Topic 3: Conduct ongoing evaluation: Conduct ongoing evaluation

3.1 Review the operational plan to assess effectiveness in the workplace

Introduction
It is important that operational plans should be reviewed on a regular basis.
In the natural evolution of business activities, changes to operational plans will need to
take place to reflect changes in operations and direction.
The causes of these changes may be guided by external or internal influences. Some of
these were identified during the SWOT Analysis process.
Timing of operational plan reviews
Whilst the frequency of operational plan reviews will vary depending on the type of
organisation and requirements by management, however they may be based on:
Daily, weekly or monthly reviews

Business plan cycle

Performance reports

Major events triggering a review, e.g. Change in market-place.

Conduct on–going evaluation of operational plans

Once we have produced our plan and built in the required controls the next step is to
ensure the operational plan undergoes an on-going review and evaluation.
We often hear of evaluation as being something done at the end of the process to see
if it worked. However evaluation can also be considered something thought of at the
start to ensure the project is doable and practical, and if it is to succeed what needs to
be attended to.
If your plan is well written it will include clear and measurable goals and objectives, clear
priorities, timeframes and responsibilities. From these it is possible to build in review steps,
in which at an agreed time or stage an assessment can be made to answer the following
questions;
Are we on track?

Have we achieved what we planned?

Are any variations acceptable, or do they require action?

Were the original goals realistic and achievable?

Have we improved our planning ability through these

actions?

Evaluation and review operational plans

We tend to think of evaluation, feedback and review as belonging at the end of a
process. To some extent this is true, but as you will see that is not the only way it works,
and often evaluation can be incorporated into earlier stages and be conducted
progressively.
In developing operational plans it makes sense to know at the end the answer to the
question ‘did it work?’, but there are several other levels of evaluation and review that
should also be considered.
Level 1- Did we do things right?
This tries to establish that we actually did what was what planned and according to the
various timeframes, schedules, budgets, etc.
If the plan was good and we achieved all the objectives then that is as good an indicator
as we can get that we have succeeded.
Level 2 - Did we do the right things?
At this level we can review not just if the plan was well executed but also if the plan was
well developed and realistic.
Did it correctly assess the problem?
Were the measures sensible and practical?
 Was it realistic and workable?

Did it need to be re–thought during the project?

Level 3 - What have we learnt during the process?
Mistakes and errors happen all the time, they are undesirable but probably unavoidable.
The critical aspects is can we quickly identify and learn from those mistakes?
There are many who believe that it is better to plan quickly and learn quickly to adapt to
changing forces, because in the real world we can never foresee all the elements that
might impact on our actions in the future.

3.2 Monitor performance

Introduction
In order for a tourism organisation to be successful in being able to provide the highest
quality of service whilst still making an adequate financial return for investors, it is vital that
every aspect of the operation is operating to the best of its ability.
Therefore management must constantly assess and evaluate the performance of all
areas that contribute to the implementation of business plans.
Given that staff are the greatest contributor of service in a hospitality organisation, it is
essential that management must ensure staff are performing to the best of their ability.
In order to do this, activities must be assessed and evaluated to find out:
What is being done correctly

What needs improvement, by identifying causes and remedy

This is very much a ground level approach. Managers need to be able to be perceptive
enough to see what is really happening.
They can get answers to questions by:
Looking around to see what is happening

Asking questions to find out what is happening

Listening to the information their colleagues and workers tell them.

This information needs to be recorded in a format that is easy for them to identify what
the problems are and where they can improve them.
Aim of monitoring business activities
Aims of monitoring business activities include:
Identifying areas which are being done well and rewarding accordingly

Identifying where areas of operations can be improved through:

 Determining the problem

 Identifying the cause

 Search for appropriate solutions

 Choosing the most suitable solutions

 Applying and tracking the solution

Monitoring performance
Whilst each tourism organisation will have different areas of performance that they will
focus their monitoring on, there are a number of common areas of performance that will
be monitored by most organisations:
These include but are not limited to:
Market share
Sales figures
Customer satisfaction

Staff satisfaction
Growth in existing markets
 Development of new business sectors

Staff retention

Awards received.

In Section 2.1 of this manual a number of different performance evaluation methods

have been identified.

3.3 Identify problems and make adjustments accordingly

Introduction

As a result of monitoring performance, it is inevitable that problems or 'performance gaps'

will be identified.

Whilst it is not encouraging to identify weaknesses in the implementation of an

operational plan, it should be seen in a positive manner as it enables an organisation to
strive for 'continuous improvement'

This section will explore the different types of problems / performance gaps that may
occur in a tourism organisation and types of corrective action that may be taken.
Types of problems / performance gaps

The types of problems / performance gaps that may arise in an organisation are endless
but common examples include:
Product or service failures

Long wait times for service

High volume of customer traffic

Inaccurate or conflicting information provided to customers

Lack of follow-up action by customer care representatives

Aggressive cross-selling or up-selling by customer service representatives or sales

persons

Lack of resources required to implement service operations

Resource constraints

Conflicts in priorities

Lack of information

Supplier delays
Differences in opinion

Interpersonal conflict

Hazardous events

Time constraints
Electricity shortages

Bad weather

Shortfalls in expected outcomes

Poor staff performance.

Taking corrective actions
This involves making the necessary adjustments to improve the level of service,
productivity or customer satisfaction.
Depending on what is being monitored, involving staff in all or some stages of the
monitoring process is likely to achieve better results.
Types of corrective actions
Quite simply, types of corrective actions taken to improve service operations may
include:
Improvements in the design of products or services

Reviewing the allocation of resources for service operations

Tweaking standard operating procedures to improve efficiency.

Initiate corrective action

Corrective actions taken within an operation workplace context can be seen as either
short term action or long term action.
Where service is paramount, it is sometimes necessary to take short term action to solve
a problem until it can be looked at more closely and the problem dealt with more
thoroughly.
Short term corrective action
Reasons for this include:
Pressure of work often means there just isn’t time to stop and analyse the problem more
carefully and in more detail
To provide the necessary or expected services to the customer
To meet OSH requirements
To deal with a complaint
To get staff working together again
To give you time to analyse and work through the problem at a later date.

Usually these stop-gap measures are not satisfactory in the long term as they are often
more costly and they do not prevent the problem from recurring.
As the manager of an area, it is important you consciously decide when to take short
term action and when this would be inappropriate.

If you decide to take the short term approach, then it is a good idea to:
Make a definite time to look at it more thoroughly later on and to decide who to involve
in further problem solving
Inform staff and management it is a short term solution which will be dealt with more
thoroughly at a specified time
Cost the implications of tackling the problem this way.

Long-term corrective action

There may be a number of corrective changes to be made including, but certainly not
limited to:
Management changes
New management

Change in orientation to service

Setting of some new directions in relation to several other factors

New management focus.

Organisational re-structures
Change of personnel structure

Elimination of positions
 New job roles

Changes in job roles

New knowledge or skills.

Introduction of new equipment

New equipment means:
Possible interruptions to operations for installation

Training for staff

Requires that staff can explain the new equipment to customers

Changes in job roles

Changes in procedures

Changes to workflow.

Recruitment practices
Need to establish comprehensive job descriptions and job specifications
Seeking of new knowledge and skills
Change advertising strategy

Revised interviewing and selection process

Revised selection criteria.
Recruitment practices
Need to establish comprehensive job descriptions and job specifications
Seeking of new knowledge and skills
Change advertising strategy
Revised interviewing and selection process
Revised selection criteria.

3.4 Incorporate the results of evaluation into ongoing planning and operational
management

Introduction

To date in this section we have explored various evaluation and measuring techniques
to determine the success of operational plan activities.

When looking at the results of these evaluation and measurement actions, there will be
a number of recommendations that can be made to improve operational planning and
management in the future.

This section will explore some of the recommendations that can be identified towards
'continuous improvement' of operational initiatives.

Reasons for recommendations

These recommendations will usually be on the basis of:

„h Unsatisfactory performance ¡V basically, expenses being too high or income being

too low

„h A business opportunity ¡V such as the opportunity to capitalise on some significant

occurrence, new idea or emerging trend
„h Customer feedback ¡V demanding the introduction, elimination or modification of
some service or facility

„h Significant alteration to the premises or operational systems ¡V this may be caused by

some accident, emergency or an unanticipated event that has caused major disruptions
to the normal way of trading.

Inclusions in a recommendation

The more important the cause and the possible effect, the more formal the
recommendation process is likely to be.

In general terms, the more costly the recommendation in terms of funding and other
resources, the greater the need for a more formal style of recommendation such as
providing a proposal that:

„h Detail the problem that is at the root of the recommendation

„h Highlights any legal compliance requirements that may be included

„h Describes the negative impacts of the above situation ¡V which may include, for
example, the need to lay off staff, the need to increase prices, the eventual result if the
current situation is allowed to continue for 12 months

„h Identifies specific revised targets ¡V which should reflect the initial targets set by the
business and operational plans that are facing difficulty such as income, expenditure,
percentages, items sold, etc.

Sets revised flags to warn of unacceptable deviations to the revised targets – this will help
identify revised circumstances when actual performance has deviated unacceptably
from revised projected figures
Presents options for rectifying the position – it is always useful to present more than one
possible solution wherever possible
Sets out implementation costs for each recommendation or option – this should include
training, ‘change over’ costs where staff, etc. are operating at less than optimum during
a transitional phase and have to be allowed time to get up to speed
Identifies the benefits of each recommendation or proposal – which can include
savings, extra earnings, maintenance of service standards, reducing staff turnover,
meeting compliance requirements, increased safety, raised public image/profile of the
business
Supplies a formal cost-benefit analysis

Gives realistic timelines for introduction and

implementation.
Types of recommendations
The nature of the recommendations you may make will depend on the type and scope
of the problem being faced with possibilities including
Raising prices

Reducing staff levels

Changing trading hours – increasing or decreasing them is an option

Offering an initiative or promotional campaign to attract extra patrons

Changing target markets

Creating a niche market

 Reviewing costs – with a view to making cost savings in nominated areas, changing
suppliers

Reviewing the service activities

Training staff – to better and more efficiently and effectively use the resources that exist

Purchasing new equipment or technology – to make the premises more attractive to

the marketplace or to assist in producing a more cost-effective service or product.

Statistics should be included to support recommendations, and projections may be used

to indicate the situation if nothing is done, compared to the situation where the
recommendation is implemented.