1. National strategies for implementing the CAF: dissemination, promotion and assistance within the Italian context
European CAF Event
“Self-Assessment and Beyond”
Rome, 17 November 2003
Speaker: Germano Cipolletta

2. The organization in charge of the dissemination of the CAF in Italy
The Department of Public Administration entrusted Formez for the dissemination of the CAF
Formez ( is a technical Agency which:
Brings together the Public Administration Department of the Prime Minister's Office and representatives of regional and local administrations
Conducts research, training, consulting and technical assistance throughout Italy for central, regional and local administrations within 9 main areas (Modernization and Decentralization, Training, One stop Shop for Public Services to Citizens, Innovation and New Technologies, Access and Simplification and Transparency of Public Administration, Environment, Local Development, Network Services for Information Diffusion, Public Training System Coordination)

3. Actions to disseminate the CAF in Italy
Phase 1
Testing of the CAF in pilot administrations
Phase 2
Dissemination of the CAF
Phase three
Future plans

4. Phase 1 - Testing of the CAF in pilot administrations
Objectives
Identification of strengths and weaknesses of the method
Evaluation of practical usefulness for the Italian administrations
Criteria of selection of pilot administrations
Existence of a “quality culture” within the organization, through certifications and/or use of advanced models of TQM
Administrations which took part to the testing phase
11 local level
6 provincial level
1 central level

5. Phase 1 - Testing of the CAF in pilot administrations
Activities
Brief information on the tool
Telephone help line
Two numbers and three dedicated persons on Tuesdays and Thursdays from am to pm
assistance service 5 days a week
Seminar at the end of the application phase, at which representatives of all the pilot administrations participated

6. Phase 1 - Testing of the CAF in pilot administrations
Evaluation
The CAF has been unanimously declared:
An excellent tool to introduce a “quality culture” within public administrations
A good opportunity to conduct a review of the administration, based on the perception of the staff that works within it
A valid chance to apply benchmarking procedure both at national and European level

7. Phase 1 - Testing of the CAF in pilot administrations
Output
The CAF was published in Italian on EIPA’s website to consent the Italian administrations:
To register the results of the application on the European DB
To receive the results of their positioning (indexing)

8. Phase 2 - Dissemination of the CAF
Objectives
To divulgate the method
To assist the administrations in the application process
Administrations which applied the CAF:
15 Municipal Administrations
8 Provincial Administrations
7 Schools
1 Ministry
1 Regional Agency

9. Phase 2 - Dissemination of the CAF
Activities (1)
3 seminars held in different geographical areas (North, Central and South of Italy)
Objective: to awaken and inform the administrations about the characteristics of the self-assessment process
Participants: 261 civil servants from 179 administrations
Structure: two work sessions (the first dedicated to the presentation in detail of the tool, the second to the discussion in working groups about the problems regarding the application of the CAF)

10. Phase 2 - Dissemination of the CAF
Activities (2)
A volume in Italian about the CAF containing:
The guidelines and the assessment form in both Italian and English
A synthesis of the experience completed by the 18 pilot administrations
The publication of information and documents related to the CAF on the website of the Department of Public Administration “CANTIERI” (
The presentation of the CAF at national seminars and conferences about quality

11. Phase 2 - Dissemination of the CAF
Activities (3)
Assistance
Provided by the mean of:
A telephone help line open on Tuesdays and Thursdays from am to pm
An service 5 days a week
Specific “in loco” assistance provided by experts
With the purpose of:
Clarifying and explaining the definitions and concepts of the assessment form
Giving information regarding ways of involving the top management in the planning process
Providing advice about the approaches to be used to legitimate the work of self-assessment group

12. Phase 2 - Dissemination of the CAF
Activities (4)
Use of the CAF for the selection of:
The administrations awarded at the Forth Edition of the “Cento Progetti al Servizio dei Cittadini”
The Italian cases presented at the 2QC
Translation into Italian of the 2002 version of the CAF, presented at the Second European Conference on Quality held in Copenhagen, and its publishing on EIPA´s website for the use of Italian administrations

13. Phase 2 - Dissemination of the CAF
Activities (5)
Realization of a study on the CAF, which has been commissioned to EIPA
Organization of the European Event on CAF

14. Phase 3 - Future plans Objectives to be achieved Activities
A more diffuse knowledge of CAF at national level
An increased number of application cases
A more mature use of the instrument by the administrations
Activities
Assistance by using a dedicated telephone help line, and by other tools, such as web sites and other channels of information
Constitution of a network formed by the administration that have applied the CAF
Organization of seminars for different targets (central - regional and local administrations) devoted to the organizational change and focused on self-evaluation and planning
Other initiatives base on ideas generated by EIPA’s study and the European Event on CAF

15. Main difficulties encountered during the dissemination process
The low number of CAF application is explicable by the following main reasons:
The Italian Government has not promoted in a specific way the use of the CAF (i.e. by recommendations or other compulsory rules for public administrations)
Preconditions (not yet very diffused among the Italian administrations) for the use of the CAF are:
The presence in the administrations of a positive organizational environment
A leadership that favors the change
The collaboration and the staff involvement
The biggest administrations (Regions, Provinces and Ministries) have found difficulties in choosing the implementation method to use and in identifying the self assessment group
It is rare an effective use of the results of the self-evaluation in planning and change management