Reports Helpful to Assessors
One of the simplest ways to support assessors — especially before they ever step foot in your agency — is by providing clear, intentional reports that answer their most common questions upfront. When done well, these reports reduce confusion, prevent duplicate effort, and set the tone for a smooth assessment.
Below are three reports I’ve found to be particularly helpful, with guidance on when and how to use each.
If your agency uses Simple Notes within standards — especially for Not Applicable determinations — pulling together a complete list is straightforward and extremely helpful to assessors.
How to generate the list using Simple Notes:
Navigate to the root of the assessment (click the assessment name to go to the main page).
Select the Attachments tab.
In the Attachment Type dropdown, choose Simple Note.
Click Filter to display all Simple Notes in the assessment.
Sort the Status column until all Not Applicable statuses appear together and at the top of the list.
Note how many Not Applicable standards are listed.
Adjust the Page Size field to match that number and click Change.
Once the filtered list displays only those standards, click the Excel download icon.
Open the Excel file and copy the contents into your pre-read materials.
If Simple Notes are used consistently to explain why a standard is Not Applicable, assessors can review those explanations in advance, which saves significant time onsite. It also help Team Leaders make chapter assignments for the team.
If you do not use Simple Notes consistently
You should still provide a list.
An effective alternative is to:
Go to the Standards tab in the assessment
Apply filters to show only Not Applicable or Elected for Exemption statuses
Capture:
The total number in each category
The standard numbers themselves
This still gives assessors the clarity they need without requiring them to count or hunt for information.
One option I do not recommend for this purpose is the Standard Status Timeline report. While useful internally, it requires assessors to manually interpret colors and tally standards themselves, which adds unnecessary work on their end.
A consolidated list of standards with interviews and observables is one of the most helpful on-site tools you can provide assessors — but it should not be included in pre-read materials.
Recommended options include:
Downloading the Florida Accreditation Office interview/observable list for your current standards manual
Using examples available in the Accreditation Academy Content Hub
Creating an agency-specific list by manually identifying standards with interview or observation components
This list should be printed and available in the assessor workspace, so assessors can easily grab it when they are ready to conduct interviews or observations.
A compliance tally provides a high-level snapshot of where your agency stands across all standards.
To generate it in PowerDMS:
Click Reports (Analytics) from the column of icons on the far left
Choose Standards
Select Status for All Roles
Load the report for your current manual and assessment
Click the three vertical dots in the upper right of the summary table called Tile Actions and choose Download Data. In the pop up, select Excel from the format dropdown list, then click Advanced Data options and select All results in the last section, then click Download.
From there:
Florida agencies may use the pre-formatted compliance calculator spreadsheet
Others can manually sort and count standards by status in Excel
This report is often required in the final assessment report and may optionally be shared as a reference in pre-read materials.
Helpful reports don’t replace good files — they complement them. The goal is to make information easy to access, easy to understand, and easy to trust. When assessors don’t have to guess, count, or backtrack, everyone benefits. If you want to hear by point of view and more personal insight on this topic, check out the corresponding podcast episode called: "Assessment Reports That Help Assessors Prepare."
Who do you know that could benefit from these accreditation-friendly tips and resources? Consider sharing this link with a colleague so they can sign up:https://www.accreditationacademy.net/signup
Areaka P. Jewell
Accreditation Academy
areaka@accreditationacademy.net
(305) 360-1075