Key issues affecting productivity in the public sector

Can you identify with some of the following issues in your own business? They’re typical of the problems brought to us by our customers in the public sector.

• Some of our suppliers cannot deliver our required service levels at the prices they quoted. We need you to help them improve their processes and procedures so that they can always deliver, as contracted
• Something is very wrong: both overtime and absence levels are high, deadlines are often missed and we’re asked for more staff. How many people do we really need?
• Cost saving targets have to be met; we need an independent assessment of staff utilisation, performance and opportunities to improve processes in admin areas.

Scott-Grant’s experience in the public sector

Here are some recent examples of how we’ve helped businesses in the public sector.

Example 1

A public sector agency was briefed to better plan capacities and demonstrate the basis for appropriate costs to provide equipment testing and certification. This required a team of our Industrial Engineering Analysts, with a Team Leader, to undertake around 900 work measurement studies at locations across the UK. As well as producing time standards taken and presented in a specific and agreed manner, the team was also required to provide comments on any observed differences in approach and method, particularly with respect to the differing sizes and layouts of the sites. The project was delivered on time and within budget.

Example 2

A public sector body involved in legal services was involved in a complex and variable series of processes. They were challenged to address the effectiveness, efficiency and cost of these processes both in terms of hands-on time and delay between process stages. Information is gathered from and disseminated to several sources; the overall process time can be many months. As part of the project we provided formal training for four people in the client’s department so that they not only were deeply involved in the project, but also that they could carry it forward. Suitable process mapping and operating procedures were defined. Based on these, a structured database of MOST^® time standards was built to produce times for all of the activities. Attention was also brought to some ineffective processes and many causes of delay. In effect, focus on the method and consequent time savings resulted in many benefits from a “time and motion” project.