54 FOGHORN REGULATORY REPORT the workforce, but completion of the course itself is a named requirement for designated persons and for internal and external Flagship auditors. From there it walks through what Flagship is and how it differs from ISM, TSMS, and ISO QMS, things like the option to use internal or external auditors, the attestation-based model in place of a document of compliance or safe- ty management certificate, and the protocol for a major nonconformity. It covers who is who in the program, the company, the designated person, the master, recognized flagship or- ganizations (RFOs), and Flagship Training Service Providers (FTSPs), walks through all twelve functional elements of the SMS, and closes with the continual improvement loop that ties reporting, root cause analysis, cor- rective action, and audits back togeth- er. Once an approved offering is ready, I will post it in Member Resources and lift the deferral in the same notice. ISSUES, LESSONS LEARNED, AND RECOMMENDATIONS Program requirement 7.3 directs PVA to maintain a running list of issues, lessons learned, and recommenda- tions for improving the Flagship Program, submitted by members and associate members, along with how each one was resolved. The SMS Man- ual Template already builds the habit on the member side, chapter 9 calls for issues, lessons learned, best practices, and recommendations to be submit- ted to PVA as part of your normal reporting. What I am still building is the resource on our end, a maintained, searchable library where that submit- ted knowledge actually lives and gets shared back out. I see this as one of the most valuable resources we can build, because it captures the kind of practi- cal knowledge that usually only lives in one member’s head. Down the road, I want this same mechanism to sup- port a near miss database, so members can learn from close calls across the fleet, not just their own. If you have run into something worth flagging, whether it is a gap in the program or a fix that worked well, send it my way. That is exactly what this self-imposed requirement is for. DESIGNATION AND ORGANIZATION TEMPLATES A recurring early question from participating companies is how to formally designate a designated per- son and internal auditors, and how to show that structure on paper. The good news is that part of this one is already in your hands. The SMS Manual Template includes an editable company organizational chart and a job description template in chapter 3, along with the policy language for designated person designation in chapter 4. What is still on my worklist is a standalone designation letter tem- plate, the kind of document chapter 4 Scroll down in Member Resources to see the most current materials on PVA’s Flagship Safety Management System.
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