Standards
What is a Standard?
A standard acts as a basis for comparison or reference point against which something can be evaluated. It can contain both quantitative and qualitative criterion or requirements.
For a standard to become widely recognised and acknowledged as a mark of excellence to which those referring to the standard accept to be judged or measured, it needs to be developed and adopted by the relevant stakeholders for which it has been created as a level of attainment.
The HAP Humanitarian Accountability and Quality Management Standard (2007) was developed so as to conform to the principles of international standards development which include:
- Establishment employing a process of consensus
- Adopted by a recognised international body of authority
- Representing a sector recognised need
There are various types of standards, which are designed to measure excellence is different ways. For example:
- Product Specifications: usually measuring the final outcome or deliverable.
- Process Specifications: usually measuring the methodology used so as to obtain a stated result, including the management of activities that lead to the stated result.
The HAP Standard employs both of these (and more) as it seeks to measure:
- Accountability and quality commitments made by an aid agency and as specified in their accountability framework – the product.
- Quality Management System – the processes used by the aid agency to achieve the commitments made
- Quality of Service – the good practice employed by the aid agency as viewed through the eyes of disaster survivors, affected communities, partners, aid practitioners and other specified stakeholders.
In order to be certified the aid agency will need to demonstrate that it meets the 6 benchmarks and 19 requirements contained in the HAP Standard, which will be measured employing all 3 approaches, as well as outlining how continual improvement will be integrated into all commitments and activities.
Quality Assurance
The HAP Standard is a quality assurance standard, where the quality and accountability commitments made by the aid agency are collated into an accountability framework, which proceeds to outline the activities which the aid agency intends to carry out in order to demonstrate that it meets the specified requirements of the commitments made. Making the accountability framework publicly available is an essential component of quality assurance as it aims to inspire confidence in both disaster survivors and aid practitioners that the expected level of excellence is being attained.
