Verified Competency Register for David Sparkes

About the Competency Register

This page is the public summary of the =Method account holder named above, showing the Tasks for which competency has been assessed and the associated status. Further detail on the Competency Register may be found at www.methodcompreg.com.

Approach to Competency:

The =Method Competency register is based on the following key principles

• Tasks – the Tasks of the Competency Register reflect the actual work an engineer may be expected to carry out in a given role. For example, the 61511-FSA1 Task would be relevant to someone who would carry out a Stage 1 Functional Safety Assessment, 61511- DES S/W Task would be relevant to someone designing SIS Application Software.
• Competency Elements – the Functional Safety Standards define competency as being made up of three distinct elements: Formal Training, Practical Experience and Demonstrating of Knowledge. The =Method Competency Register recognises each of these three elements and the level of competency Status awarded (see below) depends on achieving certain requirements against each element.
• Verification – any entry to the Competency Register is normally made by the account holder themselves, but before the entry is accepted it must be independently verified.
  • This symbol is used to indicate that Verification has taken place.
  • This symbol shows that verification has not yet been done.
  • If it is not possible to verify a particular entry to the Competency Register then it is highlighted with this symbol .

Level of Competency Definitions:

• Junior – a holding status that is used while a Competency Register account holder is developing their competency in a particular Task. There are no requirements to be granted “Junior” status for a Task.
• Professional – is the Task status awarded to account holders who have a level of familiarity with a Task and who may know “what good looks like”, but who may not yet be considered ready to carry out work in that Task without mentoring. For example, account holders who pass the =Method TUV Certified training would be awarded Professional status – to indicate that they have demonstrated a reasonable level of understanding of the requirements of a standard, but they may not have the Practical Experience and / or may not have Demonstrated Knowledge in that Task to work without mentoring.
• Master – is the Task status awarded to account holders who have already achieved Professional status for that Task, but have additionally attended a Task specific training course (for example in HazOp, or SIS Application Software) and have completed either 4 peer reviewed projects* or 2 formally assessed case studies. Account holders with Master status for a particular Task would be capable of carrying out that Task with confidence and without additional support. “Master’ status indicates that the account holder has “mastered” the Task.
• Expert – is the Task status awarded to account holders who can provide leadership or training on a particular Task, having developed broad and deep understanding of that Task, but also the alternative options for delivering the objectives of the Task and the overall framework in which the Task plays a role.

* The Competency Register recognises that it is sometimes clear at interview that an account holder should be awarded a particular Task status, but it is not possible for them to provide evidence of projects completed with previous employers. This position is recognised by the symbol – which indicates that the account holder needs to complete 4 peer reviewed projects which will be subject to additional scrutiny.

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