CAN REMOTE WORKFORCE MANAGEMENT TECHNOLOGY HELP CAMPUS FACILITIES AND ESTATES DEPARTMENTS SURVIVE?
Paul Ridden, CEO of SmartTask
A number of recently released reports illustrate significant issues that are changing the face of facilities and estate management in the higher education. Demands on resources have never been greater, with added pressure to drive down costs and identify efficiencies, while improving the services offered. Moving forward, facilities and estate management teams are already turning to technology tools, such as remote workforce management, to help achieve more from their caretaking, communications, security, cleaning and maintenance teams.
THE CHALLENGES AHEAD
The AUDE (Association of University Directors of Estates) higher education estate statistics report is predicting a decline in the number of UK resident 19 year olds over the next decade, reducing the pool of potential undergraduates by between 20 and 25 per cent by 2022 and not returning to current levels until 2030.
Elsewhere, Deloitte has also outlined the pressures faced by the facilities and estate management functions within the UK’s universities, not least the introduction of the new national living wage (Making the Grade 2015: The key issues facing the UK higher education sector). These issues include driving investment while managing expenditure; the adoption of new technologies; and aligning estate strategies with an institution’s medium-and long-term aims.
REMOTE WORKFORCE MANAGEMENT
Remote workforce management (RWM) tools have been around for some time – especially in the commercial facilities management arena – enabling employee monitoring by capturing proof of time, attendance and work completed. Now systems are emerging that are proven in the higher education environment to aid performance management and automate time consuming paper processes such as audits, inspections and incident capture, while helping keep personnel safe.
By having a single integrated services platform managing a wide range of teams, such as caretakers, communication staff, cleaners, managers and security, economies of scale can be achieved along with the implementation of common management practices. This can optimise operations by helping improve staff alignment to peak demand and enable demand based resourcing.
RWM is evolving with the introduction of cloud based solutions that combine integrated staff scheduling, auditing, incident management and inspections capabilities, so its possible to minimise the IT headaches normally associated with deploying such solutions. This helps to quickly enhance campus services and overcome the operational challenges of employee and contractor performance management, further reinforcing the primary goals of campus services in delivering safety and security across the estate.
HIGHER EDUCATION SOLUTIONS IN ACTION
With such diverse property portfolios, covering libraries, accommodation, lecture theatres, offices and laboratories, universities face unique and complex facilities and estate management challenges. With demand for innovative processes and technology solutions growing, RWM is already starting to revolutionise the approach taken by these higher education organisations.
RWM is helping campus services take control of its teams, while improving in particular the effectiveness of caretaking teams checking student accommodation. Furthermore, these systems can give university executives instant access to valuable business Intelligence and management KPI’s
CARETAKING, COMMUNICATIONS, CLEANING, MAINTENANCE & SECURITY
By adopting an intelligent rostering systems, as part of a wider RWM strategy, schedulers quickly view, populate and update shift patterns, to meet changing needs, optimise service delivery and reduce staffing errors. This is about achieving the right staffing levels across operational requirements, while also making the most of stretched administrative staff by streamlining planning processes.
The latest RWM technology also makes it possible to monitor activity to ensure service levels are being achieved by in-house and outsourced teams. Staff simply swipe tags at key locations or on critical equipment to prove they are there and fill out forms electronically to complete audits, inspections or record incidents as they occur. Alternatively for staff without smartphones, call taking software can capture and record the working hours of static personnel based at remote locations.
A centralised approach to automating these critical processes within an integrated RWM solution allows each process to take advantage of the scheduling, alerting, MIS and notification tools helping with performance management. Meanwhile, supervisors can use smart forms to simplify and streamline the checks they undertake to free up time and create an electronic audit trail.
STUDENT ACCOMMODATION MANAGEMENT
With universities typically having to manage thousands of student rooms and properties, there is huge pressure on caretaking teams to record and collate accommodation inspections throughout the term and to ensure maintenance activities are completed before the next term begins. RWM is helping to schedule these teams and centralise storage of inspections, improving quality and safety whilst ensuring chargeable damage is passed on to the students.
During the last weeks of term it is essential that accommodation is inspected as students depart to collect information on the condition of the room or property. This is a hugely time consuming process that is traditionally undertaken manually, creating a major issue in terms managing the paper forms produced. RWM systems collate all the information through handheld mobile devices, with photographs of any damage, so estate teams can effectively issue any subsequent charges or fines. It is also possible to refer to historical details regarding the state of a room to support the inspection and establish what has occurred.
Caretaking teams are also expected to undertake inspections of public areas such as corridors, kitchens, bathrooms and toilets. These typically occur on a monthly basis, so using a combination of intelligent rostering and smart forms, inspections can be scheduled to happen on time and in an efficient manner, with electronically-captured proof of work and details of any issues.
With RWM making it possible to undertake comprehensive inspections far more quickly, caretakers have more time to identify potential problems that can then be remedied before they escalate into something far more damaging or costly. Electronically-captured information can also be accessed, with supporting material such as photographic evidence, to quickly resolve and investigate any student complaints and disputes.
HEALTH AND SAFETY
To help safeguard students, teaching staff and other visitors in the event of fire, universities are legally obliged to ensure equipment such as fire extinguishers and fire alarm call point checks undergo regular visual inspections. RWM can ensure appropriate checks are taking place using scannable tags located on fire safety equipment and/or a smart form to capture relevant information. Similar processes can be implemented for other safety equipment such as automated external defibrillators (AEDs) and first aid boxes.
Campus services are also required to prove that staff are following safety procedures before entering into any hazardous situation. Compliance usually involves employees filling out and signing forms to confirm that they have followed company health and safety procedures, but there are particular challenges in terms of ensuring completion and then collation of paperwork. RWM with integrated electronic forms makes it possible to overcome these problems quickly and cost effectively.
MANAGEMENT KPI’s & BUSINESS INTELLIGENCE
Due to the electronic nature of RWM it is possible to gather large amounts of data on activities completed. Universities can take advantage of this Big data to analyse trends and provide essential information to improve outcomes and accountability. Data can also be uploaded to other back office systems including billing and payroll, saving time and eliminating mistakes as a result of manual input.
To face these many challenges head on academic estates will for the coming decade need to provide a better image for the university, while dealing with increasing wage costs and higher expectations all within a lower budget. Workforce management solutions are already becoming a key component in helping estate management deliver in this ever more challenging environment, with proven technology helping make best use of resources, drive cost reductions and boost service delivery.
The full remote workforce management white paper – With UK Student numbers set to fall by 20 per cent and the introduction of the new national living wage, how can university campus facilities and estate management survive? – can be downloaded at http://smarttask.co.uk/smarttask-in-education/