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Case Study for example, a guide from the City of Waco on how to create a high school water training program. The events section provides PowerPoints and videos from a how-to workshop on successful internships. BAYWORK sup- ports Bay Area vocational training opportunities (e.g., high school and community college programs) and also builds bridges between training institutions and utilities by expanding internship and apprenticeship programs. Provide Staff With Information BAYWORK is also addressing the issue of staff preparedness. Historically, the water industry has had the benefit of expe- rienced employees and low staff turnover. The downside of this benefit is that many utilities have become lax in relation to documentation (e.g., standard operating procedures), technical training, staff development, and knowledge man- agement. As Baby Boomers leave and work requirements change, few water industry employers have programs and practices in place to bring new employees up to speed on the facility and utility-specific knowledge needed. Given the spottiness of many utilities' documentation, technical training, and knowledge management programs, even experienced workers may not know every- thing they need to know to use or maintain new facilities, processes, and equipment. BAYWORK members are learning how to do better. For example, a 2012 work- shop called Using Technology to Teach covered interactive e-learning, creation of video standard operating proce- dures, videoconferencing, and podcasts. The events component of the website includes not only information on all BAYWORK workshops, but also highlights the out- standing programs of star utilities such as Metro Vancouver and Colorado Springs Utilities. Maximize Investments Through Collaboration One way BAYWORK implements its commitment to cost- effective investments through collaboration is through resource-sharing in the area of staff training. BAYWORK has sponsored training shared by multiple agencies in multiple locations via videoconferencing, and multi-agency training involving shared use of a single agency's training infrastructure (e.g., structures built to provide training on how to work safely in confined spaces). Additionally, the site includes a bulletin board that allows utilities to post training opportunities that they are willing to share with others. BAYWORK is currently sponsoring a series of Workshops on Wheels, a new approach to technical training that involves preworkshop research and allows water and wastewater staff to tour multiple sites to learn about innovations in water and wastewater treatment. For example, the North Bay workshop included site visits to plants that were treating wastewater for innovative nonpotable uses, dechlorinating wastewater effluent using engineered wetland, using new water treat- ment processes, and converting food waste to energy. The events section provides access to a page on each of these workshops, so that water and wastewater staff from utilities in any part of the country can view PowerPoints, videos, and surveys associated with the tour. How-to guides are another resource available to everyone; several how-to's, for instance, relate to the use of video technology to develop standard operating procedures and staff training materials. Modify Work Processes In the wringing of hands about the loss of Baby Boomers, a point sometimes overlooked is that staff turnover pro- vides an opportunity for change. Knowledge and skills are clearly being lost. On the other hand, new workers may be more open to learning to do old jobs in new ways and have a comfort level with use of comput- ers that will help them adopt IT-related solutions. At BAYWORK we support this type of innovation. In 2010 we did research on innovations in the work- place that were helping utilities optimize their use of staffing available. These innovations included com- bining wastewater and water treatment classifica- tions, use of mobile devic- es to create work orders on equipment maintenance, and interagency MOUs (memorandums of understanding) relating to facility maintenance. These ideas were present- ed in a workshop on innovations; the PowerPoints and video associated with this workshop are available in the BAYWORK events section of the resources page. Findings from the research and the workshop were combined into a white paper entitled Workforce Innovations: Doing More With Less, posted as a how-to guide. Programs similar to BAYWORK could be successfully implemented in any region where utilities are willing to organize and collaborate. In the U.S., water and wastewater treatment services are extremely decentralized, with the result that few agencies, if any, have the resources to successfully take on these challenges alone. 28 Cheryl Davis has been a manager at the San Francisco Public Utilities Commission for more than 25 years. Davis currently serves as the chair of BAYWORK and manager of the Workforce Development Initiative of SFPUC's Water Enterprise. Interagency staff training lets plant operators see and learn from other facilities. wateronline.com ■ Water Online The Magazine 2 7 _ V E R T _ 0 5 1 4 C l e a n w a t e r _ S F _ D G . i n d d 2 27_VERT_0514 Cleanwater_SF_DG.indd 2 4 / 2 1 / 2 0 1 4 3 : 0 7 : 4 9 P M 4/21/2014 3:07:49 PM