KPIs with Somerfield: The Challenge

There are 770 Somerfield stores across the UK, each needing to be cleaned thoroughly, regularly and effectively.

Different cleaners and operators have their own ways of working but with the introduction of key performance indicators, the tasks and outcomes need to be unified and monitored centrally.

Colin Halsall, of Somerfield’s Central Procurement Team explains: “We need to be able to track performance with everything we do but store cleaning is a very visible part of our work.

“If one store is visibly cleaner than another we’re not just letting down the customer, we’re failing to protect our reputation and brand as we should. It’s important that whenever customers visit a store they’re confident it’s maintained to the same standard as the best.

“To achieve this we must be sure that cleaning staff, whatever location and whatever the task, know what the expectations are, how performance will be measured and how it’s recorded.

“If it’s not recorded accurately, much of the evidence for good cleaning standards is perceived, anecdotal or reliant upon the answers to questions within wider reaching satisfaction surveys.

“The major problem in establishing a set of performance measures is that, initially, they are full of positive learning. But then the organisation and individuals lose their sensitivity to the indicators, learn to live with them and eventually make them obsolete.

“There’s also a problem about how long is an indicator’s useful life-span? Is it one year, three years, seven? Our aim was to create a single, holistic system to achieve real efficiencies and drive forward improvements in all areas of store cleanliness. It’s also important to have a system that can react and adapt to change.”
 
The Solution
The ICON system is made available on a SAAS (Software as a Service) model. This means there is no upfront investment in costly hardware and software by the customer.

It alleviates the burden of maintenance, ongoing operation and support and is provided ‘on demand’, the customer only paying for the elements in use.

ICON is unique in offering a dedicated content management team for each client. The teams specialise in the management of client information, providing an invaluable level of support and expertise.

The company works with clients to identify particular needs and then advise on the areas of the ICON system that can provide a solution. To do this, ICON employees have a range of expertise such as construction, architecture, retail, civil engineering and IT.

The company’s experience in implementing both large and small systems means that ICON can help plan a strategic direction by identifying opportunities for improvement, targeting specific areas of value, and helping to integrate the system so that it delivers to expectations.

“Live information is available 24 hours a day, seven days a week which keeps employees and contractors up to date whilst on site whether they are carrying out a task, implementing a project, building a store or undertaking a condition survey.”

“The ICON system is a very cost-effective way of keeping the records in order. We employ a number of contractors across the country but now they are all recording and monitoring to the same set of standards and indicators,” adds Colin Halsall.

The work with ICON – a software as a service solution - has enabled Somerfield Stores to establish and maintain a range of performance indicators that are accessible on line, and that will help ensure all stores are cleaned and maintained to the same standard.

“Through key performance scoring and reporting we can compare sets of results against a number of indicators and measure the progress towards goals. We can also assess whether the procedures are cost-effective.”

“Since starting the work with cleaning KPIs we’ve added a document exchange facility, which is shared by a number of people, and which relates to issues such as Health and Safety and Security. The checks and balances that we’ve put in place dovetail into other areas, an added dimension that’s working well.”

The Future
“Taking the work to date a stage further, we’ll be able to use Personal Digital Assistants (PDAs) to allow managers to undertake cleaning condition surveys in the field.

“This removes the need to input information onto paper before putting it onto a computer, so avoiding any risk of information being ‘lost in translation’. At the click of a button the user can upload a presentable, up-to-date version of the findings.”