Meeting Minutes Personnel Certification Governance Committee November 12-13, 2014

Transcription

1 Meeting Minutes Personnel Certification Governance Committee November 12-13, 2014 The Westin Buckhead Atlanta 3391 Peachtree Road NE Atlanta, GA Administrative A meeting of the Personnel Certification Governance Committee (PCGC) was held on November 12-13, 2014 in Atlanta, GA. The agenda and action item list are affixed as Attachments A and B, respectively. 1. Welcome and Quorum PCGC Vice Chair, Michael Anderson welcomed the committee members and NERC staff. A quorum was determined at 8:15 a. m. The list of meeting attendees can be found at the end of the meeting minutes. NERC Antitrust Compliance Guidelines The NERC Antitrust Compliance Guidelines were reviewed and all attendees agreed to abide by the NERC Antitrust Guidelines. Public Meeting Notice Trion King reminded all participants the meeting is public and was posted on the NERC website. Task List Review The PCGC reviewed and updated the Task List, Attachment B. 2. Consent Agenda/Approve Meeting Minutes The PCGC reviewed, amended and approved the agenda for this meeting. A motion was made and seconded to approve the August 2014 meeting minutes. The motion carried unanimously. 3. System Operator Certification and Continuing Education (SOCCED) Program Updates System Operator Certification: A total of 482 exams have been taken through the end of 3 rd quarter The year-to-date (YTD) overall pass rate remains higher at 76.8%. The previous pass rates were in the 60 th percentile over the past six years. There are several theories for the current high pass rate. The exams are three years old and a number of candidates are retesting. Some vendors/providers are adding supplemental training courses. Also, it appears the vendor providers are dialed into the current set of exams. Some vendors are offering follow-up Congratulatory events to celebrate passing the exams, as well as gather data on what items were missed on the exam. The follow-up events allow the vendors to tweak their training for future candidates. One unique contributing factor may be the testing of the Korean candidates. Although Korean Electric Power Corporation (KEPCO) is not

2 connected to North America, the CEO requires all Korean operators to obtain a NERC certification. The pass rate among these candidates is very high. The new test developer, PSI, Linear On the Fly (LOFT) feature will address the stagnant transition for new exams. LOFT allows every exam to be different yet maintain the same passing score. LOFT will make the exams less vulnerable to repeat items on an exam. Exams should be written to assess knowledge. As the exams are transitioned from the current development cycle to LOFT, additional Item Writing events will be scheduled to increase the items for each credential. Also, PSI has a different philosophy on distractors. Distractors should be plausible but not giveaways. Candidates will need to understand the concepts. The chance of getting a correct answer via guessing will decrease. As a committee, it is imperative to ensure the exams test the appropriate knowledge for each credential. The exams are geared toward entry level candidates. The Reliability Coordinator credential remains the primary exam taken by most candidates (68.5%). Credential renewals for 3 rd quarter continue to be higher than projected. There were 623 credential renewals versus the projected 412 renewals per quarter. Active Credentials: System Operator Credential Total Reliability Coordinator 4693 Transmission Operator 1086 Balancing, Interchange, and Transmission Operator 647 Balancing and Interchange Operator 340 Total 6766* *As of 10/28/2014 The overall number of active credentials is higher than previously reported. The data is now being pulled based on exam date, which does not change. Previously, data was pulled based on expiration date. The expiration date changes every three years. Meeting Minutes Personnel Certification Governance Committee Meeting November 12-13,

3 Failures per Attempt: Exam Attempts * Users passing exams on first try Total failed attempts Total exam attempts ^ *3 rd Quarter 2014 ^The total number of exams taken is 482. SOCCED captures first attempt passes. It does not count passes after the first attempt; however, the system counts all failures. Continuing Education: During the 3 rd quarter (2014), 590 Continuing Education (CE) courses were approved and 2,759 CE hours (CEHs) were entered onto system operator transcripts. A total of 74 audits were conducted during the 3 rd quarter. There are 301 active providers registered in the CE Program. The number of courses denied based on content is trending down. The CE Program Manual has been updated and revised to be more user friendly. It will be published in CE Program Manual v 4.3 includes: reorganization of topics and criteria; consolidation of redundant information; process steps have been developed into user guides; standardization of terms for consistency with SOCCED, NERC ROP and System Operator Certification Program Manual; and updates to new provider evaluation process. Legal Name Changes: The committee reviewed the legal name change process. The process has been added to the SOC Program Manual. 4. PSI Update The number of test centers receiving a Poor rating is trending downward. The percentage of facilities receiving a Poor rating 1 st, 2 nd, and 3 rd quarter of 2014 is 3.28%, 2.15% and 1.96%, respectively. NERC will continue to monitor these statistics and follow up on the facilities receiving a Poor rating. 5. SOCCED Update Meeting Minutes Personnel Certification Governance Committee Meeting November 12-13,

4 Melinda Nicius, SOCCED Database Administrator, provided the latest update on SOCCED Phase 2A upgrade. Project Manager, LaCreacia Smith and Business Analyst, Victor Myers have been added to the project team. They will work closely with Melinda on every aspect (requirements, design, development, testing and production) of the Phase 2A project. The addition of the Project Management Organization (PMO) to Phase 2A adds checks and balances to ensure the product requirements are met by the delivered product. The project remains on a very tight schedule. A site visit is scheduled for 11/17-11/19. Production system challenges continue with SOCCED. NERC is preparing a one year contract extension for PER 005 What affect does the new PER-005 Standard have on the certification and credential maintenance programs? The standard s effective date is July 1, The Board of Trustees will have to determine if additional certifications are valid for support personnel. Support personnel will need to be defined by the industry. 7. Job Task Analysis (JTA) Operator Awareness There was discussion on the need to add specificity to the topics listed in Appendix A. Critical thinking is one of the many Human Performance subjects that is under consideration. A JTA is scheduled for The JTA will provide insight as to what topics and their definitions should be covered during the next exam development cycle. 8. Closed Session 1:30 4:00 PM, Wednesday, November 12, Task Force Reports a. Nomination Task Force: CLOSED Session 8:30 11:30 AM, Thursday, November 13, 2014 b. Budget Task Force: The Budget TF reviewed the 3 rd quarter budget for The committee at large accepted the budget report. Exam fees for 2015 will remain at $600 for an exam and $300 to renew a credential. c. Record Retention, Storage and Transmittal Task Force: All action items have been completed. There were no additional updates for this meeting. d. Implementation Task Force: PSI is working to secure a contract with a third party for Manitoba, Canada. PSI is aware of the inconvenience and will work to have finalized contract at the start of e. Policy Oversight Task Force: The SOC Program manual has been reviewed by NERC Technical Publications and is currently in formatting. The TF will hold a conference call for a final review of the document. f. Exam Development and Delivery Task Force: The new exams are on schedule for publication in January Both forms of the Reliability Coordinator exam will be available in French. The EWG is responsible for verifying the reference material of item. There will not be a transition period for the new 2015 exams. The current exams will be available through December 31, 2014 and the new exams will be available January 1, Meeting Minutes Personnel Certification Governance Committee Meeting November 12-13,

5 Targets: Completion of French Translation of RC exam November 2014 Beta Testing December 2014 Launch new exams January 2015 Job Task Analysis development January 2015 Complete exam specifications August 2015 Exam Development September December 2015 g. SOCCED Joint Task Force: There were no open action items for this TF. 10. Recognition The November meeting was the last meeting for Eric Dietzman and Jake Burger. Eric was presented with a plaque expressing appreciation for his contributions to the PCGC. A plaque will be mailed to Jake Burger recognizing his many years of dedication the PCGC, the System Operator Certification Program and Industry. 11. Future PCGC Meetings Dates: Location: Comments: February 10-11, 2015 Tampa, FL Joint Meeting with PS May 5-6, 2015 San Antonio, TX August 11-12, 2015 San Francisco, CA November 3-4, 2015 Atlanta, GA Annual Board Update 12. Roundtable 13. Closing Comments and Adjourn Mike Anderson, Vice Chair Meeting was adjourned at 1:50 p. m. Thursday, November 13, November 2014 Attendees: Mike Anderson, Vice Chair Dave Carlson Eric Dietzman Bill Ellard Mike Hoke John Kerr Don Oatman Mike Scott Trion King, NERC Staff, Secretary Guests: Victor Myers, NERC Staff Melinda Nicius, NERC Staff LaCreacia Smith, NERC Staff Meeting Minutes Personnel Certification Governance Committee Meeting November 12-13,

6 Attachment A Agenda Personnel Certification Governance Committee November 12-13, :00 a.m. 5:00 p.m. Eastern The Westin Buckhead Atlanta 3391 Peachtree Road NE Atlanta, GA Introductions and Chair s Remarks NERC Antitrust Compliance Guidelines and Public Announcement Agenda 1. Administrative Objective: Review agenda, meeting minutes, action items and task list Presentation: No Duration: 5 minutes Background Item: 2. Approve Meeting Minutes Objective: Approve previous meeting minutes: August 12-13, 2014 Seattle, WA 3. Status Reports a. System Operator Certification Program Reports Objective: Present statistics of System Operator Certification Program Background: PowerPoint Presentation will be provided during meeting. b. Continuing Education Program Reports Objective: Present statistics of Continuing Education Program Background: PowerPoint presentation will be provided during the meeting. 4. System Operator Certification Program a. PER PCGC Member(s): John Kerr Objective: Discuss affect, if any, on System Operator Certification Program Background: Questions/Concerns: Identify Support Personnel and Training: Accommodation and Tracking b. JTA: Operator Awareness PCGC Member(s): John Kerr

7 Objective: Discuss pertinence of operator awareness on upcoming JTA. Background: Decision making/critical decisions; Clarity c. Duplicate Accounts Objective: Duplicate operator accounts. Background: d. Legal Name Changes Objective: Names were changed prior to policy. Background: Document requirements. 5. PSI Updates Objective: Update on test centers and timely data transfer. Manitoba, Canada Background: Continuing to get calls about test centers. 6. SOCCED Update PCGC Member(s): Melinda Nicius Objective: Provide SOCCED Update. Status of Phase 2A Requirements, SOW, and timeline. Background: PowerPoint presentation will be provided during the meeting. 7. Exam Working Group (EWG) Update - CLOSED Objective: Meeting Schedule Background: 8. PCGC Charter and Responsibilities CLOSED PCGC Member(s): John Kerr Objective: Concerns Background: 9. Task Force (TF) Reports a. Nomination Task Force: PCGC PCGC Member(s): Bill Ellard, TF Chair; John Kerr; Don Oatman Objective: Status of PCGC membership. Nomination TF Scope update. Background: b. Budget Task Force: PCGC Member(s): Dave Carlson, TF Chair; Mike Anderson, Jake Burger, Brett Hallborg Objective: Review 2014 YTD Budget Background: Budget TF will provide an update during the meeting. c. Exam Development and Delivery Task Force: PCGC Member(s): John Kerr, TF Chair; Dave Carlson; Eric Dietzman; Mike Scott Agenda Personnel Certification Governance Committee Meeting November 12-13,

8 Objective: Update of exam development cycle. French Translation Update Background: Responsible for tracking exam development. d. Implementation Task Force: PCGC Member(s): Jake Burger, TF Chair; Mike Anderson, Bill Ellard Objective: Status of transition; PSI test center complaints. Background: Implementation of New Exam Development and Testing Vendor: Website cleanup. TF to provide update during the meeting. e. Policy Oversight Task Force: PCGC Member(s): Jake Burger, TF Chair; Eric Dietzman; Mike Scott; Dave Carlson Objective: Policy Oversight TF scope. SOC Program Manual Update Background: f. SOCCED Joint Task Force: PCGC Member(s): Eric Dietzman; Dave Carlson Objective: Provide support to Phase 2A Update with PS members Background: 10. Task List Review Objective: Review task lists and ensure items are properly documented. Background: Included in the meeting minutes. Agenda Personnel Certification Governance Committee Meeting November 12-13,

9 11. Future PCGC Meetings: Dates: Location: Comments: February 10-11, 2015 Tampa, FL Joint Meeting with PS May 5-6, 2015 San Antonio, TX August 11-12, 2015 San Francisco, CA November 3-4, 2015 Atlanta, GA Annual Board Update 12. Roundtable 13. Closing Comments and Adjourn Mike Anderson, Vice Chair Agenda Personnel Certification Governance Committee Meeting November 12-13,

10 Attachment B Action Items Personnel Certification Governance Committee November 12-13, 2014 Item# Task Assignment NERC Support Staff Due Task Force PCGC Secure Site to SharePoint Trion King Trion King; NERC IT Next Meeting NERC Meet with CTO. Add TF scopes to existing FTP site Mass Option (Ability to contact operators through the use of SOCCED) Getting operator addresses from MCG. Using internal NERC mass option. Trion King /Melinda Nicius NERC IT/MCG Completed PCGC Update EWG Scope: Renewal Fee Policy Trion King Completed Policy Budget YTD Budget On-going Budget Early Renewal response Process Trion King Melinda Nicius Will be included in SOCCED Phase 2A PCGC Budget Data from Susan Trion King Susan Turpen Budget PSI to provide quarterly report. Track comments associated with score of Poor Finalize Policy Oversight Scope; Add revision history Provide meeting minutes draft to PCGC 2 weeks after meeting Trion King Completed EDD Policy Oversight Trion King Next Meeting Policy Oversight Trion King November 26, Send draft of BOT report to Chair Trion King Ongoing

11 Item# Task Assignment NERC Support Staff Due Task Force Review exam cycle/process regarding EDD Next Meeting EDD implementation of LOFT. Call with PSI before next meeting Create fluid process of reviewing exam items with current Standards (2018) Create Hardship TF Scope; Add revision history. Review scope Update SOC Program Manual to reflect current vendor information. Final review by Policy Oversight TF Update How to Apply for SOC exam. process has changed Create Nominations TF Scope; Add revision history Update Exam Resource Material and Content Outlines for 2015 Exams: Reviewed by Technical Publications and Formatting EDD Long term for 2018 exams Hardship TF Next Meeting Hardship Trion King Technical Publications Completed EDD Trion King Next Meeting Policy Oversight Nominations Trion King Next Meeting Nominations EWG/EDD Trion King/Technical Publications Completed French Translation of RC Exams EDD Trion King Next Meeting EDD Letter to all Providers notifying them NERC is performing formal reviews of all ILAs against the current topics in Appendix A Gather data on retest of same exam taken in less than 42 days. Trion King Brenda Boline Change of plans Trion King Melinda Nicius Completed Specificity to Appendix A Topics PCGC/PS Trion King Feb 2015 Joint Meeting EDD Meeting Action Items Personnel Certification Governance Committee November 12-13,

12 Item# Task Assignment NERC Support Staff Due Duplicate Accounts in SOCCED Trion King Completed Check for more than 2 SOCCED accounts; Drill down to exam dates Conflict of Interest with committee membership check with Legal Conversation with CTO concerning Committee SharePoint Trion King Trion King Trion King Completed Next Meeting Next Meeting Verify current FTP site availability Trion King Next Meeting Add SOC program manual link to PCGC page. Trion King Sandy Shiflett Next Meeting Final review of SOC Program Manual Policy oversight Next Meeting JTA Process Trion King PSI Next Meeting TF for Appendix A Training topics against JTA EDD Next Meeting SOCCED Applicant Integrity Process Trion King Next Meeting Test Center: Manitoba Trion King Next Meeting Task Force Meeting Action Items Personnel Certification Governance Committee November 12-13,