Posted 23rd March 2012 By Rob Whalley

How to Monitor and Improve Performance

One of the many benefits in the employment of a CAFM system is its ability to provide complete control over an entire Facilities or Service operation. With control comes complete visibility. Through the various methods provided by a CAFM system, data collected can be viewed with ease, empowering any Facilities or Operations Manager with statistical information to help improve performance, efficiency and customer service offering.

Collection

Central to retrieving valuable information is the accurate and consistent input of data. Typically, there are several data collection methods employed by CAFM systems to support accurate reporting and process management. You may decide to use some or all of them to collect data. As with any CAFM system, the better the quality of data going in, the better the quality of reporting coming out.

Typical data collection methods include:

• Service Level Agreement/Key Performance Indicators – SLA/KPI information collected and delivered by CAFM systems offer a method to overview Worker or Contractor performance typically for Reactive Maintenance or Planned Preventative Maintenance (PPM) duties. Within TABS Systems, priority levels with pre-defined service agreements (Response/Completion Times) are associated to each Job Description. A combination of job start date, priority weighting and completion date, provides the data set required to highlight service level performance relating to agreed SLA's.
• Satisfaction Questionnaires – Questionnaires offer a view to capture service level feedback direct from clients/customers for the completed tasks. Upon completion of a service, a series of questions can be distributed to individuals to collate feedback on the level of service received. This is an excellent method used to provide data based upon recipient feedback.
• Surveys/Inspections – Offering an ad-hoc approach to feedback data collection, surveys or inspections can provide an invaluable tool to collect real-time data using a series of pre-defined questions and anticipated answers. Inspections are often used internally to collect data on the 'quality of service' being delivered by an FM department or Service Provider. Inspections focus on the standard of work performed by an internal workforce or contactor. Surveys offer a more generic approach to capture feedback from randomly selected clients or customers. Again the focus will be around the standard of service being received. TABS Systems offer the tools to create surveys/inspections of any type, with any pre-defined answers. Such surveys can be presented on hardcopy (paper) or via a designated Mobile device; The latter minimising paper usage while providing a consistent, professional interface..

Review

The methods set out above focus on collecting data for two key areas of service; Job Performance and Customer Satisfaction. Armed with this vital data, CAFM systems provide access to numerous reports or dashboard views to analyse the information. Standard reports provided by CAFM systems are ideal for presentation/discussion at managerial or client meetings. Should actions be required to improve service offering, you would expect to see a growing trend over time on the level of service provided. Hopefully, in the right direction!

Digital Dashboard Reporting is a relatively new term to the Facilities Management and Service Provider industry. Often sitting outside the core CAFM application, Digital Dashboards provide a detailed analysis tool to drill-through information. Digital Dashboards provide a real-time view of data and is an ideal window in to operations for senior management and/or clients. Presenting data in a logical, easy-to-use and configurable display means users can analyse, extract and address areas of specific interest with ease.

Action

So, given the tools for valid data collection and a variety of reporting tools, we are in a good position to add further quality to our service and enhance performance levels. This critical information will provide an invaluable fact-based resource to help improve performance. The data and reports enable Facilities and Operation Managers to analyse the service and take action. For example:

• Are certain tasks regularly falling outside SLA?
  Time allocation or resource restrictions may play a part.
• Are certain contractors underperforming?
  Address concerns with contractor for review and rectification.
• Feedback indicates poor Customer Service?
  Review of personnel, process or training issues in order to manage client expectation.
• Clients not updated on progress?
  Status update emails or self-service Web portals can help.
• Resources over stretched?
  Consider mobilising workforce and workforce scheduling.
• Personality clashes?
  Staff issues can be highlighted, requiring management coaching/intervention.

There are numerous initiatives that can derive from quality data collected. 'Analysis' and 'Action' are the steps required by Facilities or Operation Managers to 'Improve Performance'. TABS systems will provide you with the tools to be pro-active and adjust processes/procedures to continually improve service levels.