STUDENT BOOK BUSINESS COLLEGE
CERTIFICATE III
BUSINESS
Implement and monitor environmentally sustainable work practices & Maintain business resources
BSBSUS301 & BSBADM311 COURSE CODE
Student Workbook BSBSUS301 Implement and monitor environmentally sustainable work practices 1st Edition 2015
Part of a suite of support materials for the
BSB Business Services Training Package
Copyright and Trade Mark Statement © 2015 Innovation and Business Industry Skills Council Ltd All rights reserved. Apart from any use permitted under the Copyright Act 1968, no part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted, in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, or otherwise, without written permission from the publisher, Innovation and Business Industry Skills Council Ltd (‘IBSA’). Use of this work for purposes other than those indicated above, requires the prior written permission of IBSA. Requests should be addressed to Product Development Manager, IBSA, Level 11, 176 Wellington Pde, East Melbourne VIC 3002 or email
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Published by: Innovation and Business Industry First published: May 2015 Skills Council Ltd 1st edition version: 1 Level 11 Release date: May 2015 176 Wellington Pde East Melbourne VIC 3002 Phone: +61 3 9815 7000 Fax: +61 3 9815 7001 Email:
[email protected]
www.ibsa.org.au
ISBN: 978-1-925328-18-9 Stock code: BSBSUS3011D
Table of Contents Introduction .........................................................................................................................1 Features of the training program .................................................................................1 Structure of the training program ................................................................................1 Recommended reading ................................................................................................1 Section 1 – Environmental Regulations ............................................................................3 What skills will you need? ............................................................................................3 Why do regulations matter? .........................................................................................4 Environmental laws and regulations ...........................................................................4 Identify legislation that is relevant to your workplace ............................................ 10 Procedures to assess workplace compliance .......................................................... 15 Analysing procedures to assess compliance ........................................................... 16 Section summary ....................................................................................................... 21 Further reading .......................................................................................................... 21 Section checklist ........................................................................................................ 21 Section 2 – Investigate Current Practices ...................................................................... 22 What skills will you need? ......................................................................................... 22 Environmentally sustainable work practices............................................................ 23 Environmental and resource efficiency systems ..................................................... 24 Examining existing work practices ............................................................................ 29 Measuring current resource usage........................................................................... 31 Analyse and document purchasing strategies ......................................................... 36 Improvement opportunities ....................................................................................... 43 Communicating with a team ..................................................................................... 45 Section summary ....................................................................................................... 51 Further reading .......................................................................................................... 51 Section checklist ........................................................................................................ 51 Section 3 – Set Efficiency Targets .................................................................................. 52 What skills will you need? ......................................................................................... 52 Consult stakeholders ................................................................................................. 52 Best practice .............................................................................................................. 55 Evaluate improvement opportunities ....................................................................... 60 Setting efficiency targets ........................................................................................... 62 Section summary ....................................................................................................... 65 Further reading .......................................................................................................... 65 Section checklist ........................................................................................................ 66
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Section 4 – Implement Strategies for Improvement...................................................... 67 What skills will you need? ......................................................................................... 67 Developing an implementation plan......................................................................... 68 Continuous improvement .......................................................................................... 74 Improving sustainability as a team ........................................................................... 75 Section summary ....................................................................................................... 75 Further reading .......................................................................................................... 76 Section checklist ........................................................................................................ 76 Section 5 – Monitor and Evaluate Performance ............................................................ 77 What skills will you need? ......................................................................................... 77 Monitor performance ................................................................................................. 78 Evaluate data ............................................................................................................. 80 Recording and presenting data ................................................................................ 82 Review targets and strategies................................................................................... 84 Section summary ....................................................................................................... 86 Further reading .......................................................................................................... 86 Section checklist ........................................................................................................ 87 Glossary ............................................................................................................................ 88 Answers to selected learning activities ........................................................................... 90 Appendices ....................................................................................................................... 92 Appendix 1: Example procurement policy and procedures..................................... 92 Appendix 2: Sustainability impact assessment ....................................................... 96 Appendix 3: Efficiency targets template ................................................................... 97
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Introduction
Introduction Features of the training program The key features of this program are: ● Student Workbook – self-paced learning activities to help you to understand key
concepts and terms. The Student Workbook is broken down into several sections. ● Facilitator-led sessions – challenging and interesting learning activities that can be
completed in the classroom or by distance learning that will help you consolidate and apply what you have learned in the Student Workbook. ● Assessment Tasks – summative assessments where you can apply your new skills
and knowledge to solve authentic workplace tasks and problems. Innovation & Business Skills Australia has licensed the use of over 200 video vignettes from the Channel 9 television program, Your Business Success. The videos have been carefully selected and embedded into relevant learning and assessment resources in order to assist education providers and students in the learning process. Each video is accompanied by a learning activity. Videos can be found on IBSA’s YouTube channel at .
Structure of the training program This training program introduces you to concepts of sustainability in the business workplace. Specifically, you will develop the skills and knowledge in the following topic areas. 1. Environmental regulations. 2. Evaluating resource usage. 3. Implementing strategies for improvement. 4. Monitoring and evaluating performance. Your facilitator may choose to combine or split sessions. For example, in some cases, this training program may be delivered in two or three sessions, or in others, as many as eight sessions.
Recommended reading Some recommended reading for this unit includes: ● Clean Energy Regulator, viewed April 2015,
. ● Ecospecifier Global, viewed April 2015, .
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● Australian Government Department of the Environment, viewed April 2015,
. ● Australian Water Association, viewed April 2015, . ● Australian Sustainable Business Group, viewed April 2015,
. ● Department of Environment and Resource Management, ‘Eco-efficiency for small
business’, EcoBiz Queensland, viewed April 2015, . Please note that any URLs contained in the recommended reading, learning content and learning activities of this publication were checked for currency during the production process. Note, however, that IBSA cannot vouch for the ongoing currency of URLs. Every endeavour has been made to provide a full reference for all web links. Where URLs are not current, we recommend using the reference information provided to search for the source in your chosen search engine.
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Section 1 – Environmental Regulations
Section 1 – Environmental Regulations There is a complex system of legislation, regulation and policy that exists to ensure the protection of and care for the environment. It is essential that businesses and organisations understand their responsibilities in ensuring environmentally friendly and sustainable practices direct their operations. This section looks at environmental legislation and regulations that apply to businesses. Scenario: Planting People Planting People is a plant nursery that operates on the outskirts of a major Australian city in south eastern Australia. Planting People grow plants to supply to small inner city nurseries and other customers who make bulk plant orders. Planting People sells out of a small shed on the premises. Most plants are germinated in a large greenhouse and then transferred to grow in pots outdoors. A new employee, Annette, has recently started working at the nursery and she is noticing that there is nobody at the nursery who is responsible for ensuring that Planting People is complying with legislation. Annette is particularly concerned about some of the pesticides that are used at Planting People. The pesticides are kept in large plastic containers that aren’t labelled and she often wonders if they are dangerous to the environment, or even if they could be dangerous for her if one of the containers spills on her. Annette has also discovered that there is a species of endangered orchid growing on the Planting People property just next to the greenhouse driveway. Annette is pretty sure that Planting People has a responsibility to protect these orchids and their habitat, but when she asks about the orchids, nobody at Planting Plus knows what she is talking about.
What skills will you need? In order to effectively assess compliance you must be able to: identify environmental regulations that apply to your workplace analyse procedures for assessing workplace compliance with environmental regulations.
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Why do regulations matter? Why is legislation important? In each person’s work role, there are requirements that exist because they help an organisation comply with legislation. For example, an IT policy might specify the kind of emails that are offensive and not allowed to be sent in the workplace. This policy will assist employees to comply with anti-harassment legislation. It is always easier to understand and practice these requirements if you have a basic understanding of where they come from. Unfortunately many people are frightened by legislation and think that they could never understand it. While some laws are more complex than others, it is important to have a basic understanding of the requirements of the laws that affect your everyday work.
What is legislation? ● Legislation is a collection of laws. Australian
legislation, for example, refers to the group of laws that apply in Australia. ● Legislation is written out in Acts and
Regulations.
Legislation Legislation is a collection of laws. Australian legislation, for example, refers to the group of laws that apply in Australia.
● Compliance is the word that describes doing
what the legislation says you must do. ● Legislation consists of the Act and the Regulations that come from it. They must be
followed and penalties for non-compliance are specified in the legislation. ● Laws exist at federal, state and local levels.
Environmental laws and regulations Environmental sustainability issues exist with many workplace activities and even your activities at home. Laws and regulations are designed to minimise our environmental impact when we undertake these activities.
Legislation that applies to your organisation Your organisation needs to find out which areas of legislation that they must comply with so that the organisation can: ● meet the requirements of the organisation’s
environmental management system ● avoid penalties for breaking a law ● be considered by consumers to be an
environmentally responsible organisation.
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Environmental management system (EMS) An environmental management system is the broad approach that an organisation uses to manage its impact on the environment. The system is decided on by top level management and then set out in policies, procedures and planning documents. EMSs will be discussed in more detail throughout this Student Workbook.
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Section 1 – Environmental Regulations
Determining the obligations of your workplace may be quite difficult, so you may be required to seek the assistance of a lawyer or consultant. The various levels of laws and regulations are outlined below. Federal
The Department of the Environment serves to implement national policy, programs and legislation to protect Australia’s environment and heritage, in particular: ● Environment Protection and Biodiversity Conservation
Act 1999. This is the Australian Government’s central piece of environmental legislation. This legislation and other relevant legislations can be viewed at: ● Department of the Environment, viewed April 2015,
. State/Territory
State and territory government laws for the environment vary in name and function, and the majority of environment-based law in Australia is state/territory based.
Local
Local councils have regulations and guidelines related to the environment for their specific area of jurisdiction.
In addition to legislation, there may also be regulations, standards and policies related to your industry or set by your specific organisation. These are developed to ensure ‘best practice’ is observed, but compliance is generally voluntary.
Environment Protection and Biodiversity Conservation (EPBC) Act The EPBC Act has been developed to protect areas of national environmental significance. There are eight areas of significance which are: ● world heritage sites ● national heritage places ● wetlands of international importance (often called ‘Ramsar’ wetlands after the
international treaty under which such wetlands are listed) ● nationally threatened species and ecological communities ● migratory species ● Commonwealth marine areas ● the Great Barrier Reef Marine Park ● nuclear actions.
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The EPBC Act aims to protect these areas as well as to: ● protect Australia’s biodiversity ● protect international biodiversity by keeping flora and fauna within their natural
borders (e.g. not allowing Australian animals and plants to escape and become pests overseas) ● require environmental assessments and approval processes when dealing with the
eight areas of national significance ● encourage development that is environmentally sustainable.
You need to particularly pay attention to the requirements of the EPBC Act if you: ● own land ● develop land ● farm ● work for a council, state, territory or federal agency ● work in an industry with a significant impact on the environment.
Under Section 516A of the EPBC Act, all Commonwealth organisations must report on their environmental performance and how they support the principles of ecological sustainability. For more information you can visit EPBC Act – Frequently asked questions page on the Department of the Environment website at: .
State legislation State legislation is quite varied and depends on the state. Each state has its own environmental protection laws. Each state has their own website for legislation. Some examples include: ● Victorian Legislation and Parliamentary Documents, viewed April 2015, . ● Tasmanian Legislation, viewed April 2015, .
Learning activity: Your state’s environmental protection legislation Note down the web address for your state’s environmental legislation website.
Locate and note at least one Act from your state legislation that relates to environmental protection or sustainability.
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To start to understand the legislation and regulation in your state, you should visit the website of: ● your state’s government department that is concerned with the environment or
sustainability, such as: ○ Queensland’s Department of Environment and Heritage Protection ○ Victoria’s Department of the Environment, Land, Water and Planning ● your state’s Environment Protection Authority.
These websites provide lots of advice on how you and your business can protect the environment and comply with regulations.
Local municipal by-laws and regulations Local councils will have a large variety of by-laws and regulations in relation to environmental issues. They are the main regulatory bodies in terms of local actions and control responses to pest species and tree lopping, among other concerns. Learning activity: By-laws Look up your local council website and note down three by-laws that relate to the environment including penalties for not obeying them. These might be regulations in relation to cutting down trees, disposing of rubbish, burning off leaves or a variety of other things. Do any of these by-laws have the potential to affect you and/or your workplace?
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Case study: Wood heaters When it gets cold, how do you heat your home or business? Homes or businesses that use wood heaters or open fires for heat may be subject to local regulations. This is because incorrect use of a wood heater, or a poorly designed wood heater, can contribute to air pollution. In Launceston, Tasmania, an estimated 73% of air pollution in winter is caused by the use of wood heaters or open fires. In Western Australia, the Environmental Protection (Domestic Solid Fuel Burning Appliances and Firewood Supply) Regulations 1998 require all wood heaters for sale in WA to comply with emissions and operating efficiency standards. It is illegal to sell noncompliant wood heaters in WA. If you do sell a non-compliant wood heater, you face a $5,000 fine. In Canberra, ACT, the Government has banned wood heaters in some suburbs. Because of the Australian climate, water use and restrictions is one regulation that can change frequently. You need to make sure that you are aware of water regulations and restrictions in your local area, especially during summer. Learning activity: Water restrictions For your home or workplace, find out who your water is supplied by and where your water comes from. For example, if you live in Wollongong, your water is managed by Sydney Water and is supplied from Lake Avon.
Go to the website of your local water supplier and find out if there are any current water restrictions in your area. If so, what are the restrictions?
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Learning activity: State legislation In the ACT, the government department responsible for the environment is the Environment and Sustainable Development Directorate. The most important Commonwealth and territory environment and planning laws that apply in the ACT are: ● Australian Capital Territory (Planning and Land Management) Act 1988 (Cwlth) ● Environment Protection and Biodiversity Conservation Act 1999 (Cwlth) ● Planning and Development Act 2007 (ACT) ● Nature Conservation Act 1980 (ACT) ● Commissioner for Sustainability and the Environment Act 1993 (ACT) ● Environment Protection Act 1997 (ACT) ● Heritage Act 2004 (ACT) ● Tree Protection Act 2005 (ACT) ● Pest Plants and Animals Act 2005 (ACT) ● Water Resources Act 2007 (ACT).
Research another state or territory and: ● identify the government department responsible for the environment
● identify the most important environment and planning laws for that state
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Identify legislation that is relevant to your workplace There are many activities that may be regulated, and there are several different agencies in charge of environmental regulation. This can make it difficult to understand what you need to consider in your specific workplace. However, the complexity of environmental regulation is no excuse for causing environmental degradation or destruction. In order to be a responsible workplace, a business needs to show environmental duty of care, as well as examining its responsibilities in other areas, such as in its use or creation of:
Water
Energy
Land
Waste
Noise
Duty of care All employees and employers have a general duty of care. Duty of care is a requirement to avoid negligence. This means that all people need to take reasonable care to protect the physical, economic and emotional health of themselves and others. You have a duty of care to those around you. The things you do or do not do must not harm the people involved in the decisions you make and the actions you take. The concept of a duty to care for the environment has been specifically used in some state environmental legislation such as Queensland. It is covered in the broader policy framework of ecologically sustainable development that exists in Australia. Ecologically sustainable development states that development and economic activity should only occur when it does not damage the wellbeing of current or future generations. Your workplace must ensure that its activities do not damage the wellbeing of current of future generations through environmental negligence.
Specific areas that require consideration If your organisation uses or produces any of the following, you should check whether you need to comply with industry standards, council regulation, or state and federal legislation:
Water
Energy
Land
Waste
Noise
To determine whether you may need to comply with specific environmental legislation or regulations, you should ask yourself the following questions and then take appropriate steps to determine compliance issues.
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Section 1 – Environmental Regulations
Imports Are any products/resources imported from overseas? If yes, ►Check quarantine regulations with the Australian Quarantine Inspection Service (AQIS). ►Ensure that products/resources meet Australian Products Standards. ►Check if products/resources are subject to specific legislation (e.g. the sale of wood heaters is subject to legislation in some states or council areas). Some relevant legislation: ● Quarantine Act 1908 (Cwlth) ● Imported Food Control Act 1992 (Cwlth) ● Hazardous Waste (Regulation of Exports and Imports) Act 1989 (Cwlth)
Water Does your organisation use water? If yes, ► Check local water restrictions regularly. ► Check water management Acts and state governments’ water information to determine if you need a licence and will be required to report water use. ► If you are also returning water to the environment (such as for irrigation or from cooling ponds to a waterway), check requirements for water discharge licences from your state’s Environment Protection Authority (EPA). Some relevant legislation: ● Water management Acts, e.g.:
○ Water Act 2007 (Cwlth) ○ Water Management Act 2000 (NSW) ○ Water Supply (Safety and Reliability) Act 2008 (Qld) ○ Water Act 1989 (Vic) ● Water polluting Acts, e.g.:
○ Pollution of Waters by Oils and Noxious Substances Act 1987 (WA).
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Energy Does your organisation use or provide energy? If yes, ► Check if your organisation meets the National Greenhouse and Energy Reporting (NGER) threshold; if so, register and report annually. ► If your organisation installs small-scale alternative energy systems (solar, hydro, wind), check your requirements under the Renewable Energy Act to supply information to consumers about your eligibility to perform installations. ► If you are operating as a small-scale renewable energy agent, ensure that you are prepared for audit by the Clean Energy Regulator. Some relevant legislation: ● National Greenhouse and Energy Reporting Act 2007 (Cwlth) ● Renewable energy Acts, e.g.:
○ Renewable Energy (Electricity) Act 2000 (Cwlth) ○ Renewable Energy (Electricity) (Small-scale Technology Shortfall Charge) Act 2010 (Cwlth) Land Does your organisation own land? If yes, ► Seek information about your requirements under the Environment Protection and Biodiversity Conservation Act 1999 (Cwlth) before modifying your land. ► Identify and protect any species listed as rare or threatened in the EPBC Act. ► Determine your premises’ status according to your state’s EPA (e.g. are your business’ premises considered to be ‘scheduled premises’ according to the EPA Victoria?). Some relevant legislation: ● Environment Protection and Biodiversity Conservation Act 1999 (EPBC Act)
(Cwlth) ● Your state’s environment protection Act, e.g.:
○ Environment Protection Act 1970 (Vic) ○ Environment Protection Act 1993 (SA).
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Does your organisation develop land? If yes, ► Seek information about your requirements under the EPBC Act. ► Identify and protect any species listed as rare or threatened in the EPBC Act. ► Check your licensing and approvals requirements with your state’s EPA. ► Check your licensing and approvals requirements with your state’s department of planning/development. ► Check your licensing and approvals requirements with your local council. Note: In most cases, it is the responsibility of a developer to seek information and approvals from state and federal regulators; developers can not rely on local council to provide all information regarding requirements. Some relevant legislation: ● Environment Protection and Biodiversity Conservation Act 1999 (Cwlth) ● Your state’s planning/development Acts, e.g.:
○ Sustainable Planning Act 2009 (Qld) ○ Planning and Development Act 2007 (ACT) Waste Does your organisation throw anything away? If yes, ► Check if it is considered to be a hazardous waste (start with the definition of hazardous waste on the website of the Department of Sustainability, Environment, Water, Population and Communities). ► Ensure that wastes are disposed of according to local council, EPA, and state legislation requirements (e.g. removed by a licensed agent and/or disposed of at a registered landfill). ► Check your council’s information on appropriate disposal of general waste, recycling, hard waste, e-waste, and other wastes (such as batteries and light bulbs). Some relevant legislation: ● Waste management legislation in your state, e.g.:
○ Waste Avoidance and Resources Recovery Act 2001 (NSW) ○ Waste Management and Pollution Control Act 1998 (NT) ○ Environment Protection Act 1993 (SA).
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Hazardous materials Does your organisation store or use chemicals or hazardous materials? If yes, ► Determine whether your use or storage of chemicals or hazardous materials requires your organisation to report to the National Pollutant Inventory (NPI). ► Document and provide the required information about hazardous/dangerous materials according to health and safety legislation (e.g. provide material safety data sheets (MSDS) for each material). ► Eliminate and control risks of storage and use of hazardous/ dangerous materials following health and safety legislation, codes of practice and EPA guidelines. ► Ensure that your organisation disposes of hazardous wastes appropriately, following state requirements and legislation and EPA guidelines. Some relevant legislation: ● National Environment Protection Measures (Implementation) Act 1998 (Cwlth) ● Work Health and Safety Act 2011 ● Waste management legislation in your state, e.g.:
○ Waste Avoidance and Resources Recovery Act 2001 (NSW) ○ Waste Management and Pollution Control Act 1998 (NT) ○ Environment Protection Act 1993 (SA). Noise pollution Do your organisation’s activities create noise? If yes, ► Determine if any noise generated by your organisation poses a threat to health and safety (e.g. leads to hearing impairment/loss) and take appropriate steps according to health and safety legislation and regulations. ► Ensure that noise occurs within the authorised hours according to EPA and/or local council regulations. Some relevant legislation: ● Work Health and Safety Act 2011 (Cwlth) ● Relevant sections of your state’s environmental protection legislation, e.g.:
○ Sections 46 and 48 of the Environment Protection Act 1970 (Vic) ○ Part 5.5 of the Protection of the Environment Operations Act 1997 (NSW). You may need to seek the assistance of a lawyer or consultant if you are uncertain about your obligations.
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Section 1 – Environmental Regulations
Why does noise matter? Legislation and regulations exist to minimise the impact of noise on the environment. Most regulations focus on the impact that commercial noise has on other humans. For example, noises that can be heard from inside a home or business are prohibited during certain times (mostly at night). However, the impact of noise on the natural environment is also important. Frequent and loud noise may disrupt native animals and birds, which makes it a form of habitat disruption or destruction.
Procedures to assess workplace compliance Once areas of required compliance have been identified, your workplace needs to ensure that procedures for assessing compliance are in place. A range of methods could be used to assess compliance. These could include: Regularly reviewing policies and procedures that relate to environmental compliance
Checking that policies and procedures are followed by employees
Regularly reviewing relevant legislative changes
Ensuring that all employees have received adequate and up-to-date training to allow them to perform to a required standard
Completing regular in-house environmental audits
Contracting an external company to complete an environmental audit
Regularly reviewing information made available by the Environment Protection Authority (EPA)
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What is an EPA? An Environment Protection Authority is a state office in charge of protecting the environment. Except for Queensland, each state has an EPA that upholds the state’s Act for environmental protection (usually called an Environment Protection Act). An EPA is in charge of granting licences for activities that can affect the environment; in charge of informing citizens and businesses about what they can and cannot do; and fining citizens or businesses that don’t follow environmental regulations. Note that Queensland administers the Environment Protection Act 1994 (Qld) through the Department of Environment and Heritage Protection rather than through a separate EPA.
Analysing procedures to assess compliance So to recap, this section has talked about two steps to achieving adequate workplace compliance: 1.
Identifying any legislation that needs to be complied with
2.
Applying methods (procedures) to assess workplace compliance.
While it is very important to have appropriate procedures to assess workplace compliance, we have only briefly looked at these procedures because it is beyond the scope of this Workbook to discuss their development. However, you need to have a basic understanding of these methods to cover the next step in achieving workplace compliance. Now we will add a third step. The third step is: 3.
Checking that the methods (procedures) to assess workplace compliance are adequate.
To comply with legislation, you need to check the methods that are used to assess compliance. You need to ensure that the methods are adequate, and that there are enough of them in place to ensure compliance. You may want to develop a tool such as the following checklist to help you check your review procedures. Compliance review procedures checklist
Yes/No
Do compliance review procedures ensure that legislation is up-to-date? Comment:
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Compliance review procedures checklist
Yes/No
Do compliance review procedures specify methods for checking any alterations to current legislation, or checking if any new legislation is relevant to workplace compliance? Comment:
Do compliance review procedures specify who is responsible for undertaking the review? Comment:
Are the people who are undertaking compliance review procedures suitable for the job? Comment:
Do compliance review procedures include a review of health and safety and environmental incidents and accidents? Comment:
Do compliance review procedures ensure that employees adequately understand and follow workplace procedures? Comment:
Do compliance review procedures occur with sufficient frequency? Comment:
Do compliance review procedures ensure that all staff are adequately inducted and trained? Comment:
Do compliance review procedures ensure that induction and training occurs with sufficient frequency? Comment:
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Compliance review procedures checklist
Yes/No
Do compliance review procedures involve an independent consultant or auditing body? Comment:
Learning activity: Analyse compliance review procedures ChemiCompany is a Victorian company that purchases several hazardous materials for its production needs. Imagine you are a newly appointed environmental officer at the ChemiCompany warehouse facility. You decide to examine ChemiCompany’s procedures for reviewing compliance in the warehouse. You find the following procedures: ChemiCompany Procedures for assessing compliance – Warehouse facility ChemiCompany takes environmental compliance and health and safety very seriously. The following procedures must be followed to ensure workplace compliance. 1. Review the following policies and procedures once every five years: a. Training, Induction and Supervision Procedures b. Security and Access to High Risk Areas Procedures c. Health and Safety Procedures d. Monitoring and Reporting for Compliance Procedures e. Incident and Accident Reporting Procedures f. Transport of Hazardous Materials Procedures g. Emergency Procedures. 2. Identify employee compliance once every five years: a. Review all health and safety and environmental incident reports b. Interview health and safety representatives (HSRs). 3. Review Hazardous Substances Register once every five years. 4. Review and update Material Data Safety Sheets and update once every five years.
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Do you have any concerns with ChemiCompany’s procedures for assessing compliance? Why? Why not?
Do you think that reviewing policies and procedures once every five years is frequent enough? Why? Why not?
Victoria’s WorkSafe information about employer’s legal duties regarding hazardous substances specify that employers must: ● ‘Keep a register of all hazardous substances in the workplace ● Obtain a current Material Safety Data Sheet (MSDS) for each hazardous
substance ● Keep the MSDS accessible to employees’
Do you think ChemiCompany’s procedures for reviewing compliance are sufficient to ensure that the above requirements are being complied with? Why? Why not?
Are you confident that these procedures will ensure that ChemiCo is complying with current legislation? Why? Why not?
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Learning activity: Planting People and compliance Review the Planting People scenario at the beginning of this section. Now that you have a better understanding of legislation and regulations, make a list of what needs to happen at Planting People to ensure that they are complying with legislation.
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Section 1 – Environmental Regulations
Section summary You should now recognise that it is important to ensure your organisation understands its responsibilities in complying with environmental legislation and has procedures in place to ensure that regulations are complied with.
Further reading ● Australian Government Department of the Environment, viewed April 2015,
. ● Australian Government, ‘About the EPBC Act’, Department of the Environment,
viewed April 2015, . ● The website of the Environmental Protection Authority in your state:
○ Australian Capital Territory: . ○ New South Wales: . ○ Northern Territory: . ○ Queensland (Department of Environment and Heritage Protection): . ○ South Australia: . ○ Tasmania: . ○ Victoria: . ○ Western Australia: .
Section checklist Before you proceed to the next section, make sure that you are able to: identify environmental regulations that apply to your workplace analyse procedures for assessing workplace compliance with environmental regulations.
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Section 2 – Investigate Current Practices This section focuses on collecting information about environmental sustainability to investigate your organisation’s current practices. You need to understand and be able to collect information about: your organisation’s environmental management system (EMS), organisational objectives and environmental policy; resource efficiency policies and procedures; industry best-practice in terms of sustainability; current resource usage in the workplace and organisational purchasing strategies. This section then looks at who you need to share this information with, and how to communicate that information. Scenario: What’s happening at Planting People? After Annette raised concerns about compliance at Planting People, the owners of the nursery have realised that they could make a lot of improvements that would benefit the environment as well as the success of the business. However, for the past 20 years they have not kept any records about their resource use and they have no idea where to start. The first step for Planting People is to find out more about their current practices. Planting People has put Annette in charge of investigating current practices and determining what environmental improvements need to be made.
What skills will you need? In order to effectively investigate current work practices you must be able to: collect information on environmental resource efficiency systems and procedures collect, analyse and organise information from a range of sources seek feedback for information and suggestions on environmental improvements measure current resource usage provide information, advice and resources to employees as required to improve current practices analyse and document purchasing strategies identify areas for improvement in current work practices.
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Environmentally sustainable work practices Sustainability issues There can be many issues with how a business interacts with the environment. Some of them are straightforward and may have a direct impact on the environment (such as rubbish being blown into a local creek or a leaking sewer pipe). Other issues may have a longer term or indirect impact (such as leaving a computer on all the time). Some typical environmental issues that business face are:
Waste of resources
Energy usage
Disposal of waste
Causing pollution
An environmentally sustainable work practice minimises the above-mentioned environmental issues. You can improve a workplace practice by: Identifying its key sustainability issues (such as disposal of waste, inefficiency, use of harmful resources/materials)
Developing procedures to reduce these issues
Implementing these identified procedures
Monitoring and reporting on the procedures to ensure they continue and have the most effective outcome
Reviewing the procedures to ensure continuous improvement
Cost reductions and opportunities Introducing environmentally sustainable work practices can reduce risk and increase business opportunities. It can reduce risk by: ● reducing capital costs and ongoing expenses – for example, by using less energy
and being more efficient with materials ● decreasing exposure to possible litigation and costs through noncompliance with
the law, pollution incidents or hazards.
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Business opportunities may be increased through: ● retention of top talent and increase in staff productivity through improved work
conditions ● identification of niche market opportunities for ‘green’ products, and services and
early take-up of emerging technologies ● higher customer retention.
Learning activity: Office environment Think about a workplace you are familiar with. List five sustainability issues that you feel affected that environment. (For example, 1. could be the intense general lighting used). 1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
Environmental and resource efficiency systems The first step to understanding practices in your workplace is to find out what environmental outcomes need to be achieved. In Section 1, you learned that work practices need to comply with legislation. You also learned how to review legislation to understand how it is relevant to your workplace, and how to check that compliance is assessed appropriately. The next stage in understanding what outcomes need to be achieved is to review your organisation’s environmental management system (EMS) and any environmental/resource objectives that exist in the organisation.
Environmental management systems Systems are used in an organisation to achieve types of objectives across all areas and levels of an organisation. For example, a resource efficiency system will set standards across all departments and levels in an organisation to make sure that resources are not overused or wasted and that all departments work together to most efficiently deliver products to customers. 1st edition version: 1 Page 24 of 97
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An environmental management system (EMS) is a system that manages an organisation’s impact on the environment. An EMS might be as informal as a set of sustainability targets made by the business owner. The owner may then ensure that policies and procedures are written so that all employees follow the right steps to support the achievement of those targets.
Standards Standards set out requirements and provide guidance for persons working in specific areas. Standards are created to ensure that workplace activities achieve consistent results across many organisations and industries. In Australia, the main organisation that develops standards is called Standards Australia. Standards Australia is the first place to look for information on national and international standards that apply in Australia. Currently the standard that applies to environmental management systems is the AS/NZS ISO 14001:2004 Environmental Management Systems – Requirements with guidance for use.
ISO standards The International Organisation for Standardisation (known as ISO) develops and promotes internationally consistent standards. Many Australian Standards are based on ISO standards.
The Environmental Management Systems Standard The AS/NZS ISO 14001:2004 Standard sets out rules about how to run an EMS that enables an organisation to develop and implement policy and objectives that improve environmental performance. This Standard sets out requirements about EMS processes including: complying with legislation; setting objectives; preparing for emergencies; training employees; monitoring targets; and reviewing the system. The system must also be detailed in the following documents: ● environmental policies, procedures, objectives and targets ● a description of the system and its scope ● the records that are necessary to ensure (in relation to the environment) effective:
○ planning ○ operation ○ control. It is important to note that the Standard is based on the methodology known as Plan-DoCheck-Act (PDCA).
Plan-Do-Check-Act The PDCA cycle (also known as the Deming Cycle) provides a simple methodology for developing and maintaining an environmental management system, but it also has wider applications. You should refer to this methodology throughout the process of implementing sustainable work practices as well as when developing or reviewing continuous improvement systems (discussed further on page 74).
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• Take action to improve what you have implemented
• Establish the objectives and processes necessary to deliver results
Act
Plan
Check
Do
• Measure and compare results agaiunst expected outcomes
• Implement your plans
This Cycle has specific objectives for each stage of the cycle.
Plan Establish the objectives and processes necessary to deliver results in accordance with the organisation’s environmental policy. Identify the problem – what?
● create a problem definition statement ● set SMART (Specific-Measurable-Agreed-
Realistic-Timeframe) goals (see page 63 for more information) ● identify stakeholders and develop a
communication plan for them. Analyse the problem – why?
● map processes ● brainstorm causes of the problem ● collect and analyse data to validate root
cause. Tools used
● observation of the process ● process mapping ● flowcharts ● cause and effect diagrams (Ishikawa) ● 5 Whys ● Pareto analysis.
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Do Implement the process. Develop solutions
● determine criteria for experimental success ● design an action plan ● gain stakeholder approval.
Implement solutions
● pilot the action plan.
Tools used
● design of action plan.
Check Monitor and measure processes against environmental policy, objectives, targets, legal and other requirements and report the results. Evaluate the results
● record and analyse data
Implement solutions
● if successful; act ● if unsuccessful; return to plan.
Tools used
● observation ● graphical analysis – bar chart, histogram,
scatter, dot plot ● control chart ● key performance indicators (KPIs).
Act Take actions to continually improve performance of the EMS. Implement the full scale solution
● identify systemic changes required ● identify training needs ● develop and deliver training ● plan and implement ongoing monitoring ● look for further improvement opportunities.
Tools used
● process mapping ● process standardisation ● training needs analysis ● formal training ● visual management.
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What should you look for? Information about your organisation’s resource efficiency and environmental management systems can be found in a number of workplace documents. This information will help you to find out which work practices you need to investigate and what the outcomes of those work practices need to be. For information about your organisation’s overall approach to sustainability, you can look at your organisation’s: ● environmental policy ● description of environmental and/or resource management systems ● vision statement ● mission statement.
For information about your organisation’s environmental objectives and targets, you can look at your organisation’s: ● operational plans ● departmental strategies ● key performance indicators (KPIs) in departmental and individual work plans.
For information about compliance with legislation, you can look at your organisation’s: ● operational plans ● procedures for work tasks that have an environmental aspect ● risk management plan.
For information about how employees are expected minimise their impact on the environment when completing tasks, you can look at your organisation’s: ● procedures for work tasks that have an environmental aspect ● key performance indicators in departmental and individual work plans.
If you can’t find the information you’re looking for, you should ask for help. Heads of departments, general managers, finance managers, and operations managers should all be able to help you find the information you need.
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Scenario: EMS at Planting People Annette knows that Planting People doesn’t currently have an environmental management system (EMS) in place. She decides that her first step should be to review the AS/NZS ISO 14001:2004 Standard and start to plan an EMS for Planting People. She has a big job ahead of her. Annette will need to review Planting People’s policy documents and operational plans, recommend changes to policy, identify environmental impacts, determine compliance requirements and plan implementation of the EMS. She decides that all this is a bit beyond her expertise, so Annette decides to do the best job she can and then hire a consultant with environmental sustainability expertise to review her proposed EMS plan.
Examining existing work practices Environmentally sustainable work practices In order to determine key sustainability issues in your workplace, you need to examine current work practices. One tool you can use to examine work practices is a process map.
Process maps Process maps can be used to identify the main causes of waste or inefficiency in a specific process. A process map describes, in order, the steps in a process and then looks at the resource use and wastes that occur at each step. The map helps you to break down a process and look at where you can make changes that will improve sustainability.
Process A process is a series of steps used to achieve an end goal. For example, washing dishes is a process that involves: collecting dishes, filling the sink, washing dishes, rinsing dishes and drying the dishes.
When developing a process map, use the following steps: 1. Think through the process and write down each step or action taken in broad terms. 2. Check the order of the steps by running through the process and comparing it with the process map. 3. Identify any points where the process is checked for quality and the process is taken back a few steps if the quality is not good enough. 4. Draw the process connecting the steps with arrows to indicate the order of performance.
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5. Decide if there is enough detail to identify the main cause/s of the waste by answering the following questions: Can you identify on the process map exactly where the waste occurs? Are there smaller steps within the step that you have identified as the source of the waste? 6. Colour or shape the steps that can cause waste and note how and why the waste is caused. If more detail is needed, add more detail as required. If the detail is sufficient, use the process map to examine the root causes of the waste you have identified. Example: Process map for hand washing dishes The following process map outlines the process of hand washing dishes. This map has been completed using the first five of the steps discussed above.
Now the steps that cause waste are identified and notes added:
From this process map, several decisions could be made to improve sustainability: 1. Mark the level inside the sink where the water should be filled to for efficient washing, and ensure that the sink is not filled above that level. 2. Purchase dishwashing liquid that is phosphate free, low on sodium and biodegradable to minimise negative environmental impact.
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3. Determine an amount of detergent that allows for quality cleaning, and consistently measure detergent at that amount to avoid adding too much detergent. 4. Check dishes for cleanliness prior to rinsing. 5. Mark the rinsing sink at an appropriate level for rinsing dishes to avoid overfilling. 6. Allow dishes to air dry; do not towel dry.
Learning activity: Process maps Choose a process that you commonly complete in your workplace (like writing a report) or home (like mowing the lawn) and make a process map of that activity. Use the process map to identify the main causes of waste. Process maps can also be used to identify areas for improvement other than waste by identifying which steps are the cause of mistakes or which steps are the most costly and then using the process map to identify improvements.
Measuring current resource usage Types of resource use Resources used by a business or organisation can include:
Energy
Waste
Water
Information about resource usage can be obtained from various sources, including billing statements and invoices, usage guides on equipment and organisational procedures for manufacturing and production. Indicative usage guides may be available from regulatory bodies and industry associations. Information can also be obtained from previous audits or reports completed in the organisation.
Materials
Resource A resource is something that gets used to complete a task. At work, this is something that you or your organisation needs to make a product or run the workplace. This includes everything from raw materials to electricity for lights and the stationery used in the office.
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Energy usage Energy can include electricity, gas and fuels such as petrol or diesel. Billing statements and invoices from service providers are the most readily available source of usage data and should be highly accurate. Invoices will generally show usage in dollar amount, the relevant unit of measurement, and may also provide a calculation of greenhouse gas emissions. Lighting and air conditioning are major users of energy in business environments. When assessing usage costs, note should be taken of how long they are in use each day. For air conditioning, you should also take note of the system type, and the temperature at which it is set. For lighting, you should also note the number of lights, and the type of bulb or lamp in use.
Waste To determine the type of waste generated by your organisation, you could undertake a waste audit. This may involve examining the contents of one bin, or several, to determine the type of waste (e.g. paper, food scraps, plastic, cardboard, metal) and the percentage of each type. Your waste collection contractor may also be able to provide you with data about the volume of waste generated. You should also consider whether there are separate collections for general rubbish, recycling, secure document disposal, hazardous or other materials.
Water Water usage in an office environment is related to mainly toilet flushing and hand washing. Your invoices for water supply will provide you with usage information. Learning activity: Water use at Planting People Annette has been investigating the water use at Planting People. She has been reading the water meter for the last eight months and she has recorded the following water use for each month. May: 197,000 litres
September: 218,000 litres
June: 193,000 litres
October: 231,000 litres
July: 203,000 litres
November: 228,000 litres
August: 210,000 litres
December: 232,000 litres
The water company charges $2 per kilolitre of water used by Planting People. Write how many kilolitres are being used each month and the cost. Note: There are 1,000 litres in a kilolitre. May has been filled out for you. May:
197 kilolitres x $2 = $394
September:
June:
October:
July:
November:
August:
December:
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Calculate the average monthly use of water (in kilolitres):
Calculate the average monthly cost of water used:
Answers can be found in the back of this workbook.
Materials Your suppliers should be able to provide you with information on material usage such as stationery, paper, printing cartridges and toner, and equipment.
Accurate information When obtaining information it is important that you check that the information is valid. If you are extracting information from invoices, it is a good idea to take an average over several months’ invoices to get accurate data. If you have information obtained from previous reports, check that the data is still relevant. You should also take into account that some resources will be used in a seasonal pattern rather than consistently throughout the year. For example, electricity use may increase during winter when daylight hours decrease and lighting has to be used for more hours during the day. Or it may be possible that during winter your office is heated by gas heating and the office is cooled in summer through an air conditioning system that runs on electricity. Scenario: Water use changes at Planting People In the previous learning activity you will see that Planting People uses less water in the first few months that Annette takes measurements, and more water in that last few months. Do you think that the water use will continue to increase at a similar rate, or do you think there might be seasonal patterns of water use at Planting People? Planting People uses more water in the later months because those are summer months and the plants require more water in the dry, hot conditions. Planting People will use less water as the weather becomes cooler and as it begins to rain more frequently during winter.
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Resource usage To measure the resource usage of your team or other employees, you need to determine how employees are using resources and what resources they need to do their jobs. One of the best ways of doing this is by doing a resources survey of employees. You can find out a lot of information about resource usage by requesting that employees in an organisation fill out a survey similar to this example: 1. What is the first thing that your daily work requires you to do? 2. Does your job description require you to use any specific technology, equipment, materials or software? 3. What kind of tasks or jobs do you do most regularly? 4. What equipment or technology do you wish you had access to and why? 5. What job tasks could be quicker or more efficient if you had the correct technology, software or equipment? Describe what is required. 6. What job tasks are held up or inefficient due to old or ageing technology, software or equipment? Name the problem device or software. 7. Tick each of the following that you use at least once a week for work purposes: mobile phone
computer
smart phone
laptop
photocopier
DVD player
scanner
camera (digital or film)
fax machine
video camera (digital or film)
palm top or personal digital assistant printer ink (PDA) printer paper data projector printer toner
Measuring resources used at work Once you have learned how to identify resources in your work area, you can expand that activity to help you measure current usage of resources in the whole workplace.
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If you don’t measure it, you can’t manage it. ~ Anonymous
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Learning activity: Resources in your workplace Look around your home, workplace or training environment for someone to ask about their resource usage. For the person you have chosen to talk to, ask them to identify and list the resources, waste and environmental impact that results from one or more tasks that they complete as part of their work, training or home life. Task: Resources
Waste caused
Environmental impact
In the workplace, you could follow these steps to identify usage of resources and then document your findings in a spreadsheet using Excel or a similar program. For example, you could make a resource usage spreadsheet that outlines work tasks in the organisation and their related resource use, waste and environmental impact that looks like this:
This spreadsheet now documents what you use and what the impact is, but it doesn’t tell you how much you use and how big the impact is. This is where measuring comes in.
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Once you know how often a task is performed, you can measure the amount of resources used. Firstly, determine the quantity of each resource used for each time the task is carried out. For example, in the dishwashing example, you need to determine how much water is needed to fill the sink, how much dishwashing liquid is used, and how often you need to replace equipment such as gloves and drying racks. Then you can add this information to your spreadsheet. For example:
Then you can add a column that tells you the annual usage. From the check sheet on the previous page, you can see that the average load of dishes per night is one load. To determine the average annual usage, multiply the resource use per load by 365 (days in the year) to find out the average annual usage, as shown below:
This spreadsheet documents what you use, what the impact is and how much you use.
Analyse and document purchasing strategies The purchasing process A purchasing strategy is the approach an organisation takes to purchasing resources. Purchasing ranges from the purchase of routine supplies or services to projects undertaken by a diverse range of organisations. Purchasing strategies are usually set out in an organisation’s procurement policy or process. 1st edition version: 1 Page 36 of 97
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The general purchasing processes is illustrated in the following diagram. Identify requirements
Identify full specifications
Identify suppliers
Evaluate and select suppliers
Request for tender
Evaluate responses
Place order
Follow-up and expedite
Review
Analyse sustainability in the purchasing process We will focus now on the steps that can be applied to improve sustainable purchasing practices.
Identify specific requirements The physical resources required by the organisation should be identified. These can include:
Goods and services
Stock
Equipment
Facilties
Buildings
Improvements in sustainability can be achieved by thoroughly evaluating the need for purchasing and ensuring that the right amount or type of product is purchased. It is also a good idea to consider alternatives to buying, such as reusing equipment, hiring goods/services or cooperative ownership of equipment.
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Learning activity: Identifying specific requirements Consider your organisation or an organisation you are familiar with, and complete the following. Identify policies and procedures for procurement. How do they differ from the policy and procedures of the BBQ supply store outlined in Appendix 1?
How would you modify your organisation’s procedures or the procedures in Appendix 1 to improve the environmental sustainability of procurement in that organisation?
Identify suppliers The procurement process should involve thorough research of potential suppliers. Sustainable purchasing can be improved through finding out which suppliers have a reputation for sustainable practices.
Hint You may be able to identify sustainable suppliers by using online resources such Ecospecifier that list sustainable products, services and suppliers.
Learning activity: Identifying suppliers Consider your organisation or an organisation you are familiar with and answer the questions below based on the organisation’s procurement process. If you are not sure of the answers to these questions, contact an employee who is involved in the procurement process and ask them the following questions.
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How are suppliers identified?
Identify a product or service provided by an internal supplier to the organisation that could be sub-contracted to an external supplier.
Identify a product or service provided by an external supplier to the organisation that could be done by an internal supplier.
Give a reason for each of these products or services being sourced the way it is.
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Evaluate suppliers In order to resource effectively and achieve the most value for your organisation, you will need to evaluate suppliers. Suppose you were evaluating the environmental performance of three suppliers and decided to make a basic comparison. You might consider the following four factors: ● quality performance, which could include status in respect of quality certification ● delivery performance ● technical service ● sustainability performance.
Evaluating sustainability performance can include looking at: ● Rewarding more sustainable performance – for example, set a minimum standard
carbon emissions per kilometre from vehicles and then award to each supplier one point for every 10g carbon dioxide below your set threshold. ● Whole-of-life costing – this involves spreading the initial cost of the product across
its expected life (how long the product is expected to last for). Sustainably preferable goods may be more expensive initially, but less expensive across their functional life because of reduced running costs, reduced maintenance, reusability or reduced end-of-life impact (less pollution, biodegradable). Whole of life costing
Purchase price
Maintenance costs
Operating costs
Disposal costs
● Qualitative assessments – where suppliers may offer similar products at similar
prices, a qualitative assessment can be used. Suppliers should be able to achieve a higher score where they: identify the main social and environmental impacts associated with their business; identify measures to manage their impact; and have programs that support wider social and environmental objectives. For more information on sustainable procurement processes, the following two documents provide helpful information: 1. Department of the Environment, ‘Sustainable procurement guide’, viewed April 2015, . 2. Queensland Government Chief Procurement Office, ‘Integrating sustainability into the procurement process’, viewed April 2015, .
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To analyse the sustainability issues associated with certain products and suppliers, you should develop or use tools that help you to analyse and refer to evaluations in the future. An example of such a tool – the sustainability impact assessment – is given in Appendix 2. Next, in order to determine best value for money, you would need to establish a rating for each company’s performance and then compare the rating with the price charged. Below is an example evaluation scenario. Scenario: Supplier evaluation chart Annette at Planting People has determined that she will need to evaluate suppliers of fertilisers and pesticides. Three factors have been identified and weighted according to importance: speed of delivery, sustainability performance and quality. Annette uses the chart below to compare suppliers. In this example, the performance of each supplier in respect of each factor is scored on a scale of one to ten. The score is then multiplied by the weight to give a total in respect of each factor for each supplier and the total (W x S) entered in the weighted score column. The total for each supplier is the sum of the weighted scores for the four factors. This total weighted score is then compared with the price of the product or service. The highest resultant figure will show which of the suppliers delivers the best value for money. As you can see in this example, Supplier C, although the cheapest option, does not present the best value for money for Planting People. The best option is Supplier B. Supplier A Factor
Supplier B
Supplier C
Weight (W)
Score (S)
Weighted score (W x S)
Score (S)
Weighted score (W x S)
Score (S)
Weighted score (W x S)
Speed of delivery
x1
2
2
3
3
2
2
Sustainability performance
x3
3
9
2
6
2
6
Quality
x 10
4
40
3
30
3
30
Total (T)
57
52
44
Price (P) % of budget
69.8
52.3
46.6
Rank (T/P)
0.82
0.99
0.94
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Learning activity: Evaluating suppliers Consider your organisation or an organisation you are familiar with. Select one piece of equipment used by the organisation and answer the following questions: Identify four requirements or features you want the item to have.
Identify three possible suppliers of the item for your organisation.
Explain how you will evaluate the suppliers and choose the one from which you would purchase the item.
Describe any other relevant points about your organisation’s procedures for acquiring physical resources.
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Review of purchasing process It is important to review the purchasing process as a whole. In this way organisations may improve their systems and processes and ensure that purchasing is ethical and costeffective. In the context of implementing sustainable work practices, it is important to review the purchasing process to identify if improvements can be made to the environmental impact that results from the organisation’s purchasing strategy.
Documentation As you review the purchasing process and develop lists of suppliers and evaluations of their impact, you need to ensure that the tools and documents you use – such as spreadsheets, databases and impact assessments and contacts – are stored for future use. You will need to follow organisational procedures to document the results of your evaluations; or, if procedures do not exist, you will need to communicate with others involved in the purchasing process to store documentation of evaluations appropriately.
Improvement opportunities Once you understand what your organisation is aiming to achieve, you will be able to start collecting and organising information about making workplace improvements. There are many resources available to help you identify workplace improvements, some of these are: ● information from regulatory authorities and industry bodies ● feedback from stakeholders (such as customers, suppliers and local communities) ● measuring current resource usage (this will be discussed in more detail later in this
section).
Available resources These sources will provide you with a broad understanding of opportunities for improvement. Further detail on planning sustainability improvements is included in Section 3 of this workbook.
AS/NZS Standard One of the first resources you should look to determine areas that need to be improved, is the AS/NZS ISO 14001:2004 ‘Environmental management systems – Requirements with guidance for use’ document. Check to see that your workplace is upholding the standard, and doing so in the most effective way.
Australian Government website A number of resources, tools and links to information about environmental sustainability are provided on the Australian Government’s website. You can find these resources under the ‘Environmental sustainability’ web page .
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EPA standards and guidelines Your state’s EPA website may provide resources that can guide your business towards better work practices. For example, the EPA Victoria website provides standards and compliance guidelines for using a number of resources. These are available on their ‘For business and industry’ web page .
Industry resources There is a range of sources of industry-specific information about improving sustainability. Your industry may have developed standards around how to achieve sustainability in your workplace. For example, Sustainable Green Print (SGP) is the Australian printing industry’s sustainability certification program based on the ISO 14001 Standard. Internationally, the hospitality industry has united to standardise carbon measurement by using the Hotel Carbon Measurement Initiative (HCMI). Learning activity: Industry standards and resources Identify an industry, preferably an industry you work in currently or have worked in previously. For that industry, find one standard that would apply to identifying, measuring or monitoring sustainability. What is the name of the standard?
What area of sustainability does the standard apply to?
You may also be able to find a newsletter, radio or television program that focuses on your industry and may provide information on sustainability in the industry. Example: Landline Landline is a good resource for finding out more about sustainable practices that are being used in Australia’s rural areas. Landline is an ABC television program that discusses rural issues, and often looks at sustainability and innovative practices in industries such as mining, farming and fisheries. A sweet crocodile solution One of the stories featured on Landline that looked at improved resource efficiency is about water use in Cairns by two local businesses. The Mulgrave Central (sugar) Mill near Cairns, Queensland requires about 100 megalitres of water a day to create steam for their milling process. Once the steam cools to water, it is still hot water that cannot be directly released back into the environment.
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The sugar mill found an unexpected way to reuse their hot water when they were approached by the largest saltwater crocodile farm in the world. The crocodile farm needs to be near Cairns which is the northern-most international airport. The water in Cairns, however, is not hot enough for growing crocodiles. The Mulgrave sugar mill now pipes hot water into the crocodile farm which saves on water use, and saves the energy it would take for the crocodile farm to heat their own water. You can learn more about this partnership by reading the transcript on the Landline website . Search for ‘hot crocs’ on the website.
Scenario: Planting People’s industry body Annette would like to find some sources of information that will help her develop good practices at Planting People. For the last 20 years, the owners have been running the business based on their prior knowledge and experience in gardening. Annette does some research and discovers that there is an Australian national industry body that provides just the information she is looking for; it is called Nursery & Garden Industry Australia (NGIA). Annette visits their website and finds a resource that recommends best practice for environmental sustainability. It has over 20 pages of information that Annette is very excited to be provided with. They also provide a document that outlines the industry’s approach to water use. Annette feels like she now has a much better idea of how other nurseries around Australia approach sustainability and water use. She also has access to a trade registry where she can look for suppliers of equipment that Planting People may need to purchase in the future. Annette is going to suggest that Planting People become a member of NGIA so that they will have access to the up-to-date information about the industry and industry discounts.
Communicating with a team Collecting information on systems, regulations, organisational objectives and improvement opportunities should be more than an individual exercise. You need to communicate with your team and managers to: Seek information and feedback that will help you gain a better understanding of organisational objectives and practices Inform them of organisational expectations and practices that they need to be familiar with
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So you need to both seek out relevant information, and then distribute that information effectively to the people who need to know it. The example below illustrates some of the difficulties caused in a workplace because of lack of appropriate communication on the progress of a work task. Scenario: Communication breakdown at Planting People Annette has identified that Planting People is using much more water than they require to keep their plants adequately watered. She plans to investigate some options for reducing their water use by installing new equipment; maybe a grey water recycling system or an efficient automatic watering system. Annette knows that it will take a while to determine which option would be best, so in the meant time she writes a new procedure for watering plants that will explain to employees how long they should leave watering equipment on and how to avoid spillage. Annette continues to measure Planting People’s water use after she has written the new procedures and is disappointed to notice that their water use is not decreasing at all! After a few more weeks, Annette snaps at everyone at a staff meeting and asks why nobody is following her carefully written procedure. The other employees look confused and say that they had no idea that there were any new procedures. After the meeting, Annette prints the new procedures and posts them on the workplace notice board. She also attaches them in an email to all the Planting People staff members. Very soon after sending out the procedures, Annette notices that Planting People’s water use starts to decrease. Annette realises that her hard work is never going to be of use unless she learns to communicate effectively with staff and managers. To keep your team up-to-date with the information they need, you need to be able to locate and share information that is relevant to the workgroup’s tasks. Some ways of providing this information to the team include: ● daily/weekly reports ● results from customer surveys ● workplace reports ● team meetings ● shared spreadsheets ● email.
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Case Study: Online communication British Airways have over 30,000 staff. They are all part of the huge team that makes up the airline. Many of the flight attendants work part-time and rarely get to meet with each other or their team leaders. They work with a group of people on a flight, get off, and work with another team the next time. Difficulty in communication has been a big problem for the company so they have developed an online forum, which allows employees to discuss issues that arise and share solutions. It may be that you will need to collaborate or work as part of a group in an online environment. It is mentioned here so that you can be aware of the possibility and be clear that the rules for communication referred to in other parts of this workbook apply to online communication as well. Note: This case study is based on an interview with British Airways project manager for intranet innovations. The whole interview provides valuable information on online communication. You may want to watch the whole interview, which is available online at: ● YouTube, 2008, ‘British Airways: Crew community forums’, YouTube, viewed April
2015, . You also need to provide your team and management with feedback about how well they are carrying out their duties.
Feedback Feedback is when customers, employees or stakeholders provide information, opinions, or evaluation of the performance of you or the organisation. Feedback is an important measure of your performance. Feedback can let you know that you’re doing a good job, or it can let you know where you need to improve.
Stakeholders Stakeholders are people, departments or organisations who are impacted by events, products and decisions that are developed by the organisation.
There are three kinds of feedback that are given for different reasons: Positive feedback
Evaluation feedback
Constructive feedback
To encourage and recognise
To measure against standards
To help improve skills
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Providing feedback When providing feedback it is best to follow some agreed ways of voicing your feedback to ensure it is constructive and not destructive. A person’s self-confidence can easily be eroded by a careless phrase. Keep in mind the purpose of the feedback. Feedback is often categorised as ‘warm’ or ‘cool’. Both kinds are useful and necessary. An easy way to remember the best way to give feedback is to think of the feedback sandwich. Sandwich your ‘cool’ feedback between two slices of ‘warm’ comments – it will make the cool feedback easier to digest. ● Warm feedback is made up of statements that let the receiver know what is
working. It is encouraging and it is specific. ● Cool feedback is made up of statements or questions that help the receiver
improve on what they are doing.
1
Warm feedback
2
Cool feedback
3
Warm feedback
What’s working well.
What could be improved.
What to continue doing well.
Learning activity: Pam’s first day! Watch Arthur Potts Dawson’s presentation about sustainable restaurants. ● TED, 2010, ‘Arthur Potts Dawson: A vision for sustainable restaurants’, TED
viewed April 2015, . What warm and cool feedback could you offer to Arthur about his presentation style? Create a feedback sandwich using the hints and examples given in this section. Warm:
Cool:
Warm:
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Receiving feedback You should seek feedback from others to help you to improve sustainability. It is a valuable source of information about your personal, team and organisational strengths and weaknesses. Some of the most useful feedback you will receive, and some of the hardest for you to accept, will be negative (or cool) feedback. If you receive negative feedback you should try to view it in a positive manner: as a chance to improve. Try and keep an open mind, do not become defensive or disregard it until you have had time to review it objectively. There is a range of ways you can receive feedback from others in your workplace about your performance. 1. It is useful to review any compliments and/or complaints you receive. These can help identify areas in which you need to improve. 2. Reviewing work is a good habit to get into. After every project or major task is completed, a review session should be conducted to: a. review your decision-making b. draw up conclusions c. make amendments to your plan for the next time. 3. Surveys can be useful for gathering feedback from employees, customers and stakeholders on issues and for obtaining relevant feedback from clients/customers. 4. Performance reviews are conducted in most organisations. They provide an opportunity to discuss your work with your manager, reflect on your strengths and weaknesses and plan professional development.
Acting on feedback Not all feedback that you receive will be accurate. Sometimes you may be given feedback that you disagree with, and other times you will feel feedback is valid and should be responded to. It is important to review all feedback received to decide how accurate it is. Accurate feedback is only valuable if you act on it. You should make sure that you have a method of keeping feedback together. You could create a file on your computer where you make note of feedback, or you could keep an Excel spreadsheet, or keep feedback in hard copy. However you decide to keep records of feedback, you need to keep it together so that you can review it, and make improvements in your performance accordingly. This is an important aspect of continuous improvement which is discussed in Section 4 of this workbook.
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Scenario: Feedback at Planting People Annette would like to know more about what customers think of Planting People’s products and service, but there’s no feedback register – there’s not even a folder in their email system for filing emails that are compliments or complaints because Planting People has never had a method of collecting or organising feedback! Annette knows that feedback is important, so she spends hours going through old emails to find any that can give her information about customer satisfaction. She starts to create a feedback register by entering the details she is finding in old emails.
After she has finished, Annette is surprised at how much information has been sitting in old emails. She has entered 42 complaints, suggestions and compliments in the register. From completing this activity, she has noticed that a neighbour has complained about Planting People overwatering, and she has also noticed that a supplier has emailed with information about new watering system they are advertising that is highly efficient and that can be used in conjunction with grey water recycling. Perhaps Planting People can improve their water efficiency and save some money on their water bill at the same time!
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Section summary You should now understand how to collect information about existing work practices and communicate with a team to clearly communicate workplace expectations and receive feedback that will help to improve resource efficiency.
Further reading ● Australian Water Association, viewed April 2015, . ● Australian Sustainable Business Group, viewed April 2015,
. ● Queensland Government Chief Procurement Office, ‘Integrating sustainability into
the procurement process’, Queensland Government Chief Procurement Office, viewed April 2015, . ● Australian Government Department of the Environment, ‘Sustainable procurement
guide’, Australian Government Department of the Environment, viewed April 2015, .
Section checklist Before you proceed to the next section, make sure that you are able to: collect information on environmental resource efficiency systems and procedures collect, analyse and organise information from a range of sources seek feedback for information and suggestions on environmental improvements measure current resource usage provide information, advice and resources to employees as required to improve current practices analyse and document purchasing strategies identify areas for improvement in current work practices.
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Section 3 – Set Efficiency Targets This section looks at seeking input from stakeholders and experts as well as consulting a range of other information sources to help you to set appropriate efficiency targets. Scenario: Efficiency targets at Planting People Annette has decided to focus on setting efficiency targets for Planting People’s three most used resources: water, electricity and paper. Due to the email from Planting People’s neighbour that mentioned excess water flowing into his yard, Annette thinks that they could significantly improve water efficiency by improving their watering processes. They could also set up a grey water system and make use of rainwater that runs off the greenhouse roof. Annette consults with the Planting People owners and they decide to aim for a 15% water reduction in 12 months, and another 10% reduction over the following four years. She also sets a 10% reduction target for Planting People’s electricity and paper use.
What skills will you need? In order to effectively plan to efficiency targets you must be able to: consult stakeholders and specialists access external sources of information to identify improvement opportunities and determine best practice evaluate improvement opportunities set efficiency targets.
Consult stakeholders Once you have gathered information on current practices and identified broad opportunities for improvement, you need to seek input from stakeholders. Stakeholders can include: ● customers
● investors
● employees
● local community
● internal departments
● suppliers
● government
● regulators, such as your state’s EPA.
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You should also seek input from experts in the relevant industry where possible. Experts can provide valuable information that will improve your chance of success in any changes you make. Experts can include: ● consultants
● government departments
● customers with relevant knowledge
● suppliers
● employees with relevant knowledge
● regulators, such as your state’s EPA.
Identifying and mapping stakeholders You need to identify all stakeholders who may be impacted by sustainability improvements, or who may have some impact on how you will implement improvements. Once you have identified stakeholders you may find you have a long list of people that are affected by your work. The level of power, interest and influence of these people will vary. For this reason it is important that you complete an assessment to determine the level of consultation required for each stakeholder identified. A stakeholder map records who your stakeholders are and their level of power, influence and interest. A stakeholder map allows you to see who you need to focus on to ensure the successful development and implementation of your operational plan. To complete this assessment you should map out your stakeholders using your knowledge of their level of power (influence) and interest on a power/interest grid:
An individual’s position on the grid shows you the actions you will need to take with them: ● High power, highly interested people: These are the people you must fully engage
with, and make the greatest efforts to satisfy. ● High power, less interested people: Engage enough with these people to keep them
satisfied, but not so much that they become bored with your message.
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● Low power, highly interested people: Keep these people adequately informed, and
talk to them to ensure that no major issues are arising. These people can often be very helpful with the detail of your project. ● Low power, less interested people: Monitor input from this group of people, but do
not bore them with excessive communication. Learning activity: Identify and assess stakeholders Considering your current role, identify one example of a stakeholder for each quadrant on the grid and detail why you have classified this person in this category. Manage closely
Keep satisfied
Keep informed
Monitor (minimum effort)
Consultation process Once you have identified and mapped your key stakeholders, you can schedule and commence the consultation process. Consultation can involve any of the following: ● meetings or interviews
● feedback sessions
● brainstorming sessions
● email communications
● focus groups
● newsletters.
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You can use the power/interest grid for stakeholder prioritisation to assist you with determining the appropriate method of consultation. Stakeholders who have been identified as high priority will require a more involved consultation method than those classified as low priority. ● meetings
Manage closely
● group meetings ● interviews. ● focus groups
Keep satisfied
● brainstorming sessions ● feedback sessions. ● feedback session
Keep informed
● email communications ● newsletters.
Monitor (minimum effort)
● email communications ● newsletters.
Using the right consultation method for the right group of people is not only important for obtaining the information. Effective consultation also helps you to obtain buy-in and support from stakeholders that will ensure the successful development and implementation of your plan.
Best practice Using the information you have gathered as well as input from stakeholders, you need to evaluate options available for improving sustainability.
Investigating best practice
Best practice A set of guidelines, ethics or ideas that represent the most efficient or prudent course of action.
Once you have all the data you can get to determine current resource usage, you need something to which you can compare it. This involves investigating best practice and identifying benchmarks so that you can evaluate your usage and set targets to improve efficiency. There are many sources of information about sustainability best practice, so it is important to find those most relevant to your industry sector and workplace. You can find out how best practice applies to your workplace by: ● gaining some background knowledge on general sustainability and environmental
principles via an internet research, books, magazines and other media sources ● consulting government departments, industry associations and other relevant
organisations with interest in environmental and sustainability concerns
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● reviewing other businesses and organisations as case studies ● reviewing the policies and procedures of your organisation related to environmental
management. Below is some information on best practice standards to get you started.
Green Office Guide The Green Office Guide has been produced as part of the National Appliance and Equipment Energy Efficiency Program, supported by the Commonwealth, state and territory governments, to help businesses buy environmentally friendly office equipment and use it to reduce their operating and environmental costs, including greenhouse gas emissions. The guide outlines the benefits of ‘green power’ and provides guidelines for purchasing office equipment and training staff in new environmental systems. It is available through the Department of the Environment publications archive: .
Energy efficiency When it comes to energy efficiency, small things can have a big effect. Here are some simple things you can do to reduce energy consumption. Use energy efficient light bulbs Turn off lights and equipment when not needed Purchase energy efficient office equipment Restrict the use of air conditioning Maintain consistent temperature of air conditioning when in use Avoid using personal heating and cooling equipment like small fans and heaters Switch to gas for hot water units Purchase ‘green power’ from your provider
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Water efficiency Water efficiency can be improved in two areas:
Using less water
Recycling water
Here are some simple things you can do to reduce water consumption.
Install dual flush toilets
Install flow restrictors on taps
Select water efficient dishwashers
Run dishwashers only when fully loaded
Use rainwater for care of plants
Report leaks to maintenance immediately
Learning activity: Water recycling technology Watch the video ‘BSBSUS301A: Water recycling technology’ on IBSA’s YouTube channel at . List three kinds of businesses that could benefit from such water recycling technology.
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Describe how recycling grey water or capturing rain water could help one of these businesses.
Example answers can be found in the back of this workbook.
Waste management The waste hierarchy is a best practice approach to waste management which can easily be applied by businesses. The diagram below demonstrates the stages.
Avoidance and minimisation
Reuse
• reuse packaging • refill printer cartridges • use the blank sides of printed paper
Recycling
• paper, cardboard • glass, aluminium cans • printer cartridges • office furniture • computer equipment
Recovery
• recycling materials into base component parts
Disposal
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• avoid purchasing items with excess packaging • use duplex printing • use electronic document storage
• should be the last resort
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Learning activity: Less energy, less waste Identify one electrical item typically found in an office, and list three actions that could reduce its energy use yet still provide a satisfactory service. Find one waste produce created from office activities and list three actions that could reduce this waste amount while still providing satisfactory service. Less energy
Less waste
Electrical item:
Waste item:
1.
1.
2.
2.
3.
3.
Methodologies for improving sustainability There are also standard methodologies to help you develop your improvements such as:
Life cycle analysis
Global Reporting Initiative
Lean manufacturing
Learning activity: Sustainable methodologies Research the three methodologies mentioned above – life cycle analysis, Global Reporting Initiative, and lean manufacturing. Briefly describe how each methodology works and then describe how the methodology could be useful for evaluating or improving sustainability in a specific organisation or industry of your choice. Life cycle analysis:
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Global Reporting Initiative:
Lean manufacturing:
Evaluate improvement opportunities Evaluation tools The level of rigour you apply to evaluating opportunities will vary based on the cost of implementation, the size of the organisation, the requirements of the organisation, the requirements of stakeholders and the potential impact of the proposed changes. Your organisation or stakeholders may specify how you approach evaluation of opportunities and may provide tools that are regularly used in the organisation for the purposes of evaluation. Regardless of the method of evaluation, it is essential that you determine all the factors that are important to the organisation and relevant to improving sustainability to compare options. For example, factors that an organisation may need to consider could include: ● resources required to implement change:
○ physical (equipment) ○ human (additional or reduced personnel) ○ financial (implementation costs and ongoing costs) ● timeframe of implementation ● ongoing support required following implementation ● stakeholders impacted
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● impact on organisation’s reputation ● risk involved in implementing change ● additional information.
The organisation also needs to determine the environmental impact of each change. A sustainability impact assessment (see Appendix 2) is an example of how the environmental impact could be evaluated for each option. These qualitative methods of evaluation are important because of the level of detail they involve. However, it may be difficult to assess which option is more appealing based on qualitative evaluation. In this case, each factor can be weighted (i.e. a higher numerical value is given to each factor, the most important factors are given the highest values) and then each option is given a score based on how well or poorly the option achieves the organisation’s objectives for each factor. This is similar to the method used in the supplier evaluation example on page 41. The following example demonstrates this evaluation method in relation to sustainability improvement options. Scenario: Planting People evaluates sustainability improvements Planting People has determined that it will need to evaluate three sustainability improvement options: installing a grey water recycling system; changing to a supplier with improved sustainability performance; converting to eco-friendly lighting in the greenhouse and shop. Planting People has used the chart below to compare these three options. This evaluation suggests that even though installing a grey water system has a higher initial cost than changing supplier, the overall benefit to the organisation (based on the weight given to each factor) is greater.
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Change to supplier with improved sustainability performance
Install grey water recycling system Factor
Weight (W)
Score (S)
Weighted score (W x S)
Score (S)
Weighted score (W x S)
Convert to ecofriendly lighting Score (S)
Weighted score (W x S)
Initial cost (lower cost given higher score)
x2
1
2
3
6
1
2
Ongoing cost (lower cost given higher score)
x4
3
12
2
8
3
12
Timeframe (shorter timeframe given higher score)
x1
2
2
2
2
3
3
Impact on customers (positive impact given higher score)
x4
2
8
2
8
2
8
Impact on stakeholders (positive impact given higher score)
x2
2
4
3
6
1
2
Sustainability performance (based on sustainability impact assessment)
x5
3
15
2
10
2
10
Total
43
40
37
Setting efficiency targets Now that you have determined your current resource usage, identified opportunities for improvement and identified best practice standards to benchmark against, it is time to set targets to improve your efficiency and sustainability. You need to create a plan that outlines your intended actions, the opportunity and benefit for the organisation, any costs related to implementation, the target and the timeframe for achieving the target. You need to ensure that your targets are specific and measureable, so that you can effectively track the progress toward your target over time. Your targets also need to be achievable, so that you can recognise milestones and celebrate them.
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You can use the completed plan to communicate your strategy to all the relevant stakeholders, and for the development of supporting policies and procedures if required.
Performance targets Targets detail specifically what is to be achieved, in what timeframe, and are then compared with actual performance in order to evaluate individuals, teams or systems and processes. Targets should ideally follow the SMART format:
S Specific
M Measurable
A Agreed
R Realistic
T Time-specific
States exactly what the organisation wants to accomplish and uses action words such as ‘design’ and ‘implement’. When writing specific goals you are identifying the tasks to be done and the time it will take to complete them. Measurable goals provide you with milestones that indicate your progress. This could be set in terms of how many customers an individual serves on a daily basis, or how much paper is used to print documents per day. Setting measurable targets allows you to determine and compare the progress of team members or employees.
Each team member or employee should be in agreement as to what is to be achieved.
Goals must be attainable. There is no point in setting unreachable targets. Instead, set goals that might stretch capabilities a little. Goals that are too hard may not allow you to perceive important but small improvements in performance. Goals that are too easy to achieve may undermine performance potential. Goals must have deadlines if they are to be effective. If you do not have a schedule to work to, your goals might be pushed aside by inevitable day-to-day problems. Setting deadlines helps you to estimate your progress and focus on your achievements.
Example Planting People target To decrease water use by 10% by 1 October 201X. An efficiency targets template to help you cover all these factors when developing improvements has been provided for you in Appendix 3.
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Stakeholders It is important to involve as many people as possible in the process of reviewing, evaluating and planning improvements in sustainability and efficiency. This ensures participation and support in the implementation stage, and encourages everyone to take responsibility for their part in the process.
External assistance There is plenty of assistance available to businesses and organisations who wish to improve the environmental impact of their operations. There are various government initiatives designed to promote and support enterprise in the development of sustainability plans, which can provide resource, assistance and monitoring to help you adhere to deadlines and targets. An example of an Australian Government funding initiative that focused on improving biodiversity and farming practices was called Caring for Our Country. You can read more about the initiative at . The Caring for Our Country project also provided a strategy for monitoring, evaluation, reporting and improvement. You may find this strategy helpful in your own improvement project. You can access the strategy at: ● Australian Government, ‘Monitoring, evaluation, reporting and improvement
(MERI)’, National Landcare Programme, viewed April 2015, . Learning activity: Get help. Do some internet research of organisations that promote a service to reduce the environmental impact of business activities. Name one in your region or that would service your region. Read about their offer on their website and identify three major activities, roles or functions through which they claim to assist businesses. 1.
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2.
3.
Section summary You should now understand how to investigate and determine best practice standards and use the information you have collected to set efficiency targets.
Further reading ● Australian Government, ‘Green office guide’, Department of the Environment,
viewed April 2015, . ● Australian Government, ‘Monitoring, evaluation, reporting and improvement
(MERI)’, National Landcare Programme, viewed April 2015, . ● Department of Environment and Resource Management, ‘Eco-efficiency for small
business’, EcoBiz Queensland, viewed April 2015, . ● Thompson, R., ‘Stakeholder analysis: winning support for your projects’, Mind tools,
viewed April 2015, .
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Section checklist Before you proceed to the next section, make sure that you are able to: consult stakeholders and specialists access external sources of information to identify improvement opportunities and determine best practice evaluate improvement opportunities set efficiency targets.
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Section 4 – Implement Strategies for Improvement
Section 4 – Implement Strategies for Improvement This section looks at examining usage data, and identifying areas for improvement in efficiency. It also examines developing a plan for improvement, and strategies for implementation. Scenario: Deciding what is best The shop at the Planting People premises uses much more electricity than it needs to because the shed keeps it’s roller door up all day for customers to enter. This means that a lot of heat escapes out the door in winter, increasing their electricity use. Annette organises to have a glass door built into the shed so that customers can see that they are open, but so that less heat escapes during opening hours. It will be a while before Planting People will be able to afford the new grey water and automatic watering systems that will radically decrease their water use, but Planting People are already decreasing water use by following the new procedures she has written and Annette believes that they will be able to come up with more ways of saving water if they work as a team to decrease their use. Annette has also been thinking that maybe they should be printing the newsletters that Planting People sends out on recycled paper. She decides to consult with customers to see how they would respond to the recycled paper. To Annette’s surprise, customers say that they don’t read information that comes in the mail much anymore because of the amount of time they spend reading email. Customers mention that they’d be more likely to read the newsletter if it was delivered by email. Annette realises that emailing the newsletter instead of mailing it would decrease their use of paper quite a lot.
What skills will you need? In order to effectively implement sustainable work practices you must be able to: source and use techniques to assist in implementing targets develop an implementation plan apply continuous improvement strategies support team members to identify improvement opportunities implement costing strategies.
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Developing an implementation plan Now you have your efficiency targets, it’s time to implement them! Here are some things you should consider to ensure that targets are met.
Roles and responsibilities Your implementation plan should be developed with very clear actions and instructions so that people understand what is expected of them. Where specific responsibilities should be undertaken by specific people or job roles, this should be clearly identified. You may also want to consider adding these responsibilities to position/job descriptions to ensure full integration of your plan. You could consider forming a workgroup or action team, with representation from different areas and levels of the organisation, who carry the responsibility of implementing and monitoring the action plan.
Timelines You should make sure that your plan has realistic timelines for implementing practices and achieving targets. You will need to allow time to inform your team, and possibly train them, before you can expect progress towards targets to be made. Your timelines need to reflect this.
Documentation You may wish to use the policies and procedures system in your organisation to aid implementation of your efficiency plan. This may include developing new policies, or adding more detailed procedures to existing policies. Staff should already be familiar with the system, so your changes will probably be accepted as standard changes and integrated into existing systems more readily.
Communication Communication is the most important key to the success of your plan. You need to get your message out there as effectively as possible, to get as many people as you can to participate. Consider using a range of communication methods to inform people about the plan – this could include information sessions, emails, newsletters and noticeboards. Be creative! The more people get excited, the more they get involved. You also need to make sure your communication strategy is ongoing, to ensure that your plan is carried through beyond the launch week. Consider using tools like posters and labels to consistently remind people of the actions and targets.
Training Changes to workplace practices need to be introduced to employees and management in a way that ensures participation and cooperation. If new skills or different approaches to tasks are required, you may need to develop training, revised operating procedures or information sheets to outline what is required.
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Measuring success How will you know that a target has been achieved? You need to identify a way of measuring the impact of any improvements that have been made. You may be able to identify the impact by: ● examining invoices from suppliers ● reading utility meters (such as the water or electricity meter associated with your
workplace) ● taking regular measurements of resource usage or waste and examining the
results. Learning activity: Measuring the impact Take the provided efficiency target (below) as an example of an improvement that will be implemented in a workplace. The first efficiency target has had the estimated saving calculated. Estimate the saving for the second action provided (installing a waterefficient dishwasher). Potential opportunity
Estimated saving
Capital cost
Payback period
Switch off computer terminals at night
Reduces energy use overnight
32 work stations x $95 ~ $3,000 (according to ecoBiz)
Nil
N/A
2 months 95% of computers switched off overnight when audited
Install a 4 star WELS water rating dish washer to replace hand washing procedures.
Currently the 40 office employees hand wash their dishes as they are used. Most people let the water run down the sink as they wash their dishes.
$550– $650
8 years
95% dishes washed in dishwasher that is run only when full.
Action
Target Date
Target
1 month
Summarise the environmental benefit achieved by installing a new dishwasher.
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Learning activity: Go green As part of a ‘Go Green’ campaign at your workplace, you have been asked to lead the push to keep all air conditioners in all the offices at no lower than 24 degrees. There are five air conditioners. How are you going to implement this? Issue
Your plan
Give yourself a job title. Give yourself two other related roles to go with your main task. How long till you achieve your goal consistently? What will be your first milestone to achieve? Name one document that could help you achieve your assigned task. How will it help? How do you intend to communicate so that change to the Go Green plan is successful?
Costing While developing your implementation plan, you will need to implement costing strategies that allow you to determine the best actions to take. You should check to see if your organisation specifies a method of costing activities and follow that method. Regardless of the costing strategy you use, you will need to identify the costs and the benefits of each activity. It is important to note that costs may or may not be considered as a dollar value. For example, while the cost of buying new equipment would be expressed in dollars, the cost of causing pollution may be considered in terms of damage to brand reputation. While costing an activity, you should consider a wide range of costs that may include: Expenditure required
The monetary cost of the activity
Cost or benefit to goodwill
The value of a business based on its net dollar value plus its reputation and customer loyalty
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Regulatory requirements
Activities with potential environmental impacts may be regulated by one or more regulatory bodies such as the states’ environment protection authority. There may be costs associated with meeting regulatory requirements, such as conducting audits and assessments, planning and implementing environmental clean-up, or publicising a conviction if an offense is committed
Environmental impact
The cost and benefits to the environment, such as depletion or recovery of resources, improvement or degradation of land, water and air quality
Learning activity: Costs and benefits Consider two possible environmental improvements that could be made in your workplace or, if you are not currently working, in your home. Write down the costs and benefits of each improvement and determine which improvement would be more desirable. Improvement 1: Cost
Benefit
Expenditure
Goodwill
Regulatory requirements
Environmental impact
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Improvement 2: Cost
Benefit
Expenditure
Goodwill
Regulatory requirements
Environmental impact
For another example of using a costing strategy for evaluating options, see the ‘supplier evaluation chart’ on page 41.
Other information In addition, implementation plans should contain all other the information necessary to implement efficiency targets and should be developed to include any relevant information from other assessments such as a sustainability impact assessment. Implementation plans should include objectives, resources required and steps to be taken. Each step should include enough detail to enable you to complete the step by the given deadline. You may include sub-steps to organise tasks under milestones. You may also wish to include dependencies in your plan. You may determine that some tasks do not need to begin directly after a previous step and may be performed simultaneously with other tasks. Determining dependencies can help you to understand the quickest way to achieve an objective. Let’s look at an example action plan.
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Scenario: Monitoring customer service at Innovative Widgets Objective: ● Determine satisfaction levels of customers in sustainability performance ● Delivery and analysis of quarterly sustainability performance
Resources: Sustainability Coordinator (SC), Senior Management (SM), Consultant Analyst (CA), Department Members (DM) Action 1
Investigate monitoring needs, organisational needs, and seek pre-approval from SM:
Responsible
Due date
SC, SM, CA
Jan 3
SC,CA, DM
Jan 5
SC,CA, DM, other relevant managers
Jan 5
SC, CA
Jan 12
SC
Jan 5
SC, SM
Jan 13
● consult with senior management ● study policies and procedures ● survey legal environment ● consider Q2 sustainability performance
results. 2
Develop or revise draft monitoring tools: ● consult with relevant stakeholders.
Dependent on (1). 3
Develop draft monitoring practices and work instructions: ● consult with DM ● coordinate implementation with
performance management and other managerial systems. Dependent on (1). 4
Finalise monitoring tools and work instructions: ● revise policies and procedures.
Dependant on (3). 5
Determine training/communication needs. Dependent on (1).
6
Gain final approval for monitoring from relevant stakeholders as per organisational policies and procedures. Dependent on (4).
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Action 7
Deliver required training:
Student Workbook
Responsible
Due date
SC
Jan 31
SC, CA
Feb 15
SC,CA
April 1
SC, CA
April 14
SC, CA, SM
April 21
SC
April 31
● using sustainability tools and techniques ● integration of monitoring with job roles.
Dependent on (6). 8
Deliver quarterly customer satisfaction (sustainability) survey. Dependent on (7).
9
Collect and assess sustainability information: ● survey data ● customer feedback.
Dependent on (8). 10
Report results of analysis to senior management. Dependent on (9).
11
Senior management consultation on continuous improvement: ● changes/improvements to sustainability
strategies ● changes/improvements to monitoring.
Dependant on (10). 12
Communicate to relevant stakeholders: ● changes/improvements to sustainability
strategies ● changes/improvements to monitoring.
Dependent on (11). Before implementing the action plan, ensure that you seek feedback from relevant stakeholders (to review information about gathering feedback, see page 49). Stakeholder feedback may alert you to issues that will affect implementation and provide you with information that can improve implementation.
Continuous improvement What is continuous improvement? Continuous improvement is a systematic approach to making things better which helps to maintain the quality workplace standards and systems.
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Continuous improvement is something that people naturally do. For example, some of us tinker with our cars to try and improve performance and handling, some people experiment with the soil in our gardens to grow better roses. While many people do this in their personal life, continuous improvement needs to be managed in the work environment. Continuous improvement is achieved through: ● a formal Plan-Do-Check-Act process (the same process that was introduced on
page 25) ● regular review of work tasks and results to determine if:
○ the process could be more efficient ○ there are new products/equipment that could improve the process ○ the tasks are achieving associated efficiency targets ● a system to collect and analyse improvement suggestions from customers,
suppliers and employees ● a formal document/record management system.
Improving sustainability as a team So far we have considered what your responsibilities are in relation to gathering information, setting targets and implementing improvement plans. However, your organisation will have greater ability to make sustainability improvements if everyone is involved in making improvements. Part of your role in implementing and monitoring sustainable work practices is to support employees to contribute to sustainable work practices. Workplace culture can often create invisible barriers. Management may ensure that they have the correct policies and procedures laid out, but if these are not translated into workplace actions, a culture of acceptance of negative practices may grow. This will make people reluctant to make recommendations and put forward suggestions for fear of being ridiculed or excluded. One of the best ways to prevent this happening is to encourage open communication. By providing many opportunities for employees to participate in conversations, processes and decisions, you are encouraging and supporting employee contributions. Communication with a team has been discussed earlier in this workbook, you may want to review this material, starting on page 45. Another way to support team members to identify possible areas for improvement is by formalising opportunities for making recommendations. This could take the form of holding meetings dedicated to brainstorming improvement opportunities, or installing a suggestions box or online forum to encourage employees to share their ideas.
Section summary You should now understand how to investigate and determine best practice standards, set efficiency targets and implement sustainable work practices. BSBSUS301 Implement and monitor environmentally sustainable work practices © 2015 Innovation and Business Industry Skills Council Ltd
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Further reading ● Chang, R., 2004, Continuous process improvement: a practical guide to improving
processes for measurable results (quality improvement series), Jossey-Bass Pfeiffer, San Francisco. ● Department of Environment and Resource Management, ‘Eco-efficiency for small
business’, EcoBiz Queensland, viewed April 2015, . ● Grazier, P., ‘Employee involvement … what I wish I knew 20 years ago (part III)’,
Team Builders Plus, viewed April 2015, .
Section checklist Before you proceed to the next section, make sure that you are able to: source and use techniques to assist in implementing targets develop an implementation plan apply continuous improvement strategies support team members to identify improvement opportunities implement costing strategies.
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Section 5 – Monitor and Evaluate Performance
Section 5 – Monitor and Evaluate Performance The key to any business is consistency: of process, and of products and services. It is the same with sustainability. It is important to follow through on the plan: to monitor progress, evaluate effectiveness and ensure we are doing what we said we would. This section looks at monitoring and evaluating the efficiency targets and implementation plan for improving sustainability. Scenario: Evaluating Planting People Now that Annette has set efficiency targets and implemented some strategies to increase resource efficiency at Planting People, she needs to check if Planting People is on track to meet the targets. She also needs to think about why they are or aren’t on track so that she can modify her strategies or the targets. She will read the meters to determine if there is at least a 10% reduction in electricity and 15% in water. Last year, Planting People ordered 17 reams of paper, so Annette will keep track of the stationery order to measure their paper use, which should not exceed 15 reams if they are to decrease their use by 10%. Annette has gotten approval from the Planting People owners to throw a small celebration if they meet all their targets by the end of the year. Annette hopes that knowledge of the celebration will motivate employees to stick to the new targets and processes and also reward their teamwork if they succeed at the end.
What skills will you need? In order to effectively implement sustainable work practices you must be able to: evaluate strategies, improvement plans and performance against targets communicate outcomes promote successful achievement of targets.
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Monitor performance What to monitor The AS/NZS ISO 14001:2004 Standard on environmental management systems states that an organisation should ‘establish, implement and maintain a procedure/s to monitor and measure, on a regular basis, the key characteristics of its operations that can have a significant environmental impact.’ So, broadly, ‘operations that can have a significant environmental impact’ are what should be measured and ‘on a regular basis’ is when monitoring should occur. More specifically, monitoring operations that can have a significant impact might involve things like: ● regularly surveying customers for their opinions of your organisation’s sustainability ● maintaining and regularly reviewing a feedback register ● creating and using a continuous improvement register; regularly checking the
continuous improvement register to see what needs to change ● regularly checking progress towards sustainability efficiency targets ● regularly measuring and reporting on resource use ● regularly measuring and reporting on waste production ● checking billing statements/invoices ● developing and using an audit checklist.
Learning activity: Horses for courses There is rarely one solution that works for everything, and evaluating performance is no different. Look at the four methods listed below and identify a performance type that you think each method would best be used to monitor. Monitoring method
Best used to measure or monitor
Visual counting or calculating
Checking billing statements/invoices
Audit checklist
Questionnaires or surveys of staff
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Section 5 – Monitor and Evaluate Performance
You may have noticed that monitoring your performance is sometimes a case of continuing the activities we have already covered in this workbook, such as measuring resource use and waste production or using a continuous improvement system. Setting efficiency targets and measuring resource use can tell you how your organisation is operating currently Reviewing progress and measurements can tell you how your organisation is progressing Evaluating progress and measurements is about determining if anything can be done better, and how it can be done better The more you can integrate monitoring of your action plan into daily activities, the more effective it becomes. Small, manageable tasks done regularly are much more likely to be completed.
How to monitor As mentioned above, monitoring can be a case of continuing to take the same measurements and use the same tools as have already been discussed. However, there are also some other strategies that can be used to monitor sustainability performance. As a manager or team leader, following a monitoring system may mean that you need to set or negotiate performance measures and targets and observe performance of a department or team. Performance targets are usually set using key result areas (KRAs) and key performance indicators (KPIs). Performance targets can be set to monitor all kinds of performance, but here will focus on the ‘key result area’ of sustainability performance.
Key performance indicators (KPIs) A KPI is a number, percentage, or ratio that indicates some important measure of performance for an organisation. Targets (review SMART targets on page 63) and KPIs can be used to monitor performance by regularly recording the results of an individual, team or department in relation to their performance against targets. Example: Planting People’s Targets and KPIs Target
KPI
Results
To decrease water use by 10% each year.
Water use reduces from an average of 214 kilolitres per month (average in 201X) to 192 kilolitres per month the next year.
Water use for the next year was 2,303 kilolitres; achieving a monthly average of just under 192 kilolitres.
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Evaluate data You will need to carefully examine the data to discover trends and indications of sustainability performance levels. As part of reviewing performance, you should review actual performance compared to performance targets (such as in the example above) and compared to competitor performance. Firstly, you may look at key result areas for the organisation. Look at how the organisation is performing with respect to important goals or targets. Determine if there is a ‘gap’ between actual results and targets. You must then determine reasonable ways to close the gap. You should then look at benchmarking data for similar organisations. Compare the organisation’s performance with the performance of other organisations. Are there areas of relative underperformance? If there are, you should consider recommendations to bring your organisation’s performance into line with industry averages. If the organisation does not act, there is a risk the organisation will fall further behind and develop a reputation for poor sustainability and corporate responsibility. You can evaluate and report this information by examining the variance of actual performance with target or benchmark performance.
Variance Calculating variance is a useful way to determine how close you are to achieving targets, how consistently they are being achieved and trends in performance. Below is an example of a resource use variance report based on the Planting People scenario. Note that the target reduces in the second year. This is because Planting People’s target is to reduce water use by 10% annually. Resource Water (Year 1)
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Target (kilolitres)
Actual (kilolitres)
January
192
195
+3
+1.6%
February
192
194
+2
+1.0%
March
192
192
0
0.0%
April
192
190
–2
–1.0%
May
192
189
–3
–1.6%
June
192
185
–7
–3.6%
July
192
188
–4
–2.0%
August
192
183
–9
–5.0%
September
192
180
–12
–6.0%
October
192
185
–7
+3.6%
November
192
189
–3
–1.6%
December
192
189
–2
–1.0%
Month
Kilolitre variance
% Variance
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Section 5 – Monitor and Evaluate Performance
Target (kilolitres)
Actual (kilolitres)
January
174
190
+16
+9.2%
February
174
180
+6
+3.4%
March
174
176
+2
+1.1%
April
174
170
–4
–2.3%
May
174
160
–14
–8.0%
June
174
172
–2
–1.1%
July
174
169
–5
–2.9%
August
174
170
–4
–2.3%
September
174
173
–1
–0.6%
October
174
173
–1
–0.6%
November
174
176
+2
+1.1%
December
174
178
+4
+2.3%
Resource Water (Year 2)
Month
Kilolitre variance
% Variance
Variance is commonly measured in two ways: ● The size of the variance in the units of measurement (in the example above, the
size of the variance in kilolitres). ● The percentage analysis, where the absolute size of the variance is divided by the
target amount. The percentage analysis allows for performance comparison across the organisation, particularly when comparing operations of unequal size.
Variation chart A useful way of presenting performance information is by creating a variation chart. Such a chart is often used to supplement a variance report. Using these charts allows a viewer to more easily identify and highlight trends. Below is an example of a variation chart using the water use variation report above.
Water use Kilolotres used
205
Year 1
Year 2
185
Target
165 145 January
Actual June
January
June
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December
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This chart shows that variance tends to be favourable in the periods between May and August and unfavourable around December and January; demonstrating a seasonal pattern in water use. It would probably be more useful in future years for Planting People to adjust their targets to reflect seasonal water requirements.
Recording and presenting data You will have to document and communicate outcomes once you have completed monitoring. Presenting the outcomes could take several forms, including: ● creating an electronic document that can be accessed by managers and other staff ● making a formal presentation to a board of directors or your manager ● updating your co-workers during a team meeting.
Communicating outcomes is essential if you want the momentum of your program to continue. The people on your team need to know that their efforts are achieving something. Do not wait until your whole plan is completed before letting people know – let them walk the process through. One small step achieved gives motivation for the next one. Reporting your progress to management is important. Your communication should link initiatives to the objectives you identified, and demonstrate the benefit to the organisation. To communicate data in a way that will promote understanding among stakeholders, you should develop skills to present data effectively. There are many variations on how to present data, and organisations all have different ways of presenting data, but your job will be to determine how to present the data so that it quickly and clearly conveys relevant trends. For example, compare the information in the following two charts. These charts both show sales data from the same company. Which chart provides you with more information? What can you learn from each chart?
Product sales
1800 1600 1400 1200 1000 800 600 400 200 0
JUL AUG SEPT OCT NOV DEC JAN
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FEB MAR APR MAY JUN
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Section 5 – Monitor and Evaluate Performance
Product sales 1600 1400 1200 1000 800
Renewable or recyclable products
600
Non-renewable or nonrecyclable products
400 200 0 JUL AUG SEPT OCT NOV DEC JAN FEB MAR APR MAY JUN
The first chart shows that total sales are trending upwards for the year. This information may be helpful for a manager or finance officer who wants to quickly determine how well products are selling. The second chart shows that while sales are increasing generally, consumers are moving towards buying more sustainable products and sales of non-recyclable and nonrenewable products are decreasing. This information shows how consumers are making choices around buying more sustainable products. It is important to present data in a clear way and in a way that will help stakeholders understand what the data shows. You may have to present information differently depending on who will see it. For example, you may be able to present complicated information to management because they are more familiar with the processes involved in the running of the company. At a team meeting with new recruits, you might have to break that same information up into several charts so that you don’t overwhelm them with unfamiliar information. Learning activity: Sustainability reports Look at a sustainability report produced by IKEA in 2012 or more recently. Tip: Search online for ‘IKEA sustainability report’. What percentage of IKEA’s materials are renewable, recyclable or recycled?
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How was this information presented?
Where was most of IKEA’s waste generated?
How was this information presented?
Did you find IKEA’s sustainability report easy to understand? Why/why not?
Did this report give you any ideas on how to present information so it is easy to understand for a reader?
Find two more sustainability reports (or annual reports with sustainability information) produced by other organisations.
Review targets and strategies Promote strategies There are a number of principles of adult learning that can be helpful to understand when implementing new work practices. Some of the principles of adult learning are:
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Adults have a range of life experience and connecting learning to experience is meaningful
Adults need to know why they are learning something
Adults need to be respected
Adults prefer learning to be relevant and practical
The implication of these adult learning principles when you are making changes in the workplace are that you should:
Involve employees in the process of identifying resource efficiency improvements
Involve employees in consultation with others (including yourself) where appropriate
Help employees to evaluate their own performance towards targets
Think of ways that will ensure that employees will understand the impact of changes on the business and on the environment
Encourage employees to research environmental issues
Develop an atmosphere where employees feel respected
Acknowledge good performance
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Make sure you promote and celebrate the successes in your workplace. Reward is an incredible incentive, and you should acknowledge the efforts of individuals or teams in working towards targets. This will create a great incentive to participate and keep pursuing the targets outlined in your plan. Your successes as an organisation can also assist you in marketing and networking with other organisations. Learning activity: Spread the news An office team has taken your Go Green campaign to heart, and the latest electricity bill for their area is 18% down on the same period last quarter. What suggestions do you have when your supervisor asks you ‘How are we going to spread this good news?’ Name three ways you could promote this success. 1.
2.
3.
Section summary You should now understand how to investigate and determine best practice standards, set efficiency targets and implement sustainable work practices.
Further reading ● Australian Government, ‘Monitoring, evaluation, reporting and improvement
(MERI)’, National Landcare Programme, viewed April 2015, . ● Swallow, L., 2009, Green business practices for dummies, Wiley Publishing Inc,
USA.
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Section checklist Before you proceed to the next section, make sure that you are able to: evaluate strategies, improvement plans and performance against targets communicate outcomes promote successful achievement of targets.
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Glossary
Student Workbook
Glossary Term
Definition
Action plan
A list of specific actions, associated costs, responsibilities, timeframes, etc.
Benchmark
A point of reference from which measurements may be made; a basis for evaluation or comparison.
Best practice
A set of guidelines, ethics or ideas that represent the most efficient or prudent course of action.
Environmental management system (EMS)
The broad approach that an organisation uses to manage its impact on the environment. The system is decided on by top level management and then set out in policies, procedures and planning documents.
Environment Protection Authority (EPA)
The state office in charge of protecting the environment. Except for Queensland, each state has an EPA that upholds the state’s Act for environmental protection (usually called an Environment Protection Act). An EPA is in charge of granting licences for activities that can affect the environment; in charge of informing citizens and businesses about what they can and cannot do; and fining citizens or businesses that don’t follow environmental regulations. Note that Queensland administers the Environment Protection Act 1994 (Qld) through the Department of Environment and Heritage Protection rather than through a separate EPA.
Flow restrictor
A device that restricts and concentrates water passage to limit and divert water flow for optimum use.
Greenhouse gas
Natural and anthropogenic gases in the atmosphere that absorb and emit infrared or heat radiation, causing the greenhouse effect. The main greenhouse gases are water vapour, carbon dioxide, nitrous oxide and methane.
ISO standards
The International Organisation for Standardisation (known as ISO) develops and promotes internationally consistent standards. Many Australian Standards are based on ISO standards.
Legislation
A collection of laws. Australian legislation, for example, refers to the group of laws that apply in Australia.
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Glossary
Term
Definition
Process
A series of steps used to achieve an end goal. For example, washing dishes is a process that involves: collecting dishes, filling the sink, washing dishes, rinsing dishes and drying the dishes.
Resource
Something that gets used to complete a task. At work, this is something that you or your organisation needs to make a product or run the workplace. This includes everything from raw materials to electricity for lights and the stationery used in the office.
Scope
The extent of an area or subject. A project or policy’s scope refers to what and who will be impacted by its application.
Stakeholders
People, departments or organisations who are impacted by events, products and decisions that are developed by the organisation.
Sustainability
Applying policies, principles or management strategies to secure the continuity of economic, social, governmental and environmental aspects of human society, and the environment. While it preserves biodiversity and ecosystems, sustainable living enables people and economies to meet their needs and express their greatest potential in the present, while planning and acting to maintain these ideals in the very long term.
Whole-of-life costing
Spreading the initial cost of a product across its expected life (how long the product is expected to last for).
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Answers to selected learning activities
Student Workbook
Answers to selected learning activities Learning activity: Water recycling technology Watch the video ‘BSBSUS301A: Water recycling technology’ on IBSA’s YouTube channel at . List three kinds of businesses that could benefit from such water recycling technology. The kinds of businesses that could benefit most from such water recycling technology could be businesses that require material to be washed or cleaned such as a car wash, the hospitality industry such as a hotel, or a sporting club that uses extensive areas of grass such as a golf course or football ground Describe how recycling grey water or capturing rain water could help one of these businesses. New Water recycling systems could be installed at points around a golf course to enable collected water to be used for the watering of the course. The water could also be treated to clean the course and provide water for washing hands and flushing toilets.
Learning activity: Water use at Planting People Annette has been investigating the water use at Planting People. She has been reading the water meter for the last eight months and she has recorded the following water use for each month. May: 197,000 litres
September: 218,000 litres
June: 193,000 litres
October: 231,000 litres
July: 203,000 litres
November: 228,000 litres
August: 210,000 litres
December: 232,000 litres
The water company charges $2 per kilolitre of water used by Planting People. Write how many kilolitres are being used each month and the cost. Note: There are 1,000 litres in a kilolitre. May has been filled out for you. May:
197 kilolitres x $2 = $394
September:
218 kilolitres x $2 = $436
June:
193 kilolitres x $2 = $386
October:
231 kilolitres x $2 = $462
July:
203 kilolitres x $2 = $406
November:
228 kilolitres x $2 = $456
August:
210 kilolitres x $2 = $420
December:
232 kilolitres x $2 = $464
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Answers to selected learning activities
Calculate the average monthly use of water (in kilolitres): 197 + 193 + 203 + 210 + 218 + 231 + 228 + 232 = 1,712 kilolitres 1,712 / 8 = 214 kilolitres per month Calculate the average monthly cost of water used: 214 kilolitres x $2 = $428 per month.
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Appendices Appendix 1: Example procurement policy and procedures BBQfun Procurement Policy Purpose
The purpose of this policy is to ensure the acquisition of resources is carried out consistently, fairly and transparently and in accordance with organisational requirements.
Scope
The scope of this policy covers the purchasing and acquisition of resources by employees and contractors of BBQfun.
Resources
Specific principles for the implementation of this policy are available below.
Responsibility
Responsibility for the implementation of this policy rests with employees and management of BBQfun with responsibility for purchasing resources.
Relevant legislation, etc.
● Privacy Act 1988 (Cwlth) ● Anti-Discrimination Act 1991 (Queensland) ● Australian Securities and Investments Commission Act
2001 (Cwlth) ● Corporations Act 2001 (Cwlth) ● A New Tax System (Goods and Services Tax Administration)
Act 1999 (Cwlth) ● A New Tax System (Goods and Services Tax) Act 1999
(Cwlth) ● Income Tax Assessment Act 1997 (Cwlth) ● Fair Work Act 2009 (Cwlth). ● AS ISO 15489: 2002 Records management
Updated/ authorised
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6/2012 – Riz Mehra, CFO
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Appendices
Principles governing procurement process 1. Probity and ethical behaviour The principle of probity and ethical behaviour governs the conduct of all procurement activities. Employees who have authority to procure goods and services must comply with the standards of integrity, probity, professional conduct and ethical behaviour. Employees or directors must not seek to benefit from supplier practices that may be dishonest or unethical.
2. Value for money Value for money is the core principle underpinning procurement. Contracted organisations must be cost effective and efficient in the use of resources while upholding the highest standards of probity and integrity. In general, a competitive process carried out in an open, objective and transparent manner can achieve best value for money in procurement.
3. Non-discrimination This procurement policy is non-discriminatory. All potential contracted suppliers should have the same opportunities to compete for business and must be treated equitably based on their suitability for the intended purpose.
4. Risk management Risk management involves the systematic identification, analysis, treatment and, where possible, the implementation of appropriate risk-mitigation strategies. It is integral to efficiency and effectiveness to proactively identify, evaluate, and manage risks arising out of procurement related activities. The risks associated with procurement activities must be managed in accordance with the organisation’s Risk Management Policy.
5. Responsible financial management The principle of responsible financial management must be applied to all procurement activities. Factors that must be considered include: a. the availability of funds within an existing approved budget b. staff approving the expenditure of funds strictly within their delegations c. measures to contain costs of the procurement without compromising any procurement principles.
6. Procurement planning In order to achieve value for money, each procurement process must be well planned and conducted in accordance with the principles contained in this document and comply with all of the organisation’s policies and relevant legal and regulatory requirements. When planning appropriate procurement processes, consideration should be given to adopting an approach that: a. encourages competition b. ensures that rules do not operate to limit competition by discriminating against particular suppliers
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c. recognises any industry regulation and licensing requirements d. secures and maintains contractual and related documentation for the procurement which best protects the organisation e. complies with the organisation’s Delegations Policy.
7. Buy Australian made/support for Australian industry Employees who are involved in procurement activities must make a conscious effort to maximise opportunities for Australian manufacturers and suppliers to provide products where there is practicable and economic value. In making a value for money judgement between locally made and overseas-sourced goods, employees are to take into account: a. whole-of-life costs associated with the good or service b. that the initial purchase price may not be a reliable indicator of value c. the quality of locally made products d. the record of performance and delivery of local suppliers e. the flexibility, convenience and capacity of local suppliers for follow-on orders f.
the scope for improvements to the goods and ‘add-ons’ from local industry.
8. Pre-registered list of preferred suppliers BBQfun shall maintain a pre-registered list of preferred suppliers, following a request for expressions of interest and an evaluation of the submissions. Suppliers can request to be evaluated for inclusion on the existing pre-register list at any time. All purchases under $5,000 may be made from preferred suppliers without undertaking a competitive process. Purchases above $5,000 where a preferred supplier exists should include a competitive process if practicable. This list is reviewed at regular intervals with admission of interested parties on a rolling basis. Care should be taken to ensure that such lists are used in an open and non-discriminatory manner. BBQfun encourages new contractors to provide information on their experience, expertise, capabilities, pricing, fees, and current availability. It is in the interest of the organisation that the pool of potential suppliers is actively maintained and updated. Employees should be encouraged to provide reports of their experiences in working with each contractor/consultant to assist future decisions concerning commissioning suitable contractors and consultants.
9. Avoid conflict of interest Employees and directors are required to be free of interests or relationships in all aspects of the procurement process. Employees and directors are not permitted to personally gain from any aspect of a procurement process. Employees and directors shall ensure that, to the best of their knowledge, information and belief, that at the date of engaging a contractor no conflict of interest exists or is likely to arise in the performance of the contractor’s obligations under their contract. Should employees or directors become aware of potential conflicts of interest during the contract period, they must advise the CEO and Board of Directors immediately.
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Appendices
Prior to any situation arising with potential for a conflict of interest, complete disclosure shall be made to the CEO and Board of Directors to allow sufficient time for a review.
10. Report collusive tendering Employees should be aware of anti-competitive practices, such as collusive tendering. Any evidence of suspected collusion in tendering should be brought to the attention of the CEO and Board of Directors.
11. Competitive process It is a basic principle of procurement that a competitive process should be used unless there are justifiable circumstances. For purchases under $5,000, the list of preferred suppliers may be used. The type of competitive process can vary depending on the size and characteristics of the contract to be awarded.
12. Direct invitation (selective or restricted tendering) A process of direct sourcing to tender may be used. This may involve: a. an invitation to organisations deemed appropriately qualified for a particular product or service (this may be appropriate for specialised requirements in markets where there is a limited number of suppliers or service providers) b. an invitation to tender to organisations on BBQfun’s pre-registered list of preferred suppliers, if applicable.
13. Evaluation and contract award For projects being awarded, consideration will be given not only to the most economically advantageous tender, but also to the track record of the tender respondent and the degree of confidence that the panel has in the quality if the bid. It will be the normal practice to have the evaluation of tenders carried out by a team with the requisite competency.
14. Results of tendering process All tender respondents should be informed in writing of the result of a tendering process immediately after a contract has been awarded.
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Appendix 2: Sustainability impact assessment Product or process: .....................................................................................................................................................................................................
Areas of impact
Aspects for consideration
Raw materials
Product design
Manufacture and packaging
Storage and distribution
Use/ maintenance
End-of-life management
Climate change
Energy
Water use and quality
Waste
Toxic substance/ pollutants
Resource use and intensity
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Appendices
Appendix 3: Efficiency targets template Action
Potential opportunity
Estimated saving
Capital cost
Payback period
Switch off computer terminals at night
Reduces energy use overnight
32 work stations x $95 ~ $3,000 (according to ecoBiz)
Nil
N/A
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Target
Target date
95% of computers switched off overnight when audited
2 months
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BSBADM311 Maintain business resources 1st Edition 2015
Part of a suite of support materials for the
BSB Business Services Training Package
Acknowledgement Innovation and Business Industry Skills Council (IBSA) would like to acknowledge HASCOM Pty Ltd for their assistance with the development of the resource for BSBADM311A. BSBADM311A writer: Kensington Budgewater Revised by IBSA for BSBADM311 (2015) Copyright and Trade Mark Statement © 2015 Innovation and Business Industry Skills Council Ltd All rights reserved. Apart from any use permitted under the Copyright Act 1968, no part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted, in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, or otherwise, without written permission from the publisher, Innovation and Business Industry Skills Council Ltd (‘IBSA’). Use of this work for purposes other than those indicated above, requires the prior written permission of IBSA. Requests should be addressed to Product Development Manager, IBSA, Level 11, 176 Wellington Pde East Melbourne VIC 3002 or email
[email protected]. ‘Innovation and Business Skills Australia’, ‘IBSA’ and the IBSA logo are trade marks of IBSA.
Disclaimer Care has been taken in the preparation of the material in this document, but, to the extent permitted by law, IBSA and the original developer do not warrant that any licensing or registration requirements specified in this document are either complete or up-to-date for your State or Territory or that the information contained in this document is error-free or fit for any particular purpose. To the extent permitted by law, IBSA and the original developer do not accept any liability for any damage or loss (including loss of profits, loss of revenue, indirect and consequential loss) incurred by any person as a result of relying on the information contained in this document. The information is provided on the basis that all persons accessing the information contained in this document undertake responsibility for assessing the relevance and accuracy of its content. If this information appears online, no responsibility is taken for any information or services which may appear on any linked websites, or other linked information sources, that are not controlled by IBSA. Use of versions of this document made available online or in other electronic formats is subject to the applicable terms of use. To the extent permitted by law, all implied terms are excluded from the arrangement under which this document is purchased from IBSA, and, if any term or condition that cannot lawfully be excluded is implied by law into, or deemed to apply to, that arrangement, then the liability of IBSA, and the purchaser’s sole remedy, for a breach of the term or condition is limited, at IBSA’s option, to any one of the following, as applicable: (a)
if the breach relates to goods: (i) repairing; (ii) replacing; or (iii) paying the cost of repairing or replacing, the goods; or
(b)
if the breach relates to services: (i) re-supplying; or (ii) paying the cost of re-supplying, the services.
Published by: Innovation and Business Industry Skills Council Ltd Level 11 176 Wellington Parade East Melbourne VIC 3002 Phone: +61 3 9815 7000 Fax: +61 3 9815 7001 Email:
[email protected]
www.ibsa.org.au
ISBN: 978-1-925328-50-9 Stock code: BSBADM3111D
First published: June 2015 1st edition version: 1 Release date: June 2015
Table of Contents Getting Started ........................................................................................................ 1 A note on websites ............................................................................................ 1 Section 1 – Introduction ......................................................................................... 2 What you’ll need to know ................................................................................. 2 What are business resources?......................................................................... 2 What are business processes? ........................................................................ 5 Your role in maintaining business resources .................................................. 8 The acquisition process .................................................................................... 9 The ordering process ..................................................................................... 10 Terminology and jargon ................................................................................. 10 Section summary ........................................................................................... 13 Section 2 – Advise on Resource Needs ............................................................. 14 What skills will you need? ............................................................................. 14 Find out your organisation’s resource needs ............................................... 15 Estimating future resource needs ................................................................ 23 Giving clear, concise and relevant advice .................................................... 24 Provide information to help the decision maker .......................................... 27 What if?........................................................................................................... 31 Section summary ........................................................................................... 33 Section checklist ............................................................................................ 34 Section 3 – Monitor Resource Usage ................................................................. 35 What skills will you need? ............................................................................. 35 What is monitoring? ....................................................................................... 35 Handle resources safely and effectively....................................................... 36 Maintenance .................................................................................................. 39 Use business technology to monitor usage ................................................. 43 Consulting with others ................................................................................... 46 Policies for controlling resource use............................................................. 47 Budget variances ........................................................................................... 48 Section summary ........................................................................................... 49 Section checklist ............................................................................................ 49 Section 4 – Acquire Resources ........................................................................... 51 What skills will you need? ............................................................................. 51 Key concepts .................................................................................................. 51 Order and store resources............................................................................. 56 BSBADM311 Maintain business resources © 2015 Innovation and Business Industry Skills Council Ltd
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Getting resources when you need them....................................................... 58 Keep improving .............................................................................................. 62 Section summary ........................................................................................... 64 Section checklist ............................................................................................ 64 Further reading............................................................................................... 65 Appendices ........................................................................................................... 66 Appendix 1: Plan template ............................................................................ 66 Appendix 2: Budget template ........................................................................ 67 Appendix 3: Purchasing policy and procedure ............................................. 68 Appendix 4: Organisational chart and contact list ....................................... 70 Appendix 5: Filing policy and procedure....................................................... 71
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Getting Started
Getting Started Every organisation needs resources to conduct its operations and the resource needs of different types of organisations can vary greatly. For example, think of the resources that large steel company needs as compared to a small software company. The resources vary in type, complexity and amount required, just to name a few differences. However, regardless of the type of organisation that you are working for, the processes around maintaining business resources are usually very similar. You may be undertaking this unit because you: •
are new to the workplace
•
want to develop some new skills
•
have been out of work for a while.
Regardless of your goals or your work history, this material will guide you through a learning process so that you will be able to: •
advise on resource requirements
•
monitor resource use
•
acquire resources.
Note: While this unit starts with a broad definition of ‘resources’ in a business context, overall the focus of this Workbook is on materials and capital resources (equipment, tools, raw materials, consumables). Financial and human resources are addressed in detail in other units. This focus on material and capital resources is appropriate for the role of a person working in general administration in a workplace.
A note on websites Please note that any URLs contained in the recommended reading, learning content and learning activities of this publication were checked for currency during the production process. Note, however, that IBSA cannot vouch for the ongoing currency of URLs. Every endeavour has been made to provide a full reference for all web links. Where URLs are not current we recommend using the reference information provided to search for the source in your chosen search engine.
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Section 1 – Introduction
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Section 1 – Introduction Scenario: What do you mean ‘business resources’ Robert just started work at a small IT firm. It’s his first full-time job and he is working in an office administration role. It’s his first week and he is feeling a bit overwhelmed and suffering from information overload. Everyone seems to be asking him to get things for them and he doesn’t know where to start. IT people seem to talk in jargon half the time. He doesn’t know what they are asking him since they are using terms like: Capital expenditure, resources, assets, budgets and a lot of other jargon. Robert wishes that they’d just speak in plain English. Since that isn’t going to happen, he has to develop an understanding of the jargon and the business processes and what is expected of him before he can do anything.
What you’ll need to know This unit covers a wide range of concepts. You will need to establish an understanding of some of the key concepts. These are: •
What are business resources?
•
What are business processes?
•
your role in maintaining business resources
•
the acquisition process
•
the ordering process
•
where to go if you get stuck with terminology or jargon.
What are business resources? What do we mean when we talk about business ‘resources’? A resource is an ‘economic or productive factor required to accomplish an activity, or as means to undertake an enterprise and achieve desired outcome. Three most basic resources are land, labour, and capital; other resources include energy, entrepreneurship, information, know how, management, and time’. 1
1 ‘Resource’, Business Dictionary, viewed June 2015, .
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Business resources can include anything that is required to conduct the activities of the business. Most definitions of business resources include the following categories: •
human resources
•
material resources
•
financial resources
•
capital resources
•
miscellaneous resources. 2
Human resources It takes people to run a business and you will find human resources in every type of organisation. In order to deliver a product or service to your customers, an organisation may require: •
employees
•
contractors.
Material resources Most organisations require some form of material resources to operate. Material resources are the resources that you get from suppliers and find in: •
warehouses
•
storerooms
•
supply cupboards.
The need for material resources will vary depending on the type of organisation. For example, material resource needs in the manufacturing industry greatly outweigh material resources used by software firms. Financial resources It probably goes without saying that financial resources are another type of resource required by organisations. Financial resources are needed to pay for the operations of the business. As a result, an organisation may also need to: •
manage loans or investments
•
maintain bank accounts
•
collect money owed
•
monitor cash flow.
Capital resources Capital resources are the physical resources that are required by businesses to create products or services. Capital resources include things like: • •
2
equipment and tools vehicles
• •
facilities land.
Anandarajah, Aseervatham & Reid 2004, Prepare and Manage Budgets and Financial Plans, pp. 57-61.
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These resources used to create products and services but are not part of the products or services themselves. Miscellaneous resources Miscellaneous resources are everything else. They can include things such as: •
insurances
•
rented equipment
•
rented space.
Learning activity: Setting up a t-shirt company Let’s suppose that you were going to start up a t-shirt company. Give some thought to the kinds of material and capital resources that you would need to do this. You might want to do some internet or YouTube research to help you out. Try searching on YouTube for: •
t-shirt making
•
screen printing process.
What resources are needed? There are many different types of organisations and they have different processes to create their products and services. The resources required by these organisations depend on the industry sector and specific processes of the organisation. Tip: Organisational requirements Organisational requirements for resources will vary depending on the type of organisation. Keep in mind, your role may vary considerably depending on the type of organisation that you work in. There are four main sectors in most economies: •
Primary: Mining and farming.
•
Secondary: Construction, manufacturing, processing.
•
Tertiary: Service industries such as legal and healthcare.
•
Quaternary: Knowledge industries such as designers, researchers, software developers.
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Section 1 – Introduction
Learning activity: Compare industries and resources Think about the resource needs of the different industries types listed in the table below. Rate the relative importance of the different resource types to that industry on a scale of 1 to 5 (1 being unimportant, 5 being very important). Compare and discuss your conclusions with your fellow learners.
Human
Material
Financial
Capital
Misc.
Primary Secondary Tertiary Quaternary
What are business processes? We have looked at types of resources (material, capital, and so on), and at the different types of industries that use these resources. Business processes You probably have heard people talk about processes. You may hear things like ‘we have an internal process for that’ or ‘that will take a few days to process’. Business processes are a ‘series of logically related activities or tasks (such as planning, production, sales) performed together to produce a defined set of results’. 3 A business is only as good as its processes. If the processes are inefficient at producing the desired results, or if people execute them inefficiently or incorrectly, the business will perform poorly. Tip: Think in terms of processes When maintaining business resources in a workplace, it will help you to understand and think in terms of processes. You need to ensure that you: •
understand processes
•
know how to implement processes
•
follow processes.
If you don’t do this to the standard required by the workplace, the business will suffer.
3 ‘Business processes’, Business Dictionary, viewed June 2015, .
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A business model It also helps to think of a business as a collection of processes that transforms inputs into outputs. This makes some sense since all businesses exist to deliver products or services to customers, and all businesses have processes for transforming inputs into these products or services.
For example, imagine a coffee shop. At the coffee shop, they’ll obviously make coffee and tea. Let’s think about the process of coffee making for a moment.
If we categorise the resources that we need by resources needed for inputs, transformation and outputs, we might get something like the following. Inputs
Transform
Outputs
•
coffee beans
•
coffee machine
•
latte
•
milk
•
electricity
•
flat white
•
water
•
baristas (people)
•
long black
•
sugar
Looking at this table, you can see that: •
The outputs are the products expected by the customers.
•
The inputs are (mostly) your material resources.
•
The transformation is achieved by capital resources (with some help from human resources).
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Tip: Your role Your role in the coffee making example above might include: •
monitoring supply of material resources
•
ordering/re-ordering material resources
•
maintaining capital resources and consumables (cleaning equipment, filters, organising servicing).
Complete the following activities and identify some of the resources that might be required in each of the examples. Give thought to the types of resources that will be required at each step: •
human resources
•
material resources
•
financial resources
•
capital resources
•
miscellaneous resources.
Compare the three examples and consider how the types of resources required by each kind of industry differ and what your role might be in maintaining these business resources. Learning activity: Manufacturing resources Paul works in a large foundry in regional Queensland that specialises in ferrous (steel and iron) castings. Do some internet research on ‘foundries’ and list the types of resources that you might have to supply and maintain for this business. Inputs
Transform
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Outputs
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Learning activity: IT resources Suleiman works as a programmer in a small but busy web design firm. This company designs websites but also provides web hosting through their own servers. Do some internet research on software companies and list the resources that you might have to supply and maintain for this business. Inputs
Transform
Outputs
Learning activity: Building office resources Mary works in the office of a building firm. They build kit homes. There are two draftsmen in the office and a number of project managers on-site. The project managers require vehicles and are given a petrol allowance. List the types of equipment that you might have to supply and maintain for this business. Inputs
Transform
Outputs
Your role in maintaining business resources You will find that maintaining business resources will be a key part of your job role. In the past, responsibilities for business resources may have rested with the purchasing department or the office manager. However, in the modern workplace, none of us can escape this responsibility. It doesn’t matter what organisation or department you plan to work in. Most job roles now require you to provide advice, conduct research and select business resources.
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Section 1 – Introduction
Learning activity: Review some job roles Go to an online employment website like SEEK and search for some job descriptions in your chosen area of work. Identify tasks or responsibilities in the job description that will require you to advise about, monitor or acquire resources.
The acquisition process The acquisition of new business resources must also follow processes. You will find that many organisations have policies and procedures that guide these processes and that you will be expected to follow them. For example, what about when you need new equipment or tools? Usually, you can’t just go and buy them. Acquisition/procurement processes tend to follow this general model: •
information gathering
•
usage and maintenance
•
review and analysis
•
disposal and renewal.
•
acquisition/procurement
Learning activity: Buying a new mobile phone Consider the acquisition process outlined above, identify the things that you would do at each step of the acquisition process if you were to purchase a new mobile phone for yourself or a business that you work for. Consider how following an acquisition procedure ensures that: •
good decisions are made
•
organisational and legal requirements are met.
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The ordering process Consider when you need to get more material resources (supplies or raw materials). Ordering these follows a standard process as well. This usually includes the following steps: •
identify suppliers
•
evaluate suppliers
•
order goods
•
receive and check goods.
Learning activity: Getting more stationery Following the steps outlined above, identify the things that you would do at each step of the ordering process if you to purchase more stationery supplies.
Terminology and jargon Business is full of jargon and terminology. In many cases, jargon is hard to avoid. Fortunately, these days, when we get overwhelmed by jargon, we have the internet to get our questions answered. You may need to investigate some of the key terms and definitions related to resources in more detail.
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Section 1 – Introduction
Learning activity: Some definitions Some key definitions that relate to business resources are listed below. Look these up on: •
Business Dictionary, .
•
Google, .
•
Wikipedia, .
And develop your own definitions and understanding of them. •
resources
•
inventory
•
capital equipment
•
goods
•
supplies
•
consumables
•
stock
•
assets.
You may want to discuss these terms with you fellow learners or colleagues.
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Example: Resources vs. Assets You have probably heard the term assets used interchangeably with resources. So what’s the difference? ‘Asset’ is an accounting term that has to do with the value of the resource to the business. Consider the following definitions for ‘asset’. From ‘Business Dictionary’, an asset is: Something valuable that an entity owns, benefits from, or has use of, in generating income. In accounting, an asset is something an entity has acquired or purchased, and which has money value (its cost, book value, market value, or residual value). An asset can be (1) something physical, such as cash, machinery, inventory, land and building, (2) an enforceable claim against others, such as accounts receivable, (3) right, such as copyright, patent, trademark, or (4) an assumption, such as goodwill. 4 You will find that in the workplace, you need to get information from financial documents such as asset registers and budgets. Tip: Fixed Asset Register From Wikipedia: Fixed Assets are assets such as land, machines, office equipment, buildings, patents, trademarks, copyrights, etc., held for the purpose of production of goods or rendering of services and are not held for the purpose of sale in the ordinary course of business. A Fixed Asset Register (FAR) must be kept in order to be in compliance with legislation governing corporations, companies, etc. It allows a company to keep track of details of each fixed asset, ensuring control and preventing misappropriation of assets. It also keeps track of the correct value of assets, which allows for computation of depreciation and for tax and insurance purposes. 5
4 ‘Asset’, Business Dictionary, viewed June 2015, .
‘Fixed assets register’, Wikipedia, viewed June 2015, .
5
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Section 1 – Introduction
Section summary This section introduced you to: •
What are business resources?
•
What are business processes?
•
your role in maintaining business resources
•
the acquisition process
•
the ordering process
•
where to go if you get stuck with terminology or jargon.
So, do you know what would you do if your boss needed advice on what photocopier they should purchase? The next section addresses the topic of advising on resource requirements.
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Section 2 – Advise on Resource Needs
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Section 2 – Advise on Resource Needs In the workplace, anyone may be called upon to provide advice on resources. You may be asked to help because you have specific or expert knowledge of the resource, or you may operate in an area that uses that resource, or it may be that your manager just needs someone to do the research. Scenario: Getting a new photocopier? Robert’s manager has just asked him to look into getting a new photocopier for their busy IT firm. Robert thought that this was going to be a pretty easy job. However, once he started investigating, he found that there are a lot of things to consider. •
Digital or analog?
•
Features required: Faxing, scanning, collating, stapling?
•
Volume of work?
•
Speed (pages per minute), resolution and capacity?
•
Sizes and types of paper?
•
Purchase or lease?
•
Support and maintenance contracts.
And also, the photocopier is a high profile piece of equipment in his organisation. Everyone seems to use it daily for photocopying, printing, scanning and faxing. If he advises wrongly, it’s going to cost the company money, and maybe cost Robert his reputation!
What skills will you need? In order to advise on resource requirements, you must be able to: •
calculate estimates of future and present business resource needs in accordance with organisational requirements
•
ensure advice is clear, concise and relevant to achievement of organisational requirements
•
provide information on the most economical and effective choice of equipment, materials and suppliers
•
identify resource shortages and possible impact on operations.
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Find out your organisation’s resource needs If you haven’t worked in a business before, determining what resources the organisation needs might seem pretty daunting! However, there are lots of sources of information that can help you. These include: •
Documents – there are many different types of workplace documents that may contain information on resource needs.
•
Systems – workplaces have database systems such as inventory systems.
•
People – if information isn’t recorded, you can always as someone who knows.
•
Research techniques – finally, if neither of those work, there are different techniques that you can follow to get the information that you need.
Documents that can help you Modern organisations produce a lot of documents. Some of these documents you will find quite useful for determining the resource requirements of the organisation. These include: •
business plans
•
strategic, tactical or operational plans
•
goals and objectives
•
action plans and project plans
•
performance plans
•
budgets
•
manufacturer specifications
•
operator manuals.
While you may use any of the documents listed above and other documents not listed, the key documents that you are most likely to use are plans and budgets. Plans You are probably familiar with plans. We make plans all of the time for a range of purposes. You plan holidays, home renovations, and family events. All plans should contain information about: •
goals
•
tasks
•
responsibilities, and
•
timelines.
Businesses make plans for many things. It’s important! You’ve probably heard the saying: To fail to plan is to plan to fail.
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The most common types of plans in a business context are: •
strategic plans
•
tactical plans
•
operational plans
•
project plans
•
performance plans.
As a new worker, you are not very likely to be involved in strategic or tactical plans. These are the responsibility of top level and middle managers. Performance plans relate to individual goals and probably will not be very helpful with resource planning. Operational plans (for departmental or workgroup activities) and project plans (for improvements, new products, and so on) are very likely to be useful when identifying and planning for business resources needs. Learning activity: Holiday part 1 – The Plan Like most of us, you probably have a destination in mind for your next holiday. Travel goals, like business goals, require planning. Create a plan for a holiday using the template in Appendix 1. Record your goal and list the tasks you need to undertake to make it happen, including: •
responsibilities
•
timelines.
Once you’ve done it, keep it handy, you’ll need it again shortly. What are budgets? You will have probably heard people talk about budgets. In a business environment, every activity seems to have a budget. This makes sense because, very simply, budgets are the quantification of plans into monetary terms 6.
Every plan has a budget
6
Anandarajah, Aseervatham & Reid 2004, Prepare & manage budgets and financial plans, p. 68.
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Another definition of a budget is an ‘estimate of costs, revenues, and resources over a specified period, reflecting a management's reading of future financial conditions. 7 Businesses need budgets Budgets are essential for planning and control of business operations. If you didn’t have budgets in a business, your costs would not be in control and this could result in you (and your colleagues) being out of a job. Some key features of budgets are: •
they are related to the organisation’s plans
•
they refer to a future period
•
they have a defined period
•
they have a scope or area of responsibility. 8
Leaning activity: IT Budget
Review the budget shown above and consider: •
When would this budget need to be reviewed?
•
Who would need to be involved in the review of this budget?
•
What would you do if the six desktop computers cost $1,700 each?
Budgets are a key method of control in a business. Businesses: •
set goals
•
create plans
•
budget for the plans
•
monitor the budgets.
7 ‘Budget’, Business Dictionary, viewed June 2015, . 8
Anandarajah, Aseervatham & Reid 2004, Prepare and Manage Budgets and Financial Plans, pp. 69-70.
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Learning activity: Holiday part 2 – The Budget In a previous learning activity, you developed a plan for a holiday. Now, create a budget for that holiday using the template in Appendix 2. Be sure to review your plan carefully, and make sure that you budget for everything that you need for your holiday. Consider: •
Who would you review your plan and budget with?
•
How does reviewing it with other key people ensure a better outcome?
Systems that can help you In order to successfully advise on resource needs, it is important for you to understand the systems within your organisation. These can include: •
quality systems
•
standards
•
inventory databases
•
Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP) systems
•
data collection systems
•
continuous improvement/employee feedback systems.
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Example: Information systems Modern workplace equipment can tell you a lot about how it is being used. Modern equipment often has on-board systems that record information on usage. This includes: •
photocopiers
•
fax machines
•
cars
•
phones
•
forklifts
•
milling machines
All of these can record information about their usage. A modern photocopier, for example, records information about who used it and when, number of copies, type of copies and so on.
Learning activity: Getting information from mobile phones Think about your mobile phone for a moment. Are you on the right plan? You might not be able to answer that without looking at your phone usage. Most phone suppliers provide account information, free of charge, online. Go to your phone supplier’s website to find your phone account. •
How would a business use this information to monitor resource usage?
•
What other type of equipment would be able to provide similar usage information?
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People that can help you If you can’t get the information from workplace documents or systems, you can always ask someone! There are many people within an organisation that can help you to determine resource requirements. Many of them will have direct responsibility for equipment or materials. To find out who these people are, you may need to check your organisational chart or discuss with a manager, but they could include: •
quality officer
•
OHS officer
•
financial officer
•
accounts officer
•
purchasing officer
•
project managers
•
technical experts (engineers, technicians, maintenance people and so forth)
•
key stakeholders for the resource (such as users).
Example: Make sure that you consult the users Tay was asked by his manager at his IT firm to order six new computer monitors for the Help Desk Team. Tay contacted a number of suppliers and found the best price. He told this to his manager who ordered the monitors. When the monitors arrived, the Help Desk Team nearly held an uprising. The resolution of the new monitors was poor, in fact, it was poorer than the monitors that they had replaced! For some of the Help Desk operators, this was the last straw. They weren’t too happy with the organisation before that, but this was too much. They spend eight hours a day staring at a screen, and someone had gone and replaced theirs without even consulting with them! Also, keep in mind, key people may be full-time employees, but they may be contractors or part-time employees. For example, many organisations have contract IT people for maintenance of the computer and peripherals. Be sure to identify and ask the right people!
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Section 2 – Advise on Resource Needs
Learning activity: Consult the organisational chart
In the organisational chart shown above, who would you contact if: •
You needed to replace a forklift?
•
You needed to identify stationery usage over the past 3 months?
•
You need to upgrade a computer system and purchase new software?
Techniques that can help you get information The more you ask, the less you have to ask!
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It may sound obvious, but keep talking to people. If you keep a positive attitude and keep looking for answers, you’ll eventually find them. Sometimes answers come in the most unexpected of places. Some techniques you can use to help you get answers from people are: •
surveys/questionnaires
•
use meetings (production, toolbox, general meetings)
•
company mailing lists and noticeboards.
Learning activity: Create a questionnaire Create a simple questionnaire (5–10 questions) that can be given to employees to find out about photocopier usage. Tell them why you are asking (i.e., you have been given the task of selecting a new photocopier) and when you need a response by (i.e. we need a respond by the end of the week so we can review and place an order by Tuesday of the following week). In the questionnaire, you may want to ask people: •
How frequently do they use it?
•
What do they use it for?
•
What features do they use?
•
What features do they like/dislike?
•
What features would they want in a new photocopier?
•
What problems do they experience?
•
What general comments would they like to make?
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Section 2 – Advise on Resource Needs
Estimating future resource needs A key skill in this unit is the ability to calculate estimates of future resource needs. This could be as simple as working out how much stationery to order, or as complicated as estimating the work requirements on a software project so that you can hire a new programmer. What is an estimate? We estimate things every day. For example, each morning, you may estimate how long it will take you to get to work. This might depend on a lot of factors: •
the time you leave (peak hour or otherwise)
•
the route you choose
•
the weather
•
how many red lights you hit.
However, the funny thing is, like most of us, you are probably pretty good at getting to work just on time! In fact, most of us are actually pretty good at estimating. An estimate is an ‘Approximation, prediction, or projection of a quantity based on experience and/or information available at the time, with the recognition that other pertinent facts are unclear or unknown. An estimate is almost the same as an educated guess, and the cheapest (and least accurate) type of modelling.’ 9 In the example above, the quantity being estimated is the time taken to get to work. Learning activity: Estimate how much petrol you will need next month Estimate your petrol requirements for next month. Think about he steps you take to estimate. You probably won’t find this too difficult if you: 1. From previous experience, work out how much you use per week under normal conditions (say $30 per week). 2. Consider the activities you will be doing next month (are things normal, or are you on holidays?). 3. Make a calculation (4 weeks x $30).
9 ‘Estimate’, Business Dictionary, viewed June 2015, .
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Trends and cycles As we said, in the previous activity, things aren’t always normal. You need to consider trends (long term increases or decreases in resource needs) and cycles (fluctuations in resource needs). Industries that rely on estimation Certain industries have to rely heavily on estimates to cost future work. These include: • • •
software construction/architectural engineering
These firms often use very sophisticated tools and methods for estimating. Estimating tips In the examples above, you will note that it is difficult to estimate accurately without information. Information can be sourced from: •
previous budgets or projects: o you may also need to speak to people who were involved in these activities in order to get information for estimates.
•
current budgets or projects: o accurate information on what is happening currently will help you estimate what is needed in future. 10
Learning activity: Estimating mobile phone requirements In a previous activity, you obtained information on your mobile phone use. Look at the trends in your usage (is it increasing or decreasing?) and estimate what your usage will be in six months’ time.
Giving clear, concise and relevant advice Once you have collected the information you need, and estimated your future resource needs, you can provide some advice about what resources your organisation needs to acquire. The resource advice that you provide must meet the legislative and procedural requirements of the organisation.
10 Intaver Institute, 2006, ‘Estimations in project management: the way we think when we make estimations’, Project decision and risk analysis journal, viewed June 2015, .
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Policy and procedures In order to do this, you will need to know your organisation’s relevant policies and procedures. These will provide you with the guidance you need to ensure that your advice complies with organisational requirements. Example: Follow workplace policy and procedures! Wayne worked in the IT department of an educational institution. The IT department needed to create a new online database and had decided to contract this work out as a project. Wayne was in charge of the budget for the project and he did casual work with a firm (unrelated to his educational work) who he thought could do the job. He asked them to do the job and when he reported this back to his manager, Wayne was asked why he hadn’t followed organisational procedure! It turned out that his educational institution had a policy and procedures for: •
engagement of contractors
•
conflict of interest.
Wayne had not complied with them. Wayne should have understood and followed these policies and procedures before organising a contract. Typical policies and procedures that relate to resources may include: •
vehicle usage
•
purchasing
•
preferred suppliers
•
engagement of contractors
•
conflict of interest
•
stationery usage
•
internet/email usage.
Keep in mind, in many cases, policies may take the form of ‘unwritten rules’. If no written policy exists, don’t assume that there is no policy – double-check with your manager. There may be an agreed upon, but unwritten, policy.
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Learning activity: Review policies and procedures Imagine that you are an employee at your place of study. What would you do if you were told to order some stationery resources? You would need to know the procedure for doing so. Review the policy and procedures (this may be posted on the website, alternatively, you can ask your facilitator for a copy) and identify which ones would be relevant if you were to: •
organise a new stationery supplier
•
order a new computer
•
use an organisational vehicle.
Providing clear and concise advice You will likely have studied presentation skills and report writing in other areas of your course of study. Presentation and reporting skills may be essential when providing advice on larger resourcing issues. For many of the day-to-day resource issues that you investigate, it helps to remember the ‘Seven Cs’. There are many versions of the Seven Cs. However, when giving advice about business resources, consider: •
Context – explain what it is and why it is needed.
•
Concise – be brief and jargon free (if possible).
•
Clarity – be easily understood.
•
Complete –no information, logic, or design gaps.
•
Concrete – back up your assertions with facts.
•
Correct – check your facts and be sure they are right.
•
Compliant – make sure that your advice complies with workplace policy and procedures.
Learning activity: Mobile phone advice Provide a colleague with advice on what mobile phone that they should purchase. Make sure that advice complies with the Seven Cs.
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Provide information to help the decision maker Do you remember the coffee making example from earlier in this section?
When we are talking about value, we are specifying value from the perspective of the end customer. Your customers need to be satisfied, otherwise, they won’t remain your customers for very long! When providing information on the most economical and effective choice of resources, keep in mind: •
voice of the customer
•
cost effectiveness
•
total cost of ownership.
Listen to the voice of the customer What do we mean by listen to the voice of the customer? When you are buying coffee beans from a supplier, you should choose your beans (or suppliers) in order to deliver the value that your customers expect. For example, your customers will expect a certain level of quality with their coffee. Before you change suppliers, you need to ensure that you choose a new supplier that can deliver that level of quality, when you need it, at the right price. In fact, the key criteria that you will need to consider choosing suppliers are: •
quality
•
cost
•
delivery.
Example: Bill’s printing supply Bill operates a small specialty printing supply shop. He has a number of dedicated customers. His customers stay with him despite competition from bigger suppliers because Bill can supply high quality material in small amounts at short notice. He recently changed paper suppliers and his customers started complaining about paper jams in their printing equipment. Bill responded quickly and switched back to his original supplier before he started losing customers.
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What is cost effectiveness? When you are making decisions about resources, don’t just consider cost of the resource, but the ‘cost effectiveness’. Cost effectiveness is the relationship between the monetary input and the outcome. Remember this old adage: There are two things that you shouldn’t cut corners on. The tools you use and the bed you sleep on: You spend eight hours a day with each of them! Good quality resources (equipment or materials) often pay for themselves because they are more reliable, fast, accurate, safer, and so on. A small saving in monetary input may have a large (negative) effect on your business outcomes. Example: Good quality tools Rachel’s engineering shop produces a range of stainless steel architectural and construction products. Recently, the office staff were told by Reuben to economise on resources. Rachel’s order had dropped off due to the global economic crisis. Jennie, who does the purchasing for Rachel, decided to source new (cheaper) suppliers for grinding wheels, emery paper and other consumables. Within a week of doing this, a number of the shop floor staff were up in arms. Grinding wheels lasted half as long and were breaking more frequently. While Jennie was saving 30% on the cost of grinding wheels, the poor quality meant they staff were using twice as many as before. This actually increased the cost, not to mention the tradespeople’s time and frustration spent unnecessarily changing wheels.
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Further reading: Definitions Use the internet to look up definitions for: •
cost effectiveness
•
cost of quality
•
false economy.
What is total cost of ownership? A related concept to cost effectiveness is the ‘total cost of ownership’. The total cost of ownership can be defined as ‘Estimate of all direct and indirect costs associated with an asset or acquisition over its entire life cycle.’ Another definition is ‘Total of direct capital investment in hardware and software plus indirect costs of installation, training, repairs, downtime, technical support, and upgrading. Also called cost of ownership or ownership cost.’ 11 Example: The cheaper printer … or is it? Lisa was starting up a business. She compared the specs on the type of printer that she wanted. She found printers that were good quality. One was slightly cheaper than the other and she chose it. She thought she got a good deal. At the end of the year when she reviewed his printing budget, she noticed that the replacement ink cartridge costs were quite high, since the cartridges were proprietary. Had she gone with the other, slightly more expensive, printer, she could have bought standard cartridges for half the price. Had she done this, overall, she would have saved money!
11 ‘Total cost of ownership (TCO)’, Business Dictionary, viewed June 2015, .
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Learning activity: Which photocopier? Create a list of key things that you should look for in a photocopier. If it helps, you might want consider the photocopying needs of your place of learning. Use the internet and search for: •
tips for buying a photocopier
•
check Choice magazine.
Consider the ‘cost effectiveness’ of the photocopier. How is this effected by: •
performance of the photocopier?
•
cost of consumables?
•
method of acquisition (buy, lease, hire)?
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What if? Taking precautions is an important part of maintaining business resources. After all, things do go wrong with suppliers, equipment, materials, and so on, and this can affect your business.
Reliable resources = happy customers
Unreliable resources = no customers What can go wrong? ‘Anything that can go wrong will go wrong.’ – Murphy A lot of things can go wrong with equipment and suppliers. Let’s consider the coffee shop example again.
The coffee shop could have problems with: • • • • •
suppliers going out of business raw materials being poor quality prices going up equipment not functioning properly employees not functioning properly.
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What could you do? There are a lot of things that you can do to safeguard against things going wrong, such as: • • • • •
obtain insurances and warranties organise maintenance contracts and supply contracts source new or alternative suppliers provide training for employees stay informed about your industry trends and happenings.
Have a risk management strategy Your organisation will probably have a method for managing risks to key resources. It may include things as obvious as those listed above. Risk management plans can be quite detailed, and at times, confusing. However, your organisation should have a plan in place that outlines what to do if you have problems with your key suppliers. You should have a basic understanding of risk management from your OHS training, and risk management for other areas (supply, equipment failure) follows a similar process as assessing health and safety risks. Typically, risk management processes involve: 1. Identify threats or hazards. 2. Assess the vulnerability of resources to specific threats (how serious is it?). 3. Determine the risk (probability) of these occurring. 4. Prioritise risk management measures. 5. Identify ways to reduce those risks. As you may guess, you don’t have to control every risk, just the high priority ones that would have serious impacts on your business. Example: IT problems Reliable on-site technicians are hard to come by … but anyone can sell you a new keyboard. Rate the level of risk of the following on a scale of 1 to 5 (1 being unimportant, 5 being very important) and what you could do to manage the risk. Compare and discuss your conclusions with your fellow learners. •
Hard disk failure
•
Keyboard is broken
•
Photocopier breakdown
•
Toner needs changing
•
Running out of printer paper
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Section 2 – Advise on Resource Needs
Assessing your resources Assess your suppliers of resources to ensure that they are reputable and reliable. •
How long have they been in the industry?
•
Who are their customers/clients?
•
Do they comply with industry standards?
Tip: Look for standards It’s always a good sign if your supplier publishes that they comply with relevant industry standards.
Learning activity: Risk management Develop a risk management strategy for an organisation’s (any organisation will do) IT equipment.
Section summary You should now have a better understanding of how to advise on resource requirements within your workplace.
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Section checklist Before you proceed to the next section, make sure that you are able to: calculate estimates of future and present business resource needs in accordance with organisational requirements ensure advice is clear, concise and relevant to achievement of organisational requirements provide information on the most economical and effective choice of equipment, materials and suppliers identify resource shortages and possible impact on operations.
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Section 3 – Monitor Resource Usage
Section 3 – Monitor Resource Usage This section is about the skills and knowledge that you will require to be able to monitor and maintain resources effectively Scenario: Photocopier usage You may recall Robert from the IT firm in Section 1. Well it turns out that he provided the right advice for the model of photocopier to buy. Everyone is pretty happy with it. Robert listened to his customers, worked within budget constraints and followed organisational acquisition procedures to get it. He also made sure that there was a maintenance contract with the photocopier. Now, Robert has the job of ensuring that people use it safely and effectively. He thinks that there may be a lot to this!
What skills will you need? In order to monitor resource usage, you must be able to: ensure resource handling is in accordance with established organisational requirements including occupational health and safety requirements use business technology to monitor and identify the effective use of resources use consultation with individuals and teams to facilitate effective decision making on the appropriate allocation of resources identify and adhere to relevant policies regarding resource use in the performance of operational tasks routinely monitor and compare resource usage with estimated requirements in budget plans.
What is monitoring? You will be required to monitor resource use in the workplace. Monitoring resources is essential to ensure that usage of resources is: •
safe
•
efficient
•
compliant with standards and procedures.
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Handle resources safely and effectively You will remember from the introduction that resources can include: • • • • •
human resources material resources financial resources capital resources material resources.
Material resources (raw materials) and capital resources (tools and equipment) will require the added consideration of Occupational Health and Safety. Have you ever considered what things do you need to know in order to drive a car?
Would you drive if you were untrained? What if you didn’t know the road rules? Would you drive a car if it wasn’t working properly? Hopefully not!
However, many people think that workplaces are somehow different. They aren’t. Like safe driving, safe working requires you to: •
know who is authorised to do what get trained know where to get information follow the signs follow rules and procedures keep up-to-date report all problems (accidents, hazards, etc).
Tip: Introducing new equipment When you introduce new equipment or materials into any workplace, it often requires a risk assessment. This involves identify all potential hazards and risks and putting in place measures to control them. Types of hazards The point of risk assessments is to control hazards before they turn into accidents and injuries. Hazards fall into a number of key groups: • • • • • •
physical mechanical psycho-social chemical and biological sources of energy environmental.
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Section 3 – Monitor Resource Usage
Example: Paper deliveries Observe an office supply delivery. When they deliver A4 paper, it comes in cartons (five slabs in a carton). These days, delivery person will often have a back brace and a trolley. Often, when they deposit the paper at the front desk, someone from the office will move it by hand! What safe handling procedures should the workplace introduce?
Learning activity: Photocopiers OHS guidelines Search the internet to find a set of OHS guidelines for a photocopier. You may want to try: •
photocopier OHS guidelines
•
Photocopier safety.
You might be surprised by the number of potential hazards that can exist with photocopiers. Categorise the hazards that you identify into the key groups above. Physical Mechanical Psycho-social Chemical and biological Sources of energy Environmental Material Safety Data Sheets Material Safety Data Sheets (MSDSs) tell you about hazardous materials in your workplace. MSDSs should be available for any and all hazardous materials in your workplace. This could include raw materials or consumables (like toners or cleaning agents). OHS laws require manufacturers to prepare Material Safety Data Sheets (MSDS) before a hazardous substance is supplied to another person for use at work.
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The MSDS must include the following information: •
recommended uses
•
precautions to be followed for safe use
•
chemical and physical properties
•
description of each ingredient used in its preparation
•
emergency and general contact details of the manufacturer
•
relevant health hazard information. 12
Learning activity: MSDS Use the internet to research a common workplace material or chemical that may require special handling. See if you can find a MSDS for that material or chemical. Examples may include: • •
toner cleaning agents.
Learning activity: Watch some videos Connect to YouTube and search for the following terms:
12
•
workplace hazards
•
safe handling
•
hazardous goods.
WorkSafe Victoria, viewed June 2015, .
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Reminder: Reporting hazards You will recall from your OHS training that you have a key role in reporting workplace hazards. Basic equipment such as photocopiers can be a source of hazards. For example, if you or someone you work with have to sit right next to a busy photocopier, the noise and sound of the copier may be a source of stress and irritation (even if it is not loud enough to cause hearing damage).
Maintenance One of the key areas of this unit is on maintenance. Traditionally, maintenance and troubleshooting has been the responsibility of technicians. Increasingly, however, workers are expected to have some basic maintenance and troubleshooting skills. Principles of preventative maintenance You may wonder why you have to do maintenance? After all isn’t maintenance the technician’s problem? Not really. In fact, if you apply some basic maintenance skills to your equipment, most breakdowns can be avoided. In manufacturing, this fact has been known for a long time and goes by a number of names such as: • operator-led maintenance • total productive maintenance. • preventative maintenance The basic premise of all of these maintenance philosophies is: ‘Up to 80% of all breakdowns can be eliminated by caring for your equipment.’ 13
Example: Your car If you doubt this, think about your car. Have you ever had a problem with your car that could have been avoided by a little knowledge and care? If you are like most of us, the answer is probably ‘yes’. Things you could have done to avoid a breakdown may include: • • •
regular checks of fluid levels cleaning and inspecting the engine, hoses, cables making sure the tyres are inflated correctly.
Modern business equipment, like cars, have ways of telling you when they need maintenance.
13
CMI 2006, Contribute to the application of a proactive maintenance strategy, CMI.
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Workplace equipment is no different. Breakdowns are costly and most breakdowns can be avoided with some simple maintenance procedures. Learning activity: Maintenance checklist Preventative maintenance programs are often supported by daily or weekly equipment checklists. These include a list of items that should be checked to ensure safe an effective operation of your equipment. 1. Identify some equipment in a workplace. 2. List some regular items that should be checked on that equipment to ensure safe and effective operation. 3. Discuss this list with a colleague.
Caring for your equipment is a great start in ensuring prolonged and safe operation. However, even if you do take care and encourage others to do so, you still might get breakdowns or other problems. This brings us to troubleshooting.
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Troubleshooting Get to know your equipment. Like maintenance skills, some basic troubleshooting skills will get your equipment back up and running without costly breakdowns and maintenance calls. Make sure that you: •
get the technician to show you how it works
•
ask questions
•
read the manual
•
train others.
Armed with specific knowledge of how your equipment operates, some of the standard troubleshooting techniques will help you get back up and running fast. These techniques include: •
5Ms and fishbone diagrams
•
flowcharts.
5Ms When you are troubleshooting equipment breakdowns it is always helpful to consider to the 5Ms, these are: •
Man
•
Machine
•
Method
•
Material
•
Mother nature (environment).
Example: Photocopier (again) In a lot of workplaces, the first reaction is to yell at the operator (Man). This isn’t always fair or constructive. Consider a photocopier breakdown. It could also be caused by: •
Machine – a key part fails through normal wear and tear
•
Method – people are correctly following an incorrect method
•
Material – the business has recently changed to a poorer grade paper which has caused more frequent jamming
•
Mother nature – the photocopier is overheating because it is in an enclosed area.
Fishbone diagrams These are visual representations of the 5Ms. These can help to quickly explain the issues when you are troubleshooting a problem. Fishbone diagrams look like a fishbone (hence the name) and include the effect and potential causes. They are also known as ‘cause and effect’ diagrams.
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The one below shows a paper jam (effect) and the potential causes (categorised by the 5Ms)
Fishbone diagram for a paper jam Learning activity: Cause and effect of computer problems 5Ms and fishbone diagrams help you to be more systematic when you are troubleshooting a problem with business equipment. Identify a potential (or real) problem with some business equipment that you are familiar with and create a fishbone diagram for it.
Note: a lot of modern business equipment comes with the ability to tell you what is wrong with it or when it needs maintenance. For example, modern photocopiers have LCD screens that tell you where the problem is and what steps you need to take to fix them.
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If you are responsible for equipment, be sure to spend the time to read the relevant operator manuals to know how to identify when something is wrong with the equipment.
Use business technology to monitor usage Modern business equipment can also record information about usage. You may be required to monitor usage of resources for any number of reasons including: •
identifying resource needs
•
identifying usage by department or team
•
identifying effectiveness of a new material or resource
You want to make decisions based on facts and numbers, not on hunches. If you don’t measure it, you can’t manage it. Usage information As noted in the previous section, modern business equipment is pretty smart. In addition to maintenance and troubleshooting information, it stores a lot of information about usage. This might be in the form of: •
LCD screens
•
counters.
Example: Waiting for forklifts Phil worked in a foundry. His department shared a forklift with Fred’s department and Fred was a very frequent user of the forklift. This often meant that Phil and his team would have to wait for Fred to bring the forklift back so they could get their next batch of work. Some days, Phil and his team might have to wait for up to 30 minutes. Phil was getting tired of this. He asked the boss, Jade if they could get another forklift and explained the reason why. Jade said that it was too expensive to buy (or lease) another forklift and they would have to work something out with Fred. Adam, from the office, heard about this and thought he could help. Adam suggested to Jade that they: •
identify a timeframe to collect data
•
collect data on wait times
•
collect data on actual usage
•
analyse the data and
•
prepare some recommendations.
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Away they went. Surprisingly to all involved, once this was done, it became obvious that new equipment was needed and would, in fact, save money. A couple of weeks later, the team had their forklift. The moral of the story: Managers make decisions on numbers. Other sources of usage data If equipment doesn’t record data, you can use others to collect the data. If you explain the reasons collecting data, and give people a checklist for recording, most people will be happy to help. Data already may already exist in paper or computer systems, for example: •
business accounts
•
OHS reports
•
KPI data
•
warehousing/inventory systems
•
ERP systems.
Definition: ERP systems ERP stands for Enterprise Resource Planning. An amalgamation of a company’s information systems designed to bind more closely a variety of company functions including human resources, inventories and financials, while simultaneously linking the company to customers and vendors. 14 Using Excel In many workplaces, Excel is a multi-purpose tool that they can’t live without. Some basic Excel skills will go a long way in helping you monitor resource use. Specifically, to monitor resource use, all you need is: •
basic formulas and functions
•
basic charting skills.
The following example shows how these skills can be used to monitor a range of workplace resources. Example: Using Excel to monitor resources Here is an example from a small business showing how a simple spreadsheet can be used to monitor resource usage. In this example, the business is monitoring costs of some basic resource categories including: Printing, internet, Vehicle and so on.
14
‘ERP’, Investor words, viewed June 2015, .
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Learning activity: Monitor your phone bill Obtain a copy of your phone bill and setup a spreadsheet so that you can monitor your monthly calls. Create a bar chart that shows monthly phone usage in dollars ($) and a line that shows the monthly limit of your current plan •
How would this make the identification of trends and variations easier?
•
What actions could you take if you saw that phone costs were exceeding budgets/plans?
•
In a workplace, how could you report this information to your manager?
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Consulting with others Consultation is critical for ensuring effective decision-making and appropriate allocation of resources. Consultation with others may require you to: •
administer surveys/questionnaires
•
attend meetings (production, toolbox, general meetings)
•
use company mailing lists and noticeboards
•
hold discussions or interviews with key stakeholders.
Always go to the source When you are investigating, go to the source. It may sound obvious, but a common mistake in the workplace is that decisions are made based on the wrong person’s opinion. When you are monitoring resource usage, ask the people who are using the resource their ideas and opinions. Learning activity: Who would you consult with? Identify a workplace that you attend regularly (a coffee shop for example). Choose a business resource and identify who you would consult with to identify: •
How to measure the usage?
•
Who can assist?
•
Where to locate the resource?
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Policies for controlling resource use What are policies? A policy is a statement about an issue and says what the organisation plans to do about the issue. Some examples include: •
privacy policy
•
record management policy
•
security policy
•
purchasing policy
•
bullying policy.
What are procedures? The definition of a procedure is ‘the sequence of actions or instructions to be followed in solving a problem or accomplishing a task’ 15. Some examples include: •
ordering procedure
•
telephone answering procedure
•
document version control procedure
•
vehicle booking procedure.
Workplaces should have policies and procedures that deal with maintaining business resources. Example: Vehicle policy Innovative Widgets had developed a vehicle use policy. They have a limited number of work vehicles and priority needed to go to the sales team and management for sales meetings. When Frank started working there, he was in charge of office supplies. When he needed something, he would take the work vehicle to the office supplier and buy it. He never read the vehicle policy so he didn’t know to follow the booking procedure. Frank wasn’t permitted to drive the vehicle and was inconveniencing the sales staff and causing them to miss important sales meetings. Policies and procedures should not be disregarded without good reason. Make sure that you know and follow your workplace’s policies and procedures.
15
‘Procedure’, Dictionary.com, viewed June 2015,.
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Learning activity: Policy and procedures Review the policy and procedures on an educational institution’s website. (You could use your own place of study or this site: •
Summarise a purchasing and vehicle policies in your own words.
•
Are they easy to follow?
•
How would you improve them?
•
What problems are they aimed at preventing?
Budget variances As discussed earlier, budgets are used a method of controlling business activities. Budgets, once established, should be regularly reviewed against actual expenditure to determine whether it is still ‘on budget’. Budget variances Simply put, a budget variance is the difference between the forecasted budget and the actual expenditure. Budget constraints You have probably heard people talk about their personal ‘budget constraints’. Unless you are independently wealthy, you will have personal budget constraints yourself. Most of us are aware of our budget constraints, keep our spending controlled. This awareness prevents (most of) us from flying off to Bali for the weekend, or going out for dinner whenever we please. 1st edition version: 1 Page 48 of 71
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It’s the same in the workplace. For businesses, analysing actual operations against the budget that has been allocated is a key method of controlling costs. Checking activities against a budget will tell us whether we are: •
over budget
•
under budget
•
on budget.
Example: Review a project budget Review the following IT budget and write a procedure in your own words for monitoring and reviewing the budget. Discuss and compare with your fellow learners.
Section summary You should now understand some basic techniques and skills for monitoring and maintaining business resources.
Section checklist Before you proceed to the next section, make sure that you are able to: ensure resource handling is in accordance with established organisational requirements including occupational health and safety requirements use business technology to monitor and identify the effective use of resources use consultation with individuals and teams to facilitate effective decision making on the appropriate allocation of resources BSBADM311 Maintain business resources © 2015 Innovation and Business Industry Skills Council Ltd
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identify and adhere to relevant policies regarding resource use in the performance of operational tasks routinely monitor and compare resource usage with estimated requirements in budget plans.
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Section 4 – Acquire Resources This section deals with the skills and knowledge that you will need to acquire resources within your organisation. Scenario: Acquiring resources for the photocopier Remember Robert? Well the photocopier is running fine. Everyone uses it safely and effectively because Robert showed them what to do. And since he’s been monitoring resource use so effectively, it’s easy to tell how much paper and toner is used each month! Every now and again, he has to order new supplies for it. Ironically, IT firms tend to use a lot of consumables like paper, toner and pens. He still needs to learn a bit more about ordering, acquiring and storing materials so he can keep supplies up.
What skills will you need? In order to acquire resources in an organisation, you must be able to: ensure acquisition and storage of resources are in accordance with organisational requirements, are cost effective and consistent with organisational timelines acquire resources within available time lines to meet identified requirements review resource acquisition processes to identify improvements in future resource acquisitions.
Key concepts Previously in this program, you learnt about advising and monitoring resources. In this, the final part of the program, you will learn about acquiring resources for your organisation. Consider the coffee shop that we discussed in previous sections. Imagine that you worked for the coffee shop. What agreements, systems, or processes would need to be in place for the supplier to deliver coffee to you?
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As discussed in Section 1, you would want to know that you are going to get good quality coffee beans, when you need them at a reasonable cost. Your supplier, however, would want to know that you are a reliable paying customer and whether you can meet their payment terms. What are payment terms? Payment terms are ‘Conditions under which a seller will make a sale. Typically, these terms specify the period allowed to a buyer to pay off the amount due, and may demand cash in advance, cash on delivery, deferred payment period of 30 days or more, etc.’16 Typically, payment terms include: •
cash in advance (this is also known as cash with order)
•
cash on delivery
•
deferred payment.
Learning activity: Who carries the risk? For each of the different types of payment terms above, consider: •
Who is carrying the risk?
•
What kind of relationship needs to be in place for each of the different kinds of payments terms?
•
What circumstances would lead a customer to prefer one over the other?
16 ‘Payment terms’, Business Dictionary, viewed June 2015, .
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Credit accounts If you are using a supplier regularly, and you have a good payment history with them, they may offer your organisation deferred payment terms. This will require your organisation to apply for a credit account (sometimes just referred to as an account). An account is an ‘on-going contractual relationship between a buyer and seller whereby payment for goods received is made at a later time (usually 30 days). See also charge account and open account.’ 17 30 day deferred terms can make doing business a lot easier. Learning activity: Research credit accounts Search the internet for a supplier that you might use. Hardware stores and trade suppliers are good examples. Have a look on their website to see if you can apply for a credit account. •
What sort of information do you need to provide to them in order to obtain a credit account?
•
What terms are provided?
•
Why would this be an advantage for you or your business?
Up to now, we have been discussing acquisition of resources like raw materials, supplies, and consumables. What about plant and equipment?
17 ‘Account’, Business Dictionary, viewed June 2015, .
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Buy, lease or hire? Consider, once again, the coffee shop example. What would you do if your coffee machine (a key piece of capital equipment) was outdated and you needed to acquire a new coffee machine?
Your options for acquiring plant and equipment (like a new coffee machine) include: •
buy
•
lease
•
hire
•
hire-purchase.
Learning activity: Who carries the risk? For each of the different types of payment terms above (buy, lease, hire, hirepurchase), consider: •
What are the costs?
•
Who is carrying the risk?
•
What kind of relationship needs to be in place for each of the different kinds of payments terms?
•
What circumstances would lead a customer to prefer one over the other?
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Learning activity: Buy, lease or hire Search the internet for some sites that sell cars (or other vehicles). •
identify a vehicle that your employer might need, and
•
review the different agreements that you could enter into if you wanted to obtain the vehicle.
Discounts, rebates and allowances Be aware that there are often discounts that may apply to your organisation. Suppliers can have many different criteria for discounts including: •
quantity discounts (e.g. buy in bulk and pay less per unit)
•
trade discounts (e.g. trade rates for carpenters)
•
payment discounts (e.g. pay less/pay cash)
•
customer characteristic discounts (e.g. educational discounts). Remember to ask your suppliers!
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Order and store resources Part of your work role will include acquire resources such as materials and supplies and ensuring that these are received and stored. The ordering process When resources are ordered, a standard process is usually followed that includes: •
raising the order for resources
•
shipping the order
•
receiving and checking the resources
•
storing the resources.
Raising the order When you find that stocks of a particular resource are getting low, you will need to create a purchase order and send to the supplier. Tip: Automatic re-order Some systems can automatically raise a purchase order when stocks fall below a minimum level. Receiving and checking the resources The supplier will deliver the resources, usually accompanied by a shipping docket. The delivery will need to be checked against the docket. And the docket will need to be checked against the original order. Tip: Authority to sign When goods are received, someone has to sign for them. Not everyone has authority to sign for shipments of goods. After all, not everyone knows what was meant to be shipped. You may or may not be given responsibility to check and sign for received goods. But make sure that you know who does have this responsibility.
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The supplier will also send an invoice for the shipped goods. This may come with the docket or it may be mailed separately. Either way, all of this documentation will need to go to the person responsible for accounts so that it can be checked and paid. Storing the resources Once goods are received, check and accepted, they will need to be stored. Make sure that you comply with procedures for storing. For example: •
Does it need to be locked up securely?
•
Does it need to be refrigerated or have some other special storage requirements?
•
Who needs to be notified?
•
Does it need to be stored in a special way because they are hazardous?
Learning activity: Storing chemicals Create a procedure for ordering, receiving and storing cleaning chemicals in a workplace. Be sure to include who has authority/responsibility for the tasks. Check the procedure with someone with responsibility for this or a similar task.
Complying with acquisition and ordering procedures policies You may also need to check workplace policy and procedures for information about: •
preferred suppliers
•
local and overseas suppliers.
Preferred suppliers are trusted suppliers and may be used for a range of standard and non-standard purchases.
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Cost of carrying stock Another issue to be aware of when ordering and storing resources is the cost of carrying stock. Sometimes people order excess stock ‘just in case’ there is a problem with supply. In a modern workplace, there is rarely call for carrying excess ‘buffer stock’. In fact, many organisations actively try to drive down stock levels because it is regarded as ‘frozen money’. Learning activity: Buffer stock and other terms Do some internet research to develop your understanding and to identify strategies for keeping stock levels as low as possible. Search terms include: •
buffer stock
•
lean logistics
•
economic order quantity (EOQ).
Are excess stock levels viewed positively or negatively? Why?
Getting resources when you need them Ensuring that you get the resources is only part of the task. You need to ensure that you get the right resources, at the right price, at the right time. For this to work, you need to know: •
how long it will take to get it
•
when your organisation needs the resources.
Lead times You have probably heard people talk about ‘lead times’ before. In general it is the time from the start of any process to the completion of that process. There are lots of definitions, but for our purposes, the most practical one is: The time from placing an order to the delivery of the goods.
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Managing your lead times You need to be aware of your lead times for key resources. It is recommended that you track and update lead times from your suppliers for these resources. Learning activity: Chart with lead times Identify five or six resources that you might need in a business. Use Excel to chart your lead times as in the example below.
Tracking your resource requirements Of course, knowing lead times is only half the battle. You need to know when you need to re-order. The indication to re-order can come from a number of sources. •
you get told
•
stocktakes
•
budget reviews
•
ERP systems
•
warehousing systems
•
Kanban systems/visual controls
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Push or pull? In general, the ordering of resources operate under one of two systems: by a scheduling or ‘push’ system, or a work-to-order or ‘pull’ system. Push systems are where the business works to a schedule and produces to a forecast. These organisations typically have: •
long lead times
•
less adaptable to customer requirements
•
complex systems (usually computer-based) are required to organise and schedule production and ordering
•
warehouses are filled up with finished products, and raw materials, just in case someone (hopefully) places an order.
Pull systems are what you increasingly find in ‘lean’ organisations. Typically, these organisations have: •
much shorter lead times
•
more adaptable to customer requirements
•
signal-based systems for re-ordering
•
stock is kept at very low levels.
Pull systems are often referred to as ‘just-in-time’ (JIT) systems. As an analogy, think about a lake (push) as opposed to fast moving river (pull). Which one can respond to changes in demand more quickly? Tip: Dell computers Dell computer company is a great example of a company that has pioneered on JIT systems and built-to-order for computers and succeeded greatly by doing it. PCs at Dell are built after receiving a customer order. This way, the spare parts (raw materials) in their assembly plants are kept at a bare minimum. In some areas of Dell plants, inventory is down to 2 hours! 18 Dell manage a network of suppliers that can deliver parts on short lead times. The outcome for the consumer is custom computers at a very affordable rate. Kanban systems The word ‘kanban’ simply means signal. Kanbans are commonly found in pull systems. Kanbans are used extensively in the automotive industry and other industries to signal for something to be produced, re-ordered or replenished. A kanban can include:
18
•
a ticket
•
a flag
•
an empty space or location.
Holzner,S, 2006, How Dell Does It, McGraw Hill, p. 86.
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For example, a kanban could be an empty space beside the photocopier where the paper is stored that signals to re-order paper.
Learning activity: Research kanbans Find out more about visual controls, kanbans and re-order triggers by searching the internet for the following: •
kanban
•
5S
•
visual controls
•
just-in-time (JIT)
•
pull systems.
Push systems Typical push systems involve re-ordering being controlled by a schedule. There’s a lot of planning and organising involved to organise work this way. If your workplace organises work in this way, you will find that a lot of reordering will be generated by computer system. •
production resources data (Manufacturing Technical Data)
•
inventories and orders (Inventory Control)
•
purchasing management
•
Material Requirements Planning (MRP)
Tip: MRP re-order triggers In a Material Requirements Planning system, inventory control can be automated and trigger points set to automatically re-order inventory when it falls below a certain level. All of this talk about pull systems doesn’t mean that push systems don’t work. Or that one is better than the other. Each type of system, push or pull, has its’ own challenges.
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Your role is to know how your workplace is organised, know what your options are and use the systems in your workplace as effectively as you can. Supply contracts Re-ordering of resources can also be handled by your supplier. Your organisation may organise a contract for your supplier may monitor your requirements and restock you on a regular basis. Tip: Coffee shop Bill operates a coffee shop and has been placing orders with the same coffee supplier for the past year. The supplier now automatically re-stocks Bill each week with a shipment of coffee beans based on Bill’s weekly usage. The supplier checks Bill’s stocks, replenishes to an agreed amount, and invoices Bill for the difference. Bill only contacts the supplier if there is a variation required.
Keep improving On a final note, resource acquisition processes are never perfect. Some are far from it. Regular review is required to ensure that processes are as good as they can be. It may help to consider, once again, the 5Ms. •
Man – are people following processes properly, or is training required?
•
Machine – is there a problem with technology or can new technology help to make the process more efficient?
•
Method – how do we acquire resources? Do our methods need updating?
•
Material – can we source new suppliers or materials that will better meet our customer requirements?
•
Environment – how can the work environment be changed to allow for better resource acquisition?
Tip: Look for bottlenecks Bottlenecks are those places where the process slows down. Look for the places where the process slows down and find ways to debottleneck them. In many cases, you will find that bottlenecks can be easily eliminated by insignificant changes to processes. Technology We’ve always done it that way!
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While changing processes and procedures can lead to improvements, you may also find that new technology is also a source of potential improvements. Look for ways that the organisation can use: •
the web
•
point of sale/barcode systems
•
computer systems (ERP/workflow systems).
All of these have the potential to greatly improve resource maintenance and acquisition. Learning activity: Pay via internet Do some internet research to develop your understanding of payment methods over the internet.
Just-in-time A key ‘lean’ philosophy is just-in-time (JIT). JIT was developed by the Japanese during the 1960s and 1970s to enable automotive manufacturers to improve flexibility so they could quickly meet changes in consumer demand. A strategy of JIT is to drive down inventories in order to identify impediments to the flow of products and services. You may be able to follow this strategy for some material resources. Other methods Some other methods for acquiring resources include: •
consignment stock
•
vendor managed inventory
•
customer managed inventory.
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Learning activity: Pay via internet Do some internet research to develop your understanding of methods of carrying stock including: •
consignment stock
•
vendor managed inventory
•
customer managed inventory.
Section summary You should now understand how to acquire resources in your workplace.
Section checklist Make sure that you understand how to: ensure acquisition and storage of resources is in accordance with organisational requirements, is cost effective and consistent with organisational timelines acquire resources within available time lines to meet identified requirements review resource acquisition processes to identify improvements in future resource acquisitions.
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Further reading Some recommended reading for this unit includes:
Anandarajah, Aseervatham and Reid, 2004, Prepare and manage budgets and financial plans, Pearson.
CMI, 2006, Contribute to the application of a proactive maintenance strategy, CMI.
Holzner, S., 2006, How Dell does it, McGraw Hill.
Womack, J. P. and Jones, D. T., 2003, Lean thinking, Free Press.
Productivity Press 1996, TPM for every operator, Productivity Press.
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Appendices
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Appendices Appendix 1: Plan template Goal:
Priority
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Task/Action
Who
Due Date
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Appendix 2: Budget template Scope of budget: Period of budget:
Item
Unit price
Units
Value ($)
Total
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Appendix 3: Purchasing policy and procedure Purpose To establish a process and framework for contracts and purchases of resources that ensures: • • •
our purchases are budgeted for or are subject to financial controls all purchases are cost effective, and purchasing activities complies with legislation.
Policy • • • •
organisation funds are only used for work-related purposes purchases are cost effective purchasing procedures must comply with relevant legislation failure to comply with this policy and its procedures will result in disciplinary measures.
Procedure Authorities: • General Manager – final decision on purchasing. • Department Managers – are responsible for operational budgets (including supply/purchase of material resources). • Purchasing Committee – are responsible for decisions on Capital Expenditures. • Purchasing Officer – responsible for documentation and process. Approving Material Expenditure • Material expenditures are the responsibility of the departmental manager, namely: Manufacturing Manager, Warehouse Manager, Office Manager. • All material expenditures must be accounted for within the department’s operational budget. • Any material expenditure that exceeds departmental operational budgets must be raised immediately with the General Manager. Approving Capital Expenditure • A purchasing committee has been established and meets monthly to review and approve major purchases. • Membership includes the General Manager, Manufacturing Manager, Warehouse Manager, Office Manager, Accountant and Purchasing Officer. • Preferred suppliers are to be asked to quote for relevant contracts. The purchasing officer maintains the list of preferred suppliers on the purchasing committee’s behalf. • Copies of current budgets, quotes, contracts and other documents relating to purchases must be provided to the committee for review. • The purchasing committee must review the proposed expenditure against the relevant budgets.
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Appendices
Monetary limit
Requirement
Documentation
Up to $1000
Direct purchase
Tax invoice
$1001-$10000
Three written quotes
Copies of quotes with table of comparisons prepared by IWA employees
$10,001-unlimited
Three written quotes
Suppliers must present to purchasing committee
Contract and Payment •
Expenditures, once approved, should be forwarded to the purchasing officer for review and finalisation of contract (if applicable) and payment.
•
All contracts must be reviewed and signed by the General Manager.
•
Purchase Orders are to be raised electronically through the organisational accounting system.
•
Purchase Orders must be checked approved by person with budget responsibility (Manufacturing Manager, Warehouse Manager, Office Manager).
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Appendix 4: Organisational chart and contact list
Innovative Widgets Organisational Chart
Name/Title
Ext.
Mobile
Bob Jenkins – General Manager
x1111
0411 111 111
Sid Gilmour – Accountant
x2222
0422 222 222
David Barrett – Purchasing Officer
x3333
0433 333 333
Nick Waters – Manufacturing Manager
x4444
0444 444 444
James Page – Warehouse Manager
X5555 0555 555 555
•
In – In and can be contacted
•
DND – Do not Disturb, In a meeting
•
Off-site – Working but at another location (available on mobile)
1st edition version: 1 Page 70 of 71
Status
BSBADM311 Maintain business resources © 2015 Innovation and Business Industry Skills Council Ltd
Student Workbook
Appendices
Appendix 5: Filing policy and procedure Policy Innovative Widgets have filing systems for managing both electronic and print-based workplace information. Adherence to our filing systems is essential for ensuring that documents can be located quickly and efficiently. Each department (Sales, Accounting, HR, Manufacturing) maintain their own file systems. Administrative staff must store and maintain files on: •
customer complaints
•
supplier information (Newsletters and pricelists from suppliers)
•
equipment manuals, supplier contacts, and related paperwork.
Procedure When information is received for filing, you must: 1. Check the information. 2. Sort the information into one of the two categories above (Complaints, Supplier information). 3. File the information alphabetically in the appropriate filing cabinets or expanding file. 4. Record details of what was filed using the Document Control Register (see below). 5. Documents that are updates (i.e. price lists, product info) are to replace the previous version in the folder. Place the previous version in a folder called ‘ARCHIVE’.
BSBADM311 Maintain business resources © 2015 Innovation and Business Industry Skills Council Ltd
1st edition version: 1 Page 71 of 71
