Reference no: EM132235887

Assessment 1 - Case Study

Purpose of the Assessment

You will demonstrate skills and knowledge required to develop operational plans in consultation with key stakeholders

Task

XYZ Company has decided to relocate their 50 seat call centre to regional Tasmania.
You, as the Call Centre Manager, have been given the responsibility for developing an operational plan for the call centre including resources requirements, key performance indicators, monitoring processes and risk management.

You will also need to develop and implement strategies to achieve the plan including staff recruitment, procurement and monitoring performance.
Key information:
• The call centre has a capacity for 50 seats.
• The call centre operates 24 hours, seven days per week. It is envisaged that staff will work in three shifts:
o Day shift: 7am to 3pm
o Afternoon shift: 3pm to 11pm
o Night shift: 11pm to 7am
• 15 staff from the Hobart call centre have agreed to relocate to the new call centre.
• The call centre must be fully operational in exactly twelve weeks from today.
• You have a budget of $5,200,000.00.

Instructions

You will need to access the following XYZ Company plans, policies, and procedures:
• Business plan
• Organisational charts
• Purchasing resource acquisition policy
• Purchasing resource acquisition procedures
• Information management policy
• Information management procedures
• Recruitment policy

This Project has been split into nine separate tasks. Please complete each task in the order they appear.

Task One
Before you can develop the operational plan, you will need to consult with the relevant managers at XYZ Company.
Develop a consultation plan that lists the names of the XYZ Company personnel that you would consult with, explain why you would consult with them and for each one, list five questions you would ask them.

Task Two

Review the key information provided in the task overview, and write a report including the following:
a) Develop a list of physical (e.g. equipment) and human resources required to operate the call centre.
b) Write a proposal for the procurement of the physical resources on your list that includes why each is needed, where it will be sourced from, cost and date needed. You will need to undertake internet research to complete this task. Please ensure that all equipment and other physical resources comply with XYZ Company' focus on sustainability.
c) Develop at least three Key Performance Indicators (KPIs) that you will use to measure the overall performance of the call centre using the SMART method.
d) Develop a process to monitor the progress and achievement of the KPIs. This may be done in the form of an action plan.
e) Develop a system to ensure security and confidentiality of all performance records (such as profit & loss statements and action plans).

Task Three
Conduct a risk analysis of at least three risks to the success of the call centre using the risk assessment matrix in you learner workbook. For each identified risk, you must develop a contingency plan to minimise the likelihood or consequences of the risk occurring.

Task Four
Review the key information provided in the task overview and using the information you provided in the previous tasks and other information as required, develop an operational plan for the new call centre to be fully operational in three months.
You will need to research on the internet for a suitable template. Your operational plan must include:
• XYZ Company mission
• XYZ Company objectives
• XYZ Company Call Centre strategy
• Action Plan for key deliverables
• Key Performance Indicators
• Budget
• Risk Management
• Outcome
• Approvals

Task Five
Arrange a time with your assessor to present your plan during class time before commencing the next task. You will need to explain and justify each part of your plan, seek their approval and agree on any changes required.
You must also outline the legislative and regulatory context of your plan, and XYZ Company policies and procedures that are relevant to the implementation of the plan, including but not limited to health and safety.
You must ensure you communicate with your assessor in an appropriate business manner, as if you were addressing a senior manager at XYZ Company.
Your meeting is expected to take approximately 15 minutes.
Your assessor will complete Observation Checklist I at the end of your presentation. Please ensure you review the Observation Checklist before you commence your presentation so that you are fully prepared and know exactly what is expected of you.
Please submit the completed Observation checklist I as evidence of this task.

Task Six
Review the key information provided in the task overview and develop a recruitment and development strategy to meet the requirements of the call centre. Your strategy must comply with the XYZ Company recruitment policy and must include:
• Number of staff to be recruited

Task Seven
Your proposal for the procurement of physical resources (Task 2b) has been accepted. You are now required to develop a strategy to acquire the resources in the required time frame.
You are to present your strategy as an action plan.

Task Eight
Using the KPIs you developed in Task Two (c), develop a monitoring process for the implementation of the detailed operational plan.
The monitoring process should include the following:
• A breakdown of the overall plan into tasks
• Time lines and responsibilities assigned for each task
• A budget allocation to appropriate tasks

Task Nine

At the end of Week 9, the following things have occurred:
• Only 17 new staff have been recruited as response to the ads in the local paper has been poor
• A local agency can provide temporary staff until all roles have been permanently filled but this will add 20% to the overall salary budget
• The company you ordered the operator headsets from can no longer meet the deadline and the only other supplier who can meet your requirements is 35% more expensive.

Use the monitoring process you developed in Task Eight to prepare a review of the operational plan's progress to date. This report should cover the following items:
• Analysis and interpretation of budgeted and actual financial information
• Areas of under-performance
• Solutions and actions to be taken
• Recommendations for any variations to the operational plan
• Procedure for approval of any variations

Assessment 2

Q1 a. What do you mean by an operational plan?
Q1 b. List the types of information that may be included in an operational plan.
Q1 c. What is the difference between a strategic plan and an operational plan?
Q1 d. How can an operational plan assist an organisation to achieve its objectives?

Q2. Mention any two examples of situations where you would seek input from internal and/or external specialist resource managers when developing an operational plan for an organisation.

Q3. a. Provide a list (at least two) of key performance indicators (KPIs) that can be used to measure the performance of the following areas.
a. Productivity
b. Resource utilisation
c. Profitability
d. Performance of employees
e. Market share

Q3 b. List three different approaches to developing KPIs to meet business objectives.

Q4. Contingency plans require the identi?cation of a potential risk and an assessment of that risk.
a. List any three areas of risk facing a call centre with examples.
b. Briefly mention the potential impact of those risks.

Q5. Briefly explain what disaster recovery planning means and what it involves.

Q6. Briefly explain why it is important to do the following:
a) Determine resource requirements
b) Develop and implement consultation processes
c) Develop KPIs to measure organisational performance
d) Develop contingency plans
e) Present resource acquisition proposals effectively
f) Obtain approval before implementing the operational plan

Q7. Briefly explain what standard operating procedures are and how they are used by organisations.

Q8 a. Briefly explain why budgets are prepared.

Q8 b. List the main expenditure categories that should be included in a budget.

Q10. Identify two systems that could help you
a. monitor performance more effectively and
b. manage performance more effectively.

Q11. Provide a description of the following terms:
a. Balance scorecard reporting
b. Triple bottom line reporting

Q12. Answer the following questions about dealing with problems when managing operational plans:
a. Why do problems occur in the implementation and management of operational plans?
b. What type of problems may be encountered?
c. How can these problems be addressed?

Q 13. Explain how operational plans are developed by using the following approaches.
a. Basic strategic planning
b. Goal based planning
c. Alignment planning
d. Scenario planning

Assessment 3 - Role-play

Procedure

Resources required:
• XYZ Company plans, policies, and procedures
• Computer with internet connection and projector
• Operational plan prepared by student

Instructions for students:
1. This assessment will be conducted in a TAS College classroom in a simulated work environment with access to the resources listed above.
2. You are to arrange a time to meet with your assessor and two classmates to perform the role-play.
3. Your assessor will form you into a group with two other students.
4. You will each take turns playing the role of the Call Centre Manager and present parts of your operational plan to the other two students who will play the roles of team leaders.
5. When playing the role of team leader, ensure you ask questions and provide feedback to the Call Centre Manager, thereby playing an active part in the role-play.
Make sure that your performance includes the following:
a. Consultation process
b. Resource requirements
c. Risk management
d. Recruitment strategy
e. Monitoring processes
5. Your assessor will complete Observation Checklist II to record your communication and interaction skills during each roleplay.
6. It is expected that each role play will take approximately 20 minutes.
7. You are to make sure that you have reviewed the Observation Checklist II before you commence your presentation so that you are fully prepared and know exactly what is expected of you.
8. You must submit the completed Observation checklist II as well as role-play script or explanatory note or
presentation slides as evidence of this task.
9. At the completion of the roleplays, both the student and the assessor are required to sign and date Observation Checklist II, verifying that they acknowledge the outcome for this assessment task and have been provided with feedback from the assessor.

Attachment:- Manage Operational Plan.rar