When your industry’s reputation depends on you

  • Two men in an office looking at a laptop together
Proof Positive staff working on a tablet

What we do

Proof Positive works with peak body clients across Australia to de-risk their industry accreditation programs.

We specialise in designing and refining industry accreditation programs that effectively manage the risks that governments and communities care about, while imposing the minimum possible burden on their industry.

What is an industry accreditation program?

An industry accreditation program is any program that seeks to provide assurances to 3rd parties that the participants within an industry meet certain standards.

Industry accreditation programs go by many names. We’ve seen them called CERTIFICATIONS, ACCREDITATION, QUALITY ASSURANCE, REGULATION, SELF-REGULATION, CODES OF CONDUCT, APPROVED, TICK, STAR, RATED and more.

Well known industry accreditation programs include the internationally recognised Certified Practising Accountant (CPA) program, Forestry Stewardship Council certified paper products and the Clean Energy Council Approved Solar Retailer program.

Each of these programs is so well recognised that it attracts government funding, market share and top employee talent. In fact, in all three cases (and many more), the industry accreditation function has grown to eclipse the membership advocacy function of the host peak body, in terms of revenue, work effort and risk.

Why would a peak body run an industry accreditation program?

Some wouldn’t. Many industries don’t need such programs, either because the risks from bad operators aren’t that high, or because the government already regulates every inch of the industry.

But there are certain industries where the risks - to health, quality, fairness or reputation - are sufficiently high that the best thing the peak body can do is step in to ensure that standards stay strong.

Why not just leave it to government?

Well, you can. In some respects, that’s easier. Less effort on the peak body’s part, that’s for sure.

However, it’s rare to find businesses who speak highly of the supportive, gentle touch of the government’s hand as it rifles through their practices.

More commonly, peak bodies report that their members would rather participate in a scheme led by their own industry peak body, because they know it will recognise the pressures, constraints and opportunities unique to that industry. Good operators want the industry’s standards to be kept high enough that government oversight can be kept to a minimum.

At Proof Positive we’ve been on both sides of the fence. We know, intimately, what government cares about. And we also understand the commercial realities facing businesses in the real world. And we’ve lived through the juggle of all that and more that takes place within peak bodies.

We will help you design and refine your industry accreditation programs to actually manage the risks that governments care about, while imposing the minimum possible burden on your industry.

The TOP 5 reasons industry accreditation programs fail

  • 1. Governance

    Most peak body boards are replete with senior figures from the industry they represent. There’s nothing wrong with that.

    However if a peak body is running an accreditation program, the board needs expertise relevant to managing that enormous risk.

    90% of peak bodies fail this test.

  • 2. Standards

    The foundation of any accreditation program is the quality standard.

    Too low, and you let the cowboys in. Too high, and you can distort or even curtail your market.

    Too static and you become obsolete. Too responsive and participants can’t keep up.

    In practice, many accreditation programs start and end at the standard-setting step.

  • 3. Monitoring

    A standard is only as good as it’s held up to be. Upholding standards starts with monitoring.

    Monitoring includes pre-activity assessment to check that new participants are set up to succeed, and ongoing market surveillance, to ensure that non-conformance is detected early.

    Only 20% of peak body accreditation programs have robust monitoring.

    A blind watchdog is no use to anyone.

  • 4. Enforcement

    Enforcement of standards is the area most frequently misunderstood and underdone by peak bodies.

    It’s only natural - after all, peak bodies are wired to support their members, not sanction them.

    But accreditation programs that aren’t comfortable taking serious enforcement action against non-conformance are doomed to fail.

    The only thing worse than a blind watchdog is a toothless one.

  • 5. Staff Expertise

    Most peak bodies hire staff who understand how to support their industry. This is fantastic!

    But less than 20% hire staff who understand how to regulate industry through accreditation programs.

    Support and regulation are nothing alike.

    While all good industry regulation is founded on a solid knowledge of the industry, it must also be founded on a solid knowledge of how to get individuals and companies to do what you need them to do (even when they don’t want to).