2.3 Identify any obstacles in achieving the required outcomes for cases. 3.1 Explain what types of obstacle may occur and how to overcome them. 3.2 Explain any factors that may affect the number of cases managed. Obstacles which may impede achieving required outcomes for cases include: I change in personnel (sickness or leaving) 0 change in procedure (internal or external) inspections (internal or external) freeze 0 learners who are reaching or over their expected end date Changes in personnel can affect my caseload whether they are at my level, within the teams of assessors or within management at any level. If a member of my team is off sick for a few days, my caseload is not really affected; it is only long-term sickness which would really have any impact on how well I can achieve my targets. This is because I am allocated a set number of files per week but as a team, we have a two week turn around on the files which are submitted. If a member of my team is off for longer than a few days then our ability to complete all of the files within the two weeks would be affected. I would either have to complete more files than my usual allocation, which would mean that I was unable to complete them properly, or some of the files would not be completed within the two week turnaround. Short term, this is annoying but not disastrous. However, if a member of my team leaves, the impact on my caseload would be much more significant. Long term, we could not maintain the required turnaround time and a contingency plan would need to be put in place. Since this is not within my remit, I do not know what this would be although I suspect that I would simply be required to complete more files than I could manage which would mean a significant drop in the quality of my work. Of course we would be looking to replace the missing team member as quickly as possible but recruitment is never a quick process and it cannot be guaranteed that we would find someone with the expected qualifications and experience quickly which presents another issue which would have an impact on whether I can achieve my targets or not. If a new member of staff comes on board, whether they are experienced or not, it can take time for them to settle in to the way things are done