Over many years our school bus repair shops have confronted change. While many have evolved out of necessity, others have sought out tools and training to implement strategic change to benefit the overall transportation program, such as introducing initiatives to create “reliability-based maintenance.” Many times in my career I have been asked: What steps should I take to make sure what changes I make will actually work and be measured? How do you introduce the big change? What are the first things I should do?
In an effort to achieve a strategic change such as reliability-based maintenance by using “key performance metrics” (KPMs) school district or contractor transportation centers would need to first implement, use and maintain a Vehicle Maintenance Recording System (VMRS), a database software system for tracking all aspects of vehicle maintenance.
VMRS represents a dramatic departure from business-as-usual because technicians will be required to enter job data about each assignment they complete. Without VMRS, technicians are not required to input any data into computers. In fact, in some cases repairs and maintenance are completed without any record keeping at all. Using VMRS will allow all job data to be collected, tracked, analyzed and reported.
VMRS is an integral part of any strategic change effort necessary to accomplish reliability-based maintenance from measurable KPMs. Also necessary are leadership development, more advanced inventory management systems and a program to standardize all maintenance processes and improve shop efficiencies. There are hundreds of VMRS software applications available. Most all have as their basic application the ability to track maintenance work orders, labor costs, schedules, warranty claims, purchase orders and parts inventories. VMRS will need to be used by shop managers and supervisors effectively to gain more control over their inventories, schedules and costs. It would replace any current and less comprehensive system in use today, such as the infamous white boards, spreadsheets, calendars, etc.
To be sure that the investment you make in purchasing VMRS software and hardware does not end up collecting dust on the office shelf, you need to prepare your staff for the changes ahead. Before the implementation of successful KPMs and VMRS you need to address three major performance challenges:
• Overcoming resistance to organizational change
• Preparing all users to utilize the new system
• Achieving lasting change
• Overcoming resistance
Implementing a VMRS will require a major cultural shift for everyone in the maintenance group. Shop managers will be required to do more computer work than they do today. And as a result of better data, they will be held more accountable than ever for overall shop performance. In some cases, school bus technicians don’t currently use computers to record repairs in the shop, but with VMRS they would be entering data throughout the day. Thus, there would be a dramatic change in everyone’s daily routines.
People are creatures of habit and resist any type of change, unless they perceive a clear benefit to be gained by making the change.
More importantly, people strongly dislike being forced to change, especially if they perceive the change might not be in their best interest. The very purpose of VMRS is to provide management (at all levels) with better data. Thus, you can anticipate many maintenance personnel will view VMRS with some suspicion.
Before implementing any new VMRS, you should first implement a pre-launch communication campaign that will alleviate fears and build support and acceptance among the user groups. Without a properly conceived and executed communication and implementation plan, it is very likely that comments like “Big Brother is watching” and “they just want to find out how much work I do to try to get more out of me” will become commonplace.
Change of this magnitude is always difficult. Multiply this cultural shift by the number of maintenance and management individuals, as well as the possibility of having to bring about change at multiple locations, and there is ample reason to conclude that overcoming resistance may be the most important element of the process. If learners are resistant to learning, no learning can take place, so strategies to overcome the expected resistance must be implemented before any learning activities can take hold.
PREPARING USERS
If VMRS is to be consistently and correctly used on an everyday basis, there will need to be sufficient education, training and certification for all users. It’s important to note that simply providing a description of the features and benefits of VMRS or even demonstrating how to use the system will an understanding of the system – it will require specific skills. Skills can only be learned through training activities such as practicing. Therefore, all learning initiatives should include hands-on, scenario-based training.
Shop managers have the most to learn. They’ll be using their computers more often and will rely upon the data to make a wide range of decisions, as well as an appreciation for how data management systems can create key performance metrics to be used to achieve better maintenance results. Shop technicians will need a basic understanding of what the system is designed to do, what information must regularly be entered and how to do it on a consistent basis. You can anticipate greater resistance among this group. However, since technicians will be inputting data for every job they perform, the opportunity for errors can be great. The familiar computer phrase “garbage in, garbage out” certainly applies here. That’s why any education and training initiative must be accompanied by a certification (testing) process immediately following initial training and then again at subsequent intervals.
ACHIEVING LASTING CHANGE
Organizational change efforts can fail for a number of reasons, but the most common reason is a failure to appreciate that change is not an event, but rather a process. Change efforts come and go so often that employees in all types of businesses refer to them as “the flavor of the week,” essentially mocking management’s efforts to effect change. In order to succeed, a VMRS implementation must be viewed as an ongoing process. Achieving consistent and sustainable results may require up to 12 months.
It all begins with a successful launch campaign, followed by effective initial education and training, but that’s not enough. You will have to manage the change by instituting performance expectations. Transportation center managers will need to regularly follow up with maintenance managers to hold them accountable to specific performance metrics. Other supporting activities should include frequent e-mails, monthly memos and town hall–style meetings that demonstrate management’s commitment to the new processes. The key indicator of change adoption is that the data entered and stored is actually used to make local decisions.
