Three case studies

An increased workload doesn’t have to mean an increased workforce with smart planning.

Our client was in the process of bidding for a contract. If they were to win the work they were concerned they didn’t have a big enough workforce to fulfil the demands of the new contract. They also didn’t know how to size up or by how many.

Let’s say they had more questions than answers at this point.

They had won half the work already, however, it was going well and they wanted to bid for all of the work.

Their first issue was a huge backlog of jobs that needed urgent attention by the field engineers. Even worse, the company target was that they were supposed to be done within 24hours, which just wasn’t getting hit. As the backlog kept increasing, obviously the customers started calling in to find out when the engineer would be arriving. The customers in some cases would be waiting all day and no one was available to handle the job.

Obviously, this is bad news for any business as they fundamentally had high standards and a good reputation.

Their second problem was travel time. The wasted time between customer homes was taking up most of the engineers working day. This fuelled the first issue as they couldn’t get through the targeted amount of jobs.

After doing some digging into the problem there were several things that needed fixing.

The shift patterns that were in place meant that 50% of the engineers were off for 60% of the week. This was between Thu-Sun when most of the customers called in needing an engineer. The shift patterns were changed to ensure there was enough resource spread evenly throughout the week.

Analysis was also undertaken to optimise the areas in which the engineers needed to travel.

The new shift patterns and optimised travel routes we put in place reduced the number of complaints and calls into the call centre as there was an increased availability of the field engineers.

This meant they could handle more jobs and travel less; ultimately providing a saving of £3.7m on a workforce of 900 engineers.

Modus RP played a critical role in the transformation process by providing a comprehensive capacity plan that encompassed all 40 branches and their respective capacities. Leveraging this plan, strategic decisions were made to determine the optimal sequence and order of branch closures. Additionally, the capacity plan considered the existing state of the contact centre and identified the necessary adjustments and enhancements required to effectively handle the anticipated increase in demand. This valuable information was then shared with the project teams, enabling them to develop tailored plans to optimise systems and processes, ensuring adherence to the desired efficiency levels. Ultimately, these initiatives paved the way for a smooth transition as customer demand gradually shifted away from the branches and towards the centralised contact centre.

Modus RP not only conducted capacity modelling but also played a vital role in shaping the Resource Planning structure to effectively support the upcoming changes. By leveraging our expertise, we provided comprehensive support in designing the Resource Planning framework, establishing efficient processes, and developing an implementation plan. This ensured that the Resource Planning team was well-prepared for the transformative journey ahead. Specifically, our assistance encompassed the creation of a recruitment plan to acquire the necessary talent, the implementation of scheduling solutions to optimise resource allocation, and the development of real-time processes to enhance operational agility. By providing robust support in these areas, Modus RP empowered the Resource Planning team to seamlessly adapt to the organisational changes and effectively navigate the evolving demands of the centralised contact centre model.