NORTH AMERICA
In a continuing effort to professionalize the linen, uniform and facility services industry, TRSA recently conducted its second consultant-led job analysis focusing on the knowledge, tasks and skills necessary for maintenance managers. Similar to the previous job analysis for production managers that led to the Certified Professional Laundry Manager (CPLM) programme, the culmination of the maintenance manager job analysis will lead to the development and launch of a self-study certification – Certified Laundry Maintenance Manager (CLMM). Both job analysis reports are available in the TRSA store – www.trsa.org/store.

The TRSA Maintenance Manager Job Analysis is a 75-page report representing the work of a task force of subject-matter experts (SMEs) who developed the description of the scope of the position and validated the tasks and knowledge through a large-scale survey in which 125 participants provided data. Practitioners selected for the survey represented a wide variety of work-related characteristics such as years of experience, work setting, geographic location and areas of specialty. The consulting firm PSI, an industry leader helping organizations identify competencies, knowledge, skills, abilities and other characteristics required for jobs, facilitated discussions and provided the framework for identifying and gathering resources and developing the surveys. The result is reflective of the scope of roles and responsibilities of the job.

The analysis consists of 34 task statements and 156 knowledge statements sorted by frequency and order of importance, covering these four competency areas:

Support Systems

Equipment

Safety and Compliance

Management

Further analysis of these tasks and knowledge statements is shown in a matrix cross-referencing them, underscoring their importance in defining the role of the job.

The results also include specifications for the content outline for the TRSA Certified Laundry Maintenance Manager (CLMM) certification self-study materials and exam, which will launch as part of TRSA’s professional-development offerings later this year.

“Identifying, recruiting and retaining maintenance personnel, particularly skilled, knowledgeable managers, is one of our industry’s biggest challenges,” said Joseph Ricci, TRSA president & CEO. “By creating this analysis and the upcoming certification program, TRSA is committed to developing training and career-enhancing opportunities to assist in the internal development of the proper skill sets and improve the retention of these valuable positions.”

Details about the analysis and the certificate programme should be directed to Kristin Mudd, senior director, education and events, at E: kmudd@trsa.org.