits of the Progressive Excellence Program (PEP):
- Helps achieve consistency of direction
- Facilitates consensus on what needs to be done
- Promotes optimization
- Enhances assurance focus
- Is target driven with external validation
- Integrates various improvement initiatives
- Improves communication on excellence
A focus on a quality management system, like ISO9000, fits into the mid-range of the Excellence Canada PEP Criteria. For example, an ISO-registered organization will have a good focus on process documentation and stability, a leadership that reinforces quality, and a sound approach to meeting customer needs. This fits perfectly into Level 2 of PEP Criteria, with a few points in Level 3. So levels higher than Level 2 in PEP can be seen as ISO plus, a way to enhance the great work done on ISO in the organization.
A real benefit is that application of the PEP criteria will help to sustain the ISO focus, as the two are complementary. Another key factor is that application of PEP Criteria serves to re-energize an organization with fresh quality management goals. This can be very useful for those organizations that, after a few years, find that they get a bit bogged down on quality and quality assurance actions. Having new goals that complement the ISO standard is great for picking up momentum.
Where do Other Programs Fit into Excellence Canada PEP (e.g., Health Canada's Workplace Health System and the Canadian Healthcare Accreditation)?
Other programs complement the PEP program but do not replace it. They act as "tools" to help organizations at each level, and provide a part of the strategic approach to excellence. However, they are not comprehensive enough to get an organization to the higher levels of PEP.
The federal version of PEP incorporates the MAP model into the program. More information.
How does the Accreditation Program of Accreditation Canada (formerly the Canadian Council on Health Services Accreditation) fit into Excellence Canada PEP?
The programs complement one another. Excellence Canada provides tools and techniques with a horizontal approach, which is a tremendous help for the Quality team. CCHSA helps to organize the team around clinical service areas. Both systems build on each other. CCHSA provides accreditation. Excellence Canada provides national recognition.
PEP provides a strategic framework, plus implementation tools and techniques. It helps focus and knit efforts across the entire organization for ongoing sustainability of improvement efforts.
Excellence Canada has developed the Certified Excellence Professional® Excellence Program (CEP) for individuals, which complements the PEP program. So, as the organization progresses through the PEP Levels, individuals can progress as well and attain personal certification.
Excellence Canada recommends a phase of knowledge building, with an executive overview or ½-day leadership session, “20 Great Questions to Ask Yourself”. Following this, you appoint a program champion and undertake two days of training for your team on PEP. Day 2 of the training consists of a facilitated assessment of Level 1. Then you can begin to plan your journey by building the opportunities noted during the assessment into your improvement plans.
Excellence Canada also provides a number of tools to start you on your journey:
- Presentation to senior management
- Membership and membership benefits
- Training (public and in-hour sessions)
- Assessments (manual and online)
- Customized workshops and information sessions
- Consulting assistance
