steve · slide 1 facilities management building services town hall march 19, 2018 steve: welcome...

Facilities Management Building Services

Town HallMarch 19, 2018

Steve:

Welcome everyone. Thank you for taking time out of your schedules to join us today to contribute to our dialogue.

It has been almost a year since we last gathered to outline our plans to embark upon an important initiative for Building Services – a Study that would carry our professional team forward and build on our strengths and successes. As you’ll see in our presentation, lots has happened since that time and we want provide you with an update, talk about next steps and, most importantly, hear from you.


Meeting Outcomes

• Overview• Review progress to date• Meet the Surge Group• Preliminary feedback• Identify next steps

Steve: Our agenda for today includes: - Overview of The Caretaking Study (this is a quick review that will be especially

helpful for new team members) - Review Progress to Date - Engage with our Partner – The Surge Group - Preliminary Feedback - Outline Next Steps - Feedback & Questions


Strengthen our knowledgeHealth and wellness of our staffAdvance operational sustainability

Pride of ownershipExcellence (a culture of)

Overview • Review our progress • The Surge Group • Preliminary feedback • Next steps

Steve: Let’s start with a quick review of our team objectives with the Study. We refer to this project as The Caretaking Study – an undertaking where we are Working Together to Shape our Future. We use the word “SHAPE” uniquely. It is an acronym developed to convey the scope of and rationale behind this initiative. The acronym also highlights the objectives of the information gathering exercise – as a team, we want to: • Strengthen our knowledge • Focus on the Health and wellness of our staff • Advance operational sustainability • Support our Pride of ownership (our core strength) • Advance our culture of Excellence


• Pride of Ownership• Building & Residence Ambassadors• Commitment to the

Western Community• Knowledge of physical space• Ability to work independently as well as collaboratively


Steve: This initiative builds on our success as we know our team has been successful in many ways, including: - Pride of Ownership - Building & Residence Ambassadors - Our absolute commitment to the Western community – the many ways we

connect with the students, staff, visitors and other clients on a daily basis - We have tremendous knowledge of our physical space – our buildings,

classrooms, labs, common areas and student residences - Our ability to work independently to achieve shared goals as well as in

collaborative teams


• Equity in your workload • Recruitment, onboarding and training• Staffing resources• Ability to meet customer expectations• Standardizing the procedures and policies across all units• Improved distribution of leadership resources• Safety and wellness


Chris: We also know there is room for improvement and we’ve been listening to you - here is a sample of what we have heard:

• You have asked for us to look at workload equity • You are looking for improved processes relating to recruitment,

onboarding and training • You are concerned about levels and placement of staffing resources • You have pride of ownership, yet, at times, experience challenges outside

of your control when striving to meet customer expectations • You want consistent application of policies, procedures and standards • You want increased access to your leaders, particularly team members on

the afternoon shift • Employee wellness is important


• Improved individual and team performance and wellness• Determination of appropriate cleanliness standards• An opportunity to address employee and leader concerns• Support for resource allocation


Chris: The benefits of this Caretaking Study are numerous and include: - Improved individual and team performance and wellness - Determination of appropriate cleanliness standards - Addressing employee and leader concerns (we have been listening) - Support resource allocation



Steve: The Study is also about Partnership. - We know that our team has over 2,000 years of caretaking expertise – that’s an

enormous body of knowledge and we both want and need to access that knowledge for this initiative to be successful.

- Last summer, we ran a formal Request for Proposal process with the support of

Western’s Procurement Services team to find an external expert to partner with us. We evaluated responses, interviewed consultants and shared with you the successful consulting team was The Surge Group. Representatives, Judy and Richard, are here with us today. Many of you may have already spoken with them as they toured campus and our facilities on several occasions through the fall and winter terms.

This will be a collaboration as, in addition to our existing internal knowledge base, we know that we also need to access industry best-practices and standards. The information we provide as a team will be used to respond to the concerns/opportunities we noted at the beginning of our presentation and it will also inform our annual budget processes. Otherwise, our operations may not be defendable or sustainable.

We our going to underscore our message from last spring - this is an information gathering exercise that will inform our path forward – it is not an exercise in outsourcing and/or reduction in staffing levels. This is about strengthening internal capacity – this is about investing in our people.



• Cleanliness processes and standards• Staffing levels and scheduling• Health & Safety and work wellness• Employee orientation and training• Organizational structure• Financial sustainability• Environmental sustainability

Steve: Specifically, we will look for Judy and Richard to provide evidence-based knowledge, data and systems. We know we need best practice information to improve our operations; most notably in the following areas: • Cleanliness processes and standards • Staffing levels and scheduling • Health & Safety and work wellness • Employee orientation and training • Organizational structure • Financial sustainability • Environmental sustainability


• Equity in your workload • Recruitment, onboarding and training• Staffing resources• Ability to meet customer expectations• Standardizing the procedures and

policies across all units• Improved distribution of leadership

resources• Safety and wellness


Chris: We identified some critical opportunities for our success and in all cases, we are making headway. For example, [CLICK] • [CLICK] We’ve engaged a vendor for snow shoveling and entrance mat

management – this will support wellness and safety as well as workload; snow events will not longer significantly interrupt your work.

• [CLICK] We’ve been working with your leaders to review our staffing model;

looking closely at the unique operations in each portfolio. - We want to ensure we have the right mix of RF, Sessional and TF

members to ensure our academic and summer operational needs are met.

- Recently, we filled 13 RF Caretaker openings, and we have plans to do more in the coming weeks. Although we are still working through specifics, we anticipate posting additional RF opportunities in a quantity

similar to our last posting; the number will be even higher with respect to sessional caretaker opportunities.

- After that process is complete, we’ll post TF opportunities - Our objective is to have our full team in place and on site mid-August for

formal training and onboarding - Interested team members need to ensure they apply to the postings as

internal candidates and with a completed application. If you need assistance with the application process, you can reach out to the FM HR Team and/or your Building Managers.

• [CLICK] You may also be aware that we are currently recruiting 2 additional

Building Managers to our leadership team. These resources will improve your ability to meet customer expectations and increase your access to support and coaching; we know this is especially important to our team members on afternoon and weekend shifts.

4. [CLICK] With respect to standardized procedures and policies, we have had early discussions with our consultants around industry best practices including frequencies, guidelines and shifting our focus to cleaning for health – we’ll be sharing more about that last point in the coming months. 5. We have also been meeting with vendors to review equipment and supply options as well as staff training programs. Today, we have on display microfiber cleaning equipment and are fortunate to have an industry expert with us today – Todd Charlebois. Please take a moment when we wrap up here to take a closer look at some of the products we are considering implementing. Todd will also be available to answer your early questions. We will be introducing this or similar technology in the coming months – most likely starting with pilot groups so we have time to test the products and gather your feedback. Your contribution to this discussion is important and so we are also designing a brief survey that will enable you to confidentiality share your thoughts on current equipment and supplies. Your feedback will inform our decisions so when that survey arrives in your email inbox, kindly take a moment to share your thoughts.


Steve: We have two quick videos we would like to show you. The first one highlights the benefits of microfiber and the second video highlights the ease of use of a new paper towel dispenser. Both technologies are available through our existing vendors, and these videos are merely a glimpse of some ideas that we are considering. Video Video


Steve: I’d like to formally introduce Judy and Richard of The Surge Group. Many of you may have already met our consultants during their recent facility tours. They’ll walk you through some of their activities and findings to date.



• Expertise and experience in post-secondary/educational and complex institutions

Judy: Thank you for welcoming us here today. As mentioned, we have had the opportunity over the fall and winter months to tour a cross-section of your facilities – including common spaces like the Library and Rec Centre as well as some of the heavy lab space in the science buildings and student residences. We have lots of industry experience: - The Surge Group has been around since 2009, - Richard has spent all of his working career (over 35 years) in the industry and

brings direct experience within the educational sector; and - I am an Industry Certified Expert and have been in the industry for

approximately 13 years. We will be bringing an external perspective to your project.



• Cleaning Industry Management Standards (CIMS)


Judy: Cleaning Industry Management Standards (CIMS) exist and we will use those as a guideline on this project. Meeting the industry guidelines demonstrates that an organization is prepared to deliver quality and customer-focused services and also speaks to comprehensive green cleaning standards (something important to the Western environment as you have numerous LEED facilities). These external standards ask organizations to have in place such things as: - A definition of clean service requirements, - service delivery plans, - staff planning and orientation - workloading and special requests; as well as - health & safety processes and procedures We know the challenges that caretakers face and we appreciate the fact that there are lots of obstacles that get in the way of your work. We also know that caretakers are an important part of operations but they do not always get the credit they truly deserve.



• Building Services’ team strengths• Cleaning Industry Management Standards (CIMS)


Judy: While onsite, we stopped to talk numerous team members and note that there are some obvious strengths in this team: - Everyone we met was motivated and ready for change - Your team has a strong safety focus; and - Despite some obstacles out of your control (such as shortfalls in training and

staffing levels), our preliminary review with respect to cleaning standards was quite positive. Well done.



Richard: In an effort to understand the specific challenges you face here at Western, we had ad hoc discussions with team members while they were performing their regular work routines. We visited a multitude of buildings across all shifts. Thank you for being very open during our discussions.


• Caretaker Comments


Richard: Some of the things we heard that enabled us to identify themes: - I want to do a better job in my building, but I am asked to change lights in five

buildings. - I have a hard time completing my area due to covering for absenteeism in other

buildings. - I don’t understand what is required for green cleaning. - We don’t believe the work assignments are fair as some have too much work

and others less. - How do we know if we are doing a great job or a poor job? - We never exchange information between other caretakers. - Each manager does their own thing. - Why are we always short staffed? - Why don’t we get help in the winter when we have to shovel snow and it takes

us away from our routines?



• Caretaker Comments• Summary of Customer Interviews

Richard: In order to get a better understanding of the current caretaking operations, interviews were conducted with your customers including staff, faculty and student representation. In general, we found that a resounding majority of the customers found the caretakers go above and beyond their job responsibilities and are very pleased with the staff. This is very unusual in the cleaning industry and it is a testament to the culture that has been established at Western. We also found that: - events are taking place on a regular basis and building managers are reacting to

demands of set ups/tear downs/removing furniture and having to pull staff off of regular cleaning routines.

- Very few customers know what the cleaning frequencies are supposed to be so communication is problematic.

- Issues are resolved at the building level (e.g. caretaker or building manager) and may not be tabled to the senior management level to resolve/change the process.

- The use of technology may be able to resolve some of the issues.



• Caretaker Comments• Summary of Customer Interviews• Customer Comments

Richard: Specific client comments/themes include: - 2:00 to 5:30 there is no caretaker in the building and there is a big gap of

service - Resources are great when available – caretakers are very hard workers - Washrooms are not adequately patrolled & washroom supplies run out

frequently - Garbage pickup is a problem - More custodial hours needed as building is open extended hours - Caretakers go above and beyond - Building managers need to juggle caretakers when there is an event - Windows need to be done more frequently - Expectation and communication is lacking


• Redefine recruitment and our staffing model• Evaluate equipment and supplies• Enhance the onboarding processes• Tap into vendor training• Standardized scope and service quality


Chris: Next steps: - We are currently finalizing our staffing model so that recruitments can begin for

Lead Hand, RF and Sessional caretakers in the coming weeks. - Remember, we will be sending out a brief survey to get your feedback on our

current equipment and supplies - We will look to evaluate microfibre options and select locations to run pilots. - In May, we will pull together a team to work on the design and implementation

of a full onboarding program for team members - We will also be working with vendors and taking a closer look at formal training

options so that onboarding in the Fall is professional and team members are knowledgeable from day one

- All along, Judy and Richard will be bringing their external perspective; specifically, they will be helping us build consistency into the scope of the work you perform, apply certified industry standards, support facility auditing and help us examine workloading.


Steve: Let’s keep our momentum. As noted earlier, there is a tremendous amount of caretaking expertise in this room today. We both want and need you to Join the Conversation. This is a group effort. We commit to ongoing two-way communication and transparency. • We will continue the dialogue during our face-to-face bi-monthly meetings • We continue to add to the SHAPE page on the FM website

- This is a screen shot of our SHAPE webpage - To get there, click on FM Employees on the purple navigation bar and

then on the SHAPE link - Use your Western username and id to access this site

• This webpage will contain information and communications relating to this study and will be continually updated. It will include today’s presentation.

• [CLICK] In Addition, The Surge Group has now established a mechanism for confidential participation for all members of the Building Services team – you can communicate directly with Judy and Richard using the following email [email protected]


Thank you!Questions?

Email [email protected] uwo.ca/fm/employee

Steve: We will now open the floor to questions. If your questions aren’t answered today – or you have further questions or comments regarding the Study, please connect with whomever you feel most comfortable – that may be your building manager or another member of the leadership team, your union executive or lead hand. Or perhaps you’d rather pass it along as an email to either [email protected] (and a member of the study team will follow up) or confidentially to Judy and Richard at [email protected]. Remember, we will be providing you with regular updates and you can visit our FM employee webpage for details as we move forward.

steve · slide 1 facilities management building services town hall march 19, 2018 steve: welcome...

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