Data Plus Observation
(Continued)

Scheduling employees out of habit or “gut feel” is probably costing most operators at least a handful of cars per week. But say it’s only three cars a week. That’s 156 cars a year. At an average ticket of $55 to $60, that’s approaching $10,000 in lost revenue annually. The proper use of data is obviously worth the time and effort it takes to review and incorporate into the labor scheduling process.

The Role of Observation

Now that we have seen the obvious value of using historical data in planning employee schedules, there’s also another important consideration to factor into the labor management equation. Because while it’s true that some managers may schedule out of habit rather than using data, it’s also true that data doesn’t always tell the whole story.

As a fast lube operator, the simple observation of actual daily operational processes, over a period of time, will almost certainly be healthy and revealing. On the one hand you may observe consistent stack lines at given points of the day. Or at the opposite end of the spectrum you may see staff members leaning on the counter for long periods with no cars in the service bays. For those reasons it’s a good idea to see what the historical information for those hours may be telling you and how employee schedules should be adjusted. But should that adjustment of the schedule, as dictated by historical data, be the end of the story? The answer is an unhesitating no!

Remember, as wonderful as computers are at tracking customer volumes and hourly trends, there are a number of things that even the “whizbangyest” computer program can never tell you about your operation. Here are just a few:

• A computer can’t tell you how efficiently your staff serviced a given number of customers during a specific block of time.

• A computer program may tell you how many vehicles were actually serviced, but it can’t tell you how many customers may have driven off due to inefficient service or understaffing.

• A computer can tell you how many vehicles were serviced or that the average ticket was off by 20 percent, but it can’t tell you that the technician who was talking to customers was new and inexperienced.

• A computer can tell you that car counts were down for a given period, but it can’t tell you that it was due to faulty equipment that should have been replaced weeks ago.

The list of what computer programs can and can’t provide is nearly endless, but the point is this: A computer may be able to tell you what happened, but only observation can tell you why. Observation in conjunction with technology, with data, is irreplaceable in the effective scheduling of employees.

Trust but Verify

So, while accountants and statisticians ask that data be provided in order to trust the employee labor story, it is most advisable that wise fast lube operators consider the available data, then verify with their own eyes, why the story played out as it did. Such operators will usually find that data only tells part of the story, while observation and regular operational reviews fill in the missing, but extremely important keys, to effective labor management.

DAN KAUS is workshops brand manager for BP Lubricants USA, Inc. He may be reached at daniel.kaus@bp.com. To learn more about Castrol products and programs in general please call 888.CASTROL or visit: www.castrol.com/installers

Back
[ 1 ] [ 2 ]

[Printer-friendly version]