Implementation Support Practitioner Profile - Version 4.0 - Guiding Principles and Core Competencies for Implementation Practice

Oct 15, 2026

Implementation Support Practitioner Profile presents guiding principles and core competencies to strengthen the capacity of implementation support practitioners and communities to implement evidence in health and human services. It defines implementation support practitioners as professionals who help organizations apply evidence-informed practices, identify and contextualize strategies, and build implementation capacity across teams and systems. The profile emphasizes equitable implementation, describes how practitioners advance empathy, curiosity, commitment, critical thinking, equity, and cross-disciplinary approaches, and outlines fifteen competencies across three domains: co-creation and engagement, ongoing improvement, and sustaining change.

LanguageEnglish

CategoryHealthcare

FormatPDF

Pages18

Reading Time45 min

AccessFree to download

Introduction and Purpose

Guiding Principles: How Implementation Support Practitioners Do Their Work

Domains and Core Competencies: What Implementation Support Practitioners Do In Their Work

Implementation Support Practitioner Profile Guiding Principles and Core Competencies for Implementation Practice Version 4 .0, November 2020 Allison Metz Laura Louison Katie Burke Bianca Albers Caryn Ward Citation Metz, A. , Louison, L. , Burke, K. , Albers, B. , & Ward, C. (2020) . Implementation support practitioner profile: Guiding principles and core competencies for implementation practice. Chapel Hill, NC: National Implementation Research Network, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. Acknowledgements The National Implementation Research Network, the Centre for Effective Services, and the European Implementation Collaborative appreciate the useful feedback from colleagues in the development of these competencies. Implementation Support Practitioner Profile Introduction and Purpose The Implementation Support Practitioner Profile outlines the guiding principles and core competencies needed to build the capacity of practitioners and communities to effectively implement evidence in health and human services. Implementation support practitioners (ISP) are professionals who support organizations, leaders, and staff in their implementation of evidence-informed practices and policies. They identify, contextualize, and improve the use of evidenced-informed implementation strategies in a range of settings. They also build implementation capacity among teams, organizations, and systems. They can be referred to as coaches, improvement advisors, technical assistance providers, facilitators, consultants, mentors, and implementation specialists. Implementation support practitioners often reside outside of the service systems they work in, but may also reside within a service system when those systems have work units specifically designed to support implementation and scaling efforts. Implementation support practitioners should always pursue equitable implementation. Inequities in the delivery of human services are unjust differences between populations in the access, use, quality, and outcomes of care. Access to interventions is often limited in underserved communities, including communities marginalized on the basis of race/ethnicity, immigration status, socio-economics, and sexuality and gender. Equitable implementation of evidence-informed programs and practices occurs when strong equity components, including explicit attention to the culture, history, values, assets, and needs of a community are integrated into the selection and use of implementation strategies to improve implementation and advance equitable outcomes for focus populations. The ISP Profile presents principles that guide the work of ISPs and core competencies that they require to provide effective implementation support. Both were identified through an initial literature review, a document review, vetting with individuals providing implementation support, an integrative systematic review, and a content validation survey with international intermediary organizations. Guiding Principles: How Implementation Support Practitioners Do Their Work Implementation support practitioners are guided by specific principles in their day to day work, including: • Be Empathetic – approach the change facilitation process with regard for others as legitimate, respected, and valuable contributors to the selection and implementation of a program or practice and associated processes and outcomes; seek mutual understanding within the context of relationships and understand how growth-promoting relationships between implementation support practitioners and stakeholders can fuel implementation support. • Be Curious – ask questions and demonstrate authentic interest in how the local actors and context will shape implementation processes; engage with different forms of evidence and information across relevant content areas and disciplines; tolerate uncertainty and ambiguity while seeking clarity. • Be Committed – bring patience, resilience, an

FAQs

What is the purpose of the Implementation Support Practitioner Profile?

It outlines guiding principles and core competencies to build the capacity of practitioners and communities to effectively implement evidence in health and human services.

What roles do implementation support practitioners play?

They support organizations, leaders, and staff in implementing evidence-informed practices by identifying, contextualizing, and improving the use of implementation strategies and building capacity across teams and systems.

How does the profile define equitable implementation?

Equitable implementation integrates explicit attention to a community’s culture, history, values, assets, and needs into the selection and use of implementation strategies to improve implementation and advance equitable outcomes for focus populations.

Oct 15, 2026

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