London Borough of Hillingdon
London Borough of Hillingdon improve use of resources using SaaS based Workforce Management solution from WorkPlace Systems.
Summary
After a successful pilot London Borough of Hillingdon has implemented WorkPlace OnLine to better manage resources, reduce administration and improve communications across their Youth and Connexions Service. The initial pilot focused on the Council's FIESTA summer activities programme ensuring that the correct ratio of staff to young people was achieved and that they had the right people with the right skills in the right place. The pilot was part of the Business Improvement Development project and is the first to be introduced by a Council in the UK.
About London Borough of Hillingdon
Hillingdon is an outer-London borough of forty-two square miles, making it London's second largest borough. It is home to around 248,000 people and includes Heathrow Airport. It contributes greatly to the economic success of the Capital, yet it remains one of London's greenest boroughs. Hillingdon Council's ethos is putting its residents first, providing the very best for them with modern and efficient services that everyone in the borough can feel proud of.
The Opportunity
London Borough of Hillingdon Youth and Connexions Service runs the third largest summer activities programme in the Capital with over 4,500 young people attending a range of 138 programmes across 25 different locations over a six week period during the summer. At the end of every FIESTA programme a staff evaluation is carried out, in 2009 much of the negative feedback centred on the efficiency and correctness of the schedules and subsequent payroll errors. In 2010 the Council decided that a new approach was required for organising the work of the youth workers, coaches, tutors and other professional involved in the programme.
"In previous years the council had used paper based, Excel and a standalone scheduling tool to create and manage the schedule however this was a less than optimal solution, we wanted to do things differently in 2010", commented David Bailey, Service Manager, Youth and Connexions Service. "Before joining Hillingdon I had worked in the commercial sector and knew there was a more efficient way to create, manage and communicate with our programme staff", continued David.
As part of the councils Business Improvement Development (BID) project the Youth and Connexions Service decided to source a new Workforce Management solution to improve the way of working for the FIESTA programme. Initially three companies were contacted for the pilot and after several conference call meetings and demonstrations over the internet, WorkPlace Systems was chosen for the FIESTA pilot with the plan to rollout across all of the Youth and Connexions Service if successful.
"We chose WorkPlace Systems because the WorkPlace OnLine software was a simple 'classic' user interface, which was easy to navigate and find your way around. WorkPlace OnLine also had the required functionality and depth to support our staffing model with complex working arrangements", explained David.
The Solution
The project commenced at the end of May with a 'go live' for the programme on the 25th July. Schedules and employee details, skills and availability were quickly entered into WorkPlace OnLine, attendance devices (clocks) were installed at each of the principle locations, allowing staff to 'clock on' and 'clock out', using existing employee identity cards. WorkPlace OnLine gives easy access over the internet and allows managers and staff to view their work schedules and communicate via email or text message - a particularly useful service where staff are based in centres across the borough.
"The annual leave functionality was particularly useful for the council, where staff were requesting time off or absent due to unforeseen circumstances, the process became much more efficient and allowed us to cover any gaps created in the programme", commented David.
The London Borough of Hillingdon was specifically looking for a web-mediated solution, Software as a Service based application. This technology and delivery method allowed very quick implementation of WorkPlace OnLine to be available for training almost immediately and ensured that team leaders were well prepared before the start of the FIESTA programme.
The Benefits to London Borough of Hillingdon
The exact financial benefits are still being assessed by the Council, however, there has been a much better use of resources ensuring that the correct ratio of staff to young people was achieved with the right staff in the right place at the right time.
One of the major benefits was a reduction in pay errors and the associated frustration and administration required to correct the mistakes. The number of payroll enquiries reduced from over 100 in 2009 to just 3 in 2010. This resulted in staff being paid fairly based on the work that was done and the introduction of the clocks also created an 'on time' culture that resulted in subtle change in behaviour from staff.
Staff feedback at the end of FIESTA 2010 showed how successful the pilot had been with programme workers being 96% positive. One of the biggest benefits was the improved communication of schedules ensuring that wherever the field worker was located they still had the right information.
What of the future?
With the success of the pilot, WorkPlace OnLine is currently being rolled out across the Youth and Connexions Service on a permanent basis. Currently (Feb 2011) two phases of a four phase rollout have been completed.
With the severe budget pressures that exist within local government, London Borough of Hillingdon is looking at other areas that may benefit from improving efficiency with WorkPlace OnLine.
Download the Hillingdon Case Study as a PDF