Case study 2 Smoke pipe

In the research there were found differences when departments were asked to specify the meaning of quality. Only one department thought that profitability was included in quality. Mainly quality was considered to be product quality ful-filling demands and expectations of customer. This may reflect the situation where quality was not mainly considered to be a cost issue.

Customer satisfaction was commonly defined as fulfilling customer’s requests and needs with deliveries in full and on time. In the production department, how-ever, there was only one person who saw customer satisfaction as fulfilling cus-tomer’s needs on time and in full. This may also influence the perspectives for customer satisfaction in the whole organization as it is possible that production does not consider right timing and quantity as part of customer satisfaction. Only production planning includes also reliability and good co-operation in customer satisfaction.

Measurement of customer satisfaction was not recognized. Only three people knew the official measurement method of customer satisfaction.

Structure

When interviewees were asked to identify service or product of their part of or-ganization, identification and service/product was well understood. When cus-tomer service department were asked about the service provided, only one person included in the customer service role the transfer of customer’s requests and wishes. This may reflect the differences on the personal level in the perspective of the person’s role at work. In the production department, getting delivery on time and in full according to customer request was only included in the service by one person. This arouses the question on whether all employees really focus on per-form the job as well as they should.

Customers including internal customers were well known within the organization.

The delivery chain with internal customers was well recognized. An exception was the pre-press department which did not see production as an internal cus-tomer. This is a vital and remarkable issue as pre-press functions between produc-tion and external customer and has a vitally important effect on customer satisfac-tion.

Information

When it was asked how customer will receive information concerning different functions, production planning system (the Jotos-system) was frequently men-tioned. Almost all mentioned face-to-face contacts and information received through different meetings as an information resource. This reflects quite well the communication and information flow in the organization. Differences were found in how people see the importance of different meetings as an information re-source. Only one person brought up the weekly meeting as a way to get informa-tion. This reflects the fact that meeting is possibly not serving all people as well as it should do. Only one person saw his/her own activity as a way to get infor-mation.

Information communicated by customer in the form of claims and straight com-ments was considered the most popular way.

When asked how one gets information from customer, only one person in produc-tion perceived customer service as an important source of informaproduc-tion. This mainly indicates that information is not necessarily coming through Customer service as it should flow.

Differences were also found when only one person perceived that feedback from job card failures is a way to get information.

Customer demands were most frequently seen in the form of claims and increas-ing work. The difference in this question was that only one person mentioned the positive feedback via note boards.

When asked what weaknesses and strengths there were in the way information was received, most persons saw that direct and quick feedback was strength in the organization. At the same time weaknesses were seen in the accuracy of informa-tion and lack of documentainforma-tion. Difference can be raised on the issue that only one person brought up the need of harmonization of working methods. Main dif-ferences and possible reasons found in the study are presented in Table 5.

Table 5. Differences of perceptions between departments and their reasons.

DIFFERENCE: REASON:

• Only production see profitability as part of quality

• Profitability is taken as granted.

• Production see that the best possible placing of work orders in the job due gives the best profit

• There is no understanding of business on the whole – focus is on single orders and works.

• Only one in CS saw bringing customer wishes and demands to production as their service.

• There is not enough contact between CS and production

• No understanding of one’s own role as a deliv-erer of the customer’s demands and wishes

• Customer service is only understood as a de-partment

• Task changes in ppress as taking more re-sponsibility of designs than before.

• Only one person in production saw as a ser-vice the delivery of products according to the time schedule

• Production see that the best possible placing of work orders in the job queue gives the best profit

• Delivery time is not seen as a chain, but in seg-ments.

• Pre-press department does not see production as their customer.

• Pre-press see themselves as part of production.

• Pre-press is close to production.

• Only one person in production considered deliveries on time as part of customer satisfac-tion.

• Production see that best possible placing of work orders in the job queue gives best profit

• People do not sufficiently care whether delivery is on time or not

• Only production planning see that co-operation and trust is part of customer satisfaction.

• Taken as granted

• Only one saw the weekly meeting as an impor-tant resource of information

• Too much routines in weekly meetings

• Too much focus on big customers.

• Only one person saw one’s own activity as a way to get information

• Information does not flow in organization

• There is too much rush, not enough time

• Too much expected, information to be ready-served.

• Only one in production sees customer service as a delivery of information and requests from customer

• Not enough time

• Customer service is not respected as much as it should be.

• Only one saw the feedback from job card failures as an information source.

• Taken as granted.

• Only one saw positive feedback and the note board as source of customer feedback.

• Positive feedback rare.

• Too much stuff on the notice board.

• Positive feedback is not given to production.

• Only one sees the importance of harmonizing working methods

• All information does not belong to everyone

• Too big barriers between different functions

• OTIF was not recognized as a customer satis-faction indicator

• Not enough information received from OTIF

• Differences between perspectives in pre-press and production. How has CS developed?

• Information problems

• Pre-press has had more contact with customers.

• Positive feedback does not reach production.

11.9.3 Case study 3 Service