Summary:
In the Delwarca Software Remote Support Unit, Jack McKinnon wanted to focus on improving the efficiency of its calling service in Pre Rapid ID. Also, McKnnon improved its customer calling service by Rapid ID. The delay in work to be performed by associates has reduced. On the other hand, the bottleneck of work to be performed by senior associates has increased to a great extent. This problem is known to McKinnon and considerable information is available about the Delwarca Company. However, improving the company’s process and solving its problems is a difficult task.
Client service is delivered by Delwarca Software in the following four separate stages:
Software development
field support : formal visit to set-up the software critical support service
Remote Support : time critical calling service
Pre-Rapid ID started calling customer to solve their problems. Significant problems were observed through conversations with customers and surveys. During waiting times, customers try to work out their own tasks. The unsatisfied ones call for help. Customers try to resolve their problems because the company’s service is slow due to inefficiencies.
In November 2011, Jack McKinnon began Rapid ID. It operated differently from Pre-rapid ID. Customers were given an option to contact either an associate or a senior associate. In the first six months, McKinnon was not satisfied with the result of Rapid ID. Senior associates had the highest-performance in Rapid ID, which made the customers even more dissatisfied then before the
development of Rapid ID. This created a bottleneck at the senior associate level.
This report will focus on suggestions to explain customer dissatisfaction.
It will show results of alternative solutions with tables to compare and discuss.
It will give recommendations regarding efficient operation and limitations with additional future work, such as data collection and modelling.
Pre Rapid observations:
Operator Observations
Queue Time (minutes) 73 calls took between from 0 to 0.48 minutes
Queue Size Average queue size is 0.15 Ending the Queue Average number is 0.25 These observations show that the customer spends a lot of time for waiting.
Director Associate
Queuing Time(minutes) The average time has
increased about 1.3 minutes. Queue Size There is not a significant
difference between an operator and a director. End Queuing Average number is 0.32 This shows that clients spend huge time for waiting. Associates
Queue Time (minutes) Average time is 3.69.
Queue Size The maximum time has been reduced by one minute.
End Queuing The maximum number also is significantly higher in Rapid ID. Senior Associates
Queue Time (minutes) The queue time for a senior associate is longer than the other waiting time in Rapid ID. Queue Size The average size of a senior
associate’s queue is 1.52
End Queuing The maximum number is also lower than the maximum number of an associate.
Total Labour cost (every year):
Position Parameter Amount
Associate Salary Between $40,000*12 – $66,000*12 (about $480,000 – $792,000) Benefits & Overheads Between$40,000*12* 26% – $66,000*12*26% (about $124,800 – $205,920) Overtime working benefits Between $40,000*4*10% – $66,000*4*10% (about $16,000 – $26,400)
Senior associate Salary Between $70,000*7 – $90,000*7 (about $490,000 – $630,000) Benefits & Overheads Between $70,000*7*23% – $90,000*7*23% (about $112,700 – $144,900) Overtime working benefits Between $70,000*4*15% – $90,000*4*15% (about $42,000 – $54,000)
Whole labour cost is minimum $1,206,700 - $1,768,820 Improved model:
The model can be improved a wide range of methods, which means that utilisation and queue time can be reduced by training and
rescheduling the batch. The alternative model should be improved by training associates and senior associates in Rapid ID. There is a significant reason for this choice:
Trained workers can work more efficiently than workers who have not been trained in simple tasks.
In a formula of queue theory analysis, s W q , if the service completed time of senior associates increases, the number of calls( ), Wq will decrease in Rapid ID.
In Rapid ID, although the waiting time for an associate has
decreased, the waiting time for a senior associate has increased, because many associates lack ability. This means that associates cannot solve a wide range of problems. Consequently, those problems will move on to a senior associate
Associate and senior associates complete calls in significantly different amounts of time, which means that there are a few benefits that will reduce bottlenecks. Rescheduling can produce high quality solutions and more efficiency in the process
Proposed plan:
All the workers are on work, the average working time using in the inter-arrival time distribution (exponential distribution) in each time slot from 8:00 am to 8:00 pm,
Training programming of senior associates is processed for three months
The service completed time will be decreased by 30%. Senior Associate Service time
Senior Associate Service time (Original model/improved model) Lower
limits
Mode Upper limits Requesting senior associate
from operator
13 / 9.1 18 / 12.6
41.2 / 28.8 Direct to senior associate from
director associate
12 / 8.4 23 / 16.1
37.2 / 26.0 Forward to senior associate
from associate
11 / 7.7 30 / 21 31.2 / 21.8 At associate level:
The number of calls completed by associates increased from 20% to 84.8%, which means that only 15.2% will be passed on to a
senior associate.
The training programming of associates will last for three months. Forwarded to Senior Associate (↓ 1.976 minutes)
Directed to Senior Associate (↓4.56 minutes)
Requesting Senior Associate (↓ 5.322 minutes) after an associate was trained by the company, the average queuing time for a senior associate decreased, because the trained associate solves a
significant number of problems.
Conclusion and Recommendation:
The basic model can be used to evaluate its calling service in the Software Remote Support Unit. The model can be made based upon the considerable information provided by McKinnon and upon
All three of the alternative models of training associates, training senior associates, and rescheduling senior associates made
significant results based on assumptions. The expected result
almost appeared in the modelling. Therefore, it can be used by the Delwarca Company to improve its performance. Of the three
alternative models, the programme of training senior associates has remarkable results in reducing queue waiting times.
To improve the accurate model, managers should study human capital resources, such as their degree, behaviour, preferences and motivation. These will support improvements in efficiency and an efficient calling service.
