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Yesterday the New York times published an article about companies that use their data for decision-making. As I mentioned a few weeks ago, doing so makes a measurable, positive contribution to their bottom lines.

Here is the link.

More to come on this topic soon…

Over the last 20 years I have evaluated the operations of hundreds of manufacturing, processing, mining, and service organizations. Three things I have learned from that work:

1. Companies know their business, but their knowledge is incomplete. They shoot targets, monitor KPIs, and compare their performance to their plans and budgets. But they don’t have time to actually think about their operations and performance.
2. Companies have lots of data. It is not unusual to ask for real data and have a management team laugh heartily and say: “Oh, we have tons of data. So much data that you will be drowned in data.”
3. Companies do not look at their data very much. Unfortunately, when asked what their mountain of data tells them about their operations, they go back to their targets and KPIs. They have data, but they use very little of that data because they believe there is too much data to understand what it is telling them.

This lack of data analysis represents lost opportunities to compete more effectively within their industry. Some quick examples:

• A world-wide, leading mining company was experiencing lower productivity on weekdays than weekends, resulting in more than a 7% (overall) loss in production capacity. Approximately 2% of this lost production was due to necessary operational and maintenance downtime, and the remaining 5% was unexplained. Why was it unexplained? The majority of lost production mid-week was attributed to the planned downtime. Since the available operational data had not been analyzed, there was no way to know that there was a potential to increase output by 5% by understanding and correcting the weekday operating problems. Instead, the problems were seen as insignificant.

  Imagine the value of improving an operation’s performance by 5% just by implementing procedures that are already in use within the organization.

• An electronics manufacturer was experiencing over 25% lost capacity, resulting from shutdowns at lunches and breaks, on a board assembly line. In addition and for unexplained reasons, the line productivity ramped up as a day progressed, peaking mid-day on day-shift, and then fell off again as the remainder of the day was completed. This ramp-up/down phenomenon resulted in a 40% additional loss in capacity. In other words, the line capacity could have increased by an additional 65% just by operating continuously at its demonstrated peak productivity level – yet no one knew the opportunity existed.

  Once again, imagine the impact of increasing capacity by 65% without additional investment – This may push new capital investment off by years, not to mention the improved labor cost per unit impacts.

In this age of computers, these types of opportunities seem surprising. Yet it is not unusual to run into a management team that does what I sometimes think of as “managing by cocktail napkin”. Each day they face a set of problems indicated by their performance tracking measures but not really understood. They discuss possible solutions over lunch, take some notes on their cocktail napkins, finish lunch, and throw the napkins away because they still don’t understand the cause of the problems. The next day, they go through the same process all over again, never once looking at the underlying data from their operations.

With some effort and the willingness to scale a mountain of data (hundreds of thousands of data points in the cases above), the opportunities are clear. The data is available, but time for the analysis is not invested. The magnitude of these opportunities suggests that investing in this analysis will often result in a very real and fast payoff.

The bottom line here is that companies that do this type of analysis gain a competitive advantage in their industries. Since we do some of this analysis as part of our shift schedule evaluation projects, our clients benefit when they evaluate schedule alternatives. But you don’t need to be changing your schedule to do the analysis. You do need to know how to do the analysis or hire someone that knows how to the do the analysis. And you should do that soon, because your success is at stake.

I will be writing more about this topic over the coming months, including:

• Looking at some example data sets and sources.
• What questions should be asked of the data.
• Answering the questions – using some of the analytical tools already on your computer.

Of course, we are happy to help you if you would like outside help. Please call us today at (415) 763-5005 to discuss your situation.

Everyone in the food industry is rapidly becoming aware of the new sheriff in town.

The FDA has vastly more authority than it did only a few months ago and its having an impact on how companies are looking at their sanitation scheduling and standards. (see Food Safety Modernization Act).

I have worked at a few of these companies recently and they compare the new  inspection standards to those once reserved for those subject to the USDA.

In short – the bar has been raised.Companies have the following options: Get this right or get shut down.

One of the keys to success under this new environment is the scheduling of your sanitation periods and crews.  There are two basic scenarios (with several smaller ones that will not be covered here).

Scenario #1: You have plenty of capacity and plan to continue sanitizing on the weekends.  This is a good idea and usually works when you have a dedicated sanitation crew that works full weekends.  In the world of shift scheduling, we call this crew a Weekend Warrior Crew.  There are two reasons this works.  First of all, since most sanitation takes place on the weekends, you can have a crew that is sized appropriately to handle that additional work.  Secondly, while you may be able to run more than five days between sanitation periods, you probably don’t want to.  The reason for this is that this may cause sanitation to take place during the week which could then push production into the weekend (overtime!).

Scenario #2: You are out of capacity and are currently running 24/7.  When this occurs, you want to run as long as you can before stopping to sanitize.  This also means that sanitation could occur at any time and therefore, you must be staffed for that.  This can be handled two different ways.  The first way would be to increase the number of sanitation specialists you have.  This will provide broader coverage but create significant idle time when no cleaning is taking place.  The second way is to train production crews to help sanitize.  This means more training as well as some discipline since most production people don’t like to change roles.

Finally, there is the methodology to get from whatever you are doing now to however you want to be doing things in the future.  You must have a clear idea of what you need.  How many production people do you need to stay over and how much time will it save/cost to use more/less?  What is the opportunity cost of downtime lost to sanitation?  How will you bring the workforce onboard?  Remember, this could be a big change for them, and people don’t like change.

Please contact us if you’d like to discuss how we can help.

Jim@shift-work.com

(415) 763-5005

It’s finally here!

Our software partner, Shifthound, has completed work on our new Open Shift Management software. It is ready for you to use starting immediately.

Here are a few scenarios that demonstrate the software’s features:

1) You are a shift worker on a 4-day break and decide that you want to go into work and get a little overtime. By logging on to your personal site, you find that there are several openings available. You request the one you want. A few minutes later, you receive confirmation that the work has been given to you.

2) You are a supervisor. After you log into the software, you find there are several vacation requests. The program provides you with the information you need to either accept or turn down requests (seniority, how many are already off that day etc.). As you approve a request, the individual is notified and an opening is created on that shift. Immediately, everyone that is qualified to cover that shift is notified of the opening (Email or text message). A few minutes later, you can see who wants the shift and are able to assign the coverage to the most appropriate person. As you make your decision, all of those that requested the overtime are notified.

3) You are a plant manager, concerned about absenteeism. You log onto to the program and have instant access to an absenteeism report that can be broken down by why and when people were absent. You can look at a specific time period, a specific crew or even a specific person.

One of the best features of this program is that you have no software to install. Everything is managed from a secure server. We provide the training (at no cost). We do all of the setup (at no cost). We provide regular upgrades (at no cost).

For a free online demonstration, call us at (415) 763-5005

There is no doubt that shiftworkers prefer 12-hour shifts over 8-hour shifts. It’s not that they like being at work for an extra four hours. They like the additional 91 days off a year.

Therein lies the problem.

With so many days off, it seems that the crew you need to get in touch with for absentee coverage is always gone.

8-hour shifts offer the following two conveniences: First, you can always ask an 8-hour person to stay over. They are already at work so contacting them simply means walking out to their work station and tapping them on the shoulder. Secondly, they are at work on 75% of the days of the year. If you need to change their schedule on a specific day, the chances are good that you just go out onto the work floor and tell them. They are probably there.

12-hour shifts have neither of these advantages. You don’t want to ask a 12-hour person to stay over for 4, 8 or even 12 hours. Also, they only work 50% of the days in the year. So, if you want to go out on the floor to tell them their schedule is changed, there is a 50/50 chance that they are on a day off and not on the floor.

The single biggest reason, by far, that companies on 12-hour schedules contact us is because of problems with absentee coverage.

People are on their days off when you need them. Your supervisor makes one call after another until someone answers their phone and is willing to come in. This is a time consuming process that takes your most expensive asset and turns it into a telemarketer.

There is a solution.

Shiftwork Solutions and Shifthound have partnered together to develop software that greatly simplifies absentee coverage on 12-hour shifts. While it works with all types of shifts, 12-hour schedule tend to have the biggest problem and would thus have the biggest benefit.

The program takes advantage of the overwhelming prevalence of cell phones, text messages and the internet.

For example, if there is a last minute opening, a supervisor can send out an overtime request to an entire crew that is schedule off. Instead of making one call after another, everyone is notified in moments.

We know that about 20% of all shiftworkers will work all of the overtime they can get. If an entire crew is notified of an overtime opportunity, the positive responses should come in quickly. They can accept overtime via text messages, email or online through the Open Shift Management program.

For more information about this product, call our office at (415) 763-5005.

It’s finally here.

After more than twenty years, we have finally found the software that we, and you, have been looking for.

Shiftwork Solutions has partnered with an international software development company to design a software package that is certain to help improve the management of your workforce.

Imagine a software that does the following:

1. Tells you days, weeks and months in advance where your staffing shortfall and overages will be.
2. Allows a supervisor to send email and text messages to an entire shift or a select group.
3. Notifies shiftworkers via email and text messages when overtime is available.
4. Allows shiftworkers to go online and apply for vacations and shift swaps, sign up overtime or request time off for sickness, FMLA or any other type of time off your company recognizes.
5. Allows supervisors to approve time off and shift swaps, post overtime opportunities, assign overtime and communicate special needs, all over the internet.
6. Generates reports on overtime, various types of time off and hours worked.
7. Provides instant decision making information to supervisors such as hours already worked that week, seniority and wage rates.
8. Frees up one or more hours of supervisor time per shift by greatly easing the burden of staffing management.
9. Is managed off site, with no installation required. The entire software is maintained, protected and regularly upgraded without you having to do a thing.
10. Provides all of these services for a small fraction of what bulky, ineffective software packages frequently cost.

We have this software today! Call us now at (415) 763-5005 for a free demonstration.

There is no such thing as a perfectly staffed shiftwork operation. Sure, there will be days when the number of people that show up is exactly the number of people that you need. It happens, but not often enough.

What does a typical day or week really look like?

The workload varies. This could be due to product mix, changeovers, maintenance or just seasonality.

The workforce varies. Vacation preferences tend to bunch up around holidays and summer. Sickness, STD, LTD and FMLA all add to the uncertain nature of daily staffing; not to mention the occasional flat tire.

If you throw skill sets into the mix, then you end up with a very complicated scenario. Sure, you only let 10% go on vacation at a time, but you better make sure that the 10% that are off do not represent 100% of a skill set you need to operate.

When the workforce does not perfectly match the workload in both numbers and skills, action must be taken.

If you are overstaffed, you may need to send people home. This usually entails a supervisor walking the floor and asking people if they want to go home. Failing that, you could force people home (not a recommended option) or you could find “work” to keep them busy.

Over staffing is a very expensive proposition, one that is hard to correct once it has occurred.

What about under staffing?

Absenteeism and changes in production conspire to make sure you don’t have the right people in place (numbers and skills) without action being taken.

That action usually means tapping people on the shoulder and saying, “Remember when you thought you were going home at the end of the shift?” or placing call after call, hoping that someone will answer their telephone.

Absentee coverage has become even more problematic with 12-hour shifts. With extended hours, all overtime is covered by people at home being called in on their days off.

There are ways to make this a little easier. Daily and weekly lists are posted, telling people what days off they will be giving up. Volunteer lists enable people to sign up for vacancies that may or may not exist. The idea being to give overtime to those that want it or assign it to those that don’t.

There are several major problems with all of this.

1. It takes a lot of time every day to manage under staffing and over staffing issues.

2. There is no real-time way of determining what the staffing needs are. Often, a best guess is used.

3. There is no real-time way for the workforce to indicate if they are available or even prefer overtime.

4. There is no real-time method for matching staffing needs with employee desires.

5. The coverage policies, whatever they are, are imposed on a workforce resulting in blame, resistance and a feeling up unfairness.

Help is on the way. Soon, we will show you how to make all of these problems go away. Everything will be done in real time. Supervisors will have hours of time freed up every week. Employees will actively participate. Costs will drop as you match the workforce to your exact needs for that shift.

Shiftwork Solutions is excited to offer a new service.

Beginning immediately, you can sign up to talk face to face with a shiftwork expert – for free!

Here is how it works:

(1) Go to our home page and click the button that will take you to a request form.

(2) Fill out the request form. After you send it, you will receive an email confirmation the we have received your request.

(3) Bruce Oliver, out office manager will contact you to set up a a time that is convenient for you.

(4) We will send you an invitation to a private webinar. All you have to do is click on the link in the email. There will also be a phone number for you to dial through to for audio.

(5) We will meet you online and go over your situation.

Five steps that can be summed up as, fill out the form, confirm a time and then click on the link we send you.

Our hope is that this interactive forum is more productive that a traditional telephone call. You will be able to see who you are talking with and we will be able to see you (if you have a webcam). We will also be able to share documents with you that may help with your current situation.

Remember, there is no charge for this service.

We look forward to seeing/hearing you online.

There is a big difference between creating a shift schedule for a manufacturing plant and a call center.

More often than not, manufacturing tends to have steady workloads throughout a shift. While there may be some day to day variations, or even seasonality, these are relatively minor compared to what goes on at a call center.

Like all scheduling projects, we need to consider the needs of the workforce as well as the needs of the company.

For call centers, the needs of the company can be complicated. We look for answers to the following types of questions: When do the calls come in? How long do they last? Is it better to staff lean and miss a call or two or is it better to over staff and answer every call on the first ring? Answers to questions like these will create a mathematical model for schedule design.

To fit such a model, we often find that covering 24/7 with a simple 4-crew schedule does not offer a very good fit. Instead, we tend to find that several schedules, sometimes one per person puts the right number of people in the right place at the right time. We frequently resort to a variety of shift lengths that create gaps and overlaps at the appropriate times.

Just trying to do this for a single day can be very complicated. Doing it for an entire week while ensuring the workforce is not over/under utilized can take time, but the payoff will be significant.

If you pay an employee $20 an hour, over staffing will cost you about $70,000 per year per extra person. At the same time, under staffing will result in either high overtime or poor customer service.

The right schedule can make sure that you are staffed as optimally as possible.

We are typically asked about ways to lower overtime. It is clear that most companies view overtime as a necessary evil. They try to get it as low as possible and consider all overtime reduction as a cost savings.

In many instances, they are right. However, just as often, they are wrong.

From a pure tangible cost perspective, overtime probably is about 10% more expensive than straight time.  This means you can reduce overtime costs by adding more people (more straight time hours).  However, suppose you try to do this but overshoot the mark.  You hire so many more straight time hours that you now have more than you need.  You are overstaffed.

Being overstaffed is about fifteen to twenty times more expensive than being understaffed.  If you are understaffed you pay for overtime instead of straight time.  This probably comes to an extra couple of dollars an hour.  If you are overstaffed, you are paying full wages and benefits to hours you don’t need.  Depending on your hourly rate, this could be anywhere from $20 per hour to well over $40 per hour.

So back to the topic at hand.  When is high overtime appropriate.

The short answer is – when your workload is highly variable.

A longer answer would be – when your workload is highly variable and the skill set you require of your workforce is not readily available using any of the traditional workforce argumentors (i.e. part time and temporary labor).

If you staff to match peak workloads and your workload is variable, then you will find yourself overstaffed quite often.

If you staff to match you lower workloads, you will find yourself understaffed.  This means overtime.

The greater the variability, the more idle time you will incur if you staff to peak production and the more overtime you will incur if you staff to minimum production.  Since overtime is significantly less costly, you will pay less if your staffing tends towards the minimum production.

There are ways to schedule your workforce to closely match a variable workload.  The more predictably variable it is, the better the match becomes.