You're facing staffing shortages in peak season. How do you ensure service levels are maintained?

Focus on the most important tasks that need to be done. Let employees work flexible hours to cover busy times. Allow team members to swap shifts to make sure all shifts are covered.

To maintain service levels during staffing shortages in peak season, prioritize effective resource allocation by redistributing workloads and cross-training employees to handle multiple roles. Implement flexible scheduling, offer overtime incentives, and utilize temporary or seasonal workers. Enhance efficiency through automation and streamline processes to minimize bottlenecks. Clear communication and setting realistic customer expectations are also crucial to manage demand and maintain satisfaction.

Plan better: Make work schedules based on when you're busiest. Use helpful tools: Get machines or software to do simple jobs so people can do more important work. Teach workers more: Help staff learn different jobs so they can fill in where needed. Do what matters most: Focus on the work that keeps customers happy. Get outside help: Work with companies that can send you extra workers when you need them. Reward good work: Give bonuses or treats to workers who do extra shifts or work really well.

In my past experience with holiday staffing shortages, I introduced a flexible scheduling system that allowed team members to swap shifts and gave them control over work-life balance, and we offered overtime pay incentives to show appreciation for their dedication.

Long term leave planning at least for 75% of the total time to ensure minimum safe manning is present on shift Overtime is quite motivated tool to achieve filing missing work force in peak time

Use tools like UiPath or Automation Anywhere to handle tasks that repeat a lot, like entering data, processing orders, and managing inventory. This helps your staff focus on more important jobs. You can also use platforms like Zendesk or Intercom to set up chatbots that handle common questions from customers. This makes it easier for your customer support team by answering basic questions automatically.

First, figure out which jobs are really important when things get really busy. Then, teach your team how to do different jobs so they can fill in wherever there's a need. Make sure to create simple guides and instructions that they can use when they're doing tasks that aren't their usual job. This way, everyone can pitch in and keep things running smoothly during busy times.

In most Manufacturing companies roles are streamlined but this is not effective for operations. Division of labour becomes an economic theory and nota practical solution. To mitigate delay of products to suppliers and to meet delivery deadlines it is best that staff are trained to work in about 3 areas within a Manufacturing process . Casual or temporary workers should be trained too inorder to jump into production when there is shortage of staff or a huge seasonal demand .

In my opinions, we should always prepare cross-training staff in slack seasons rather than peak seasons because everyone has enough time to get used to the training and the company will have more space to solve the problems created by employees.

Ter equipas multidisciplinares ajuda a alocar recursos onde eles sejam precisos com muito maior flexibilidade, ajudando assim a ultrapassar os problemas de défice de recursos humanos que existe nos dias de hoje em logística.

We need a plan that includes teaching employees many skills, being flexible, and balancing being good at one thing with being able to do many things. By giving employees more skills and encouraging them to keep learning.

Se tivermos um planeamento bem feito onde as prioridades de entrega estejam bem definidas, conseguimos reduzir a pressão nas operações assim otimizar equipas para a realidade necessária.

Prioritizing tasks based on urgency and importance is crucial during resource constraints. Open communication within the team helped us agree on which projects to prioritize. Adjusting timelines and scope as needed allowed us to manage competing priorities effectively. Focusing on tasks' impact on company goals guided our decision-making.

Leveraging from my experience, ollaboration with temporary staffing agencies can provide the necessary workforce flexibility. Implementing a workforce management system, such as Kronos, ensures efficient scheduling and optimal resource allocation. This approach not only fills staffing gaps but also maintains service quality by bringing in trained personnel on short notice. Regular performance evaluations and training sessions for temporary staff help uphold service standards. By strategically partnering with reliable staffing agencies and employing advanced workforce management tools, we ensure seamless operations and sustained service levels during high-demand periods.

It`s a good way to do that because you could outsource the weakness of the company and it will effectively reduce the company's cost risks.

Externalizar operações, partilhando riscos com o parceiro é o caminho para ultrapassar estes temas de imponderabilidade. Recorrendo a um contrato de full outsourcing com faturação ao output, onde o fornecedor de serviços gere a totalidade da operação, inclusivé a dimensão da equipa, ajuda a resolver estas questões. Uma situação que devemos ter sempre em mente é, no momento da assinatura do contrato de prestação de serviços, estabelecer SLAs mensuráveis e adequados aos objetivos da operação com sistema de bonus/malus associado, permitindo um período de 2/4 meses de habituação ao processo. Assim garantimos que não falhamos com o cliente sem falhas de pessoal, dado que o nosso fornecedor será melhor do que nós na contratação de RH.

Em períodos de pico, podemos atribuir incentivos de permanência aos nossos colaboradores. Estes incentivos devem ter em consideração diveros fatores, nomeadamente: - Produtividade por escalões - Qualidade do trabalho (taxa de erros) - Assiduidade - Permanencia por todo o período de pico O pagamento deste incentivo só deverá ser feito no final do período de pico.

It`s sad to say that it's all punishment not reward in some Taiwanese companies. Even in some big crossing-country companies in Taiwan, the high-level management supervisor still use wrong way to make sure everyone feel nervous and be afraid of losing jobs in stead of giving the employee Incentives.