Introduction – CSM Emergency Preparedness

Getting certified as a CSM is just the start. Completing this course shows that you have been exposed to Emergency Preparedness.

About the Course

This course was developed by dozens of the top sweeper company owners and managers nationwide. Many professionals have had to deal with the items in the following lessons.  They have trained thousands of operators and personally made or had employees make hundreds of mistakes they want you to avoid. You can’t live long enough to make all the mistakes alone.

While it is nice to learn from your mistakes, it is far better to learn from the mistakes of others.

There are regional and company differences in what is taught and stressed on these pages. It is quite possible your company may not adopt the exact methods.  Regional and equipment differences are real.  However, each topic should be addressed with intention at your company.  If you have a logic or valid reason that would be defensible in court (with the company on the line), by all means, follow that path.

While we refer to this process as a “course” — which it is — the top professional sweeping companies already apply this knowledge.

Why this Course?

1. Maintaining Certified Sweeping Manager (CSM) status involves annual training.
2. Maintaining Certified Sweeping Company (CSC) status involves always having a CSM on staff.
3. Ongoing training at every level of an organization is a Best Management Practice (BMP).
4. Ongoing training is critical in preventing liabilities and defending yourself/your company if legal challenges arise.  We mean the court, lawsuits, insurance claims — the things that really hurt.

Ultimately, the purpose of this process:

1. Provide a tool to verify to outside individuals that you have been taught or at least exposed to the standards of the power-sweeping industry.
2. Provide a framework for managers, supervisors, and owners of sweeping companies to discuss, plan and implement emergency management plans.

Benefits of Getting Certified

Upon successful completion, you are proud to know you have maintained your Certified Sweeper Manager status. This puts you in a class with the best managers in the country. You will benefit from your increased knowledge, sense of pride, and new tools to make your job easier and safer — all of which will make you more valuable to your company.

This is also one of the steps in becoming a NAPSA Certified Sweeping Company (CSC).  Note the new logo!

To become a Certified Sweeping Company, there are three required steps:

1. One individual in your company must complete and pass a CSM course annually. 
2. One individual in your company must be a current Certified Sweeper Operator (CSO) online. This can be the same individual or a different individual.
3. The Company must be a NAPSA member in good standing.

Course Tips

Take your time. This is your profession. A professional wants to know the details and always looks for tips to make their job easier, safer, and more enjoyable.

Certification lasts for one year. To maintain your certification, you will need to retake the course. Remember that the course will be updated at that time with the newest information, and you will have forgotten some of the information. Most importantly, with more experience, you will view each module from a different perspective and depth of understanding.

The quizzes are all multiple-choice or true/false. You must get 100% correct. But don’t worry — there should be no trick questions, and you can retake the quizzes.

When you encounter items done differently at your company, ALWAYS talk with your supervisor before changing ANY process or procedure. Many regional, equipment, and company policies may differ from what is explained here. Always follow your company rules.

Have fun and safe sweeping!