Levels of Service Plan
The service delivery plan clearly defines the levels of service that are proposed, and the basis of the decision to provide this level of service.
The detailed service level reviews, historical analysis, growth forecasts and predictions will form appendices to the plan.
The key elements used in defining the levels of service are:
- Customer research and expectations - background and customer research undertaken and details of how research translates into levels of service
- Strategic and corporate goals - organization strategic goals and impacts on the Plan
- Legislative requirements - background legislation or regulations that affect asset operation or require certain levels of service
- Current level of service - define current levels of service being provided by the asset and identify related performance measures
- Desired level service - provide details on the level of service desired if it is different from what is currently being provided
- Gap analysis - provide details of differences between current and desired levels of service.
Quantifiable Elements
It is necessary to accurately define what is being provided, and communicate this information in a way that can be understood and measured.
It is therefore necessary to quantify all factors or characteristics that delineate the desired level of service. These elements may include:
- Quality of service, eg delivering drinking water to legislative standards and specifications
- Quantity, eg a defined minimum flow rate at peak times
- Time to attend to complaints
- Time to restore service to a standard.
These elements will become the basis of performance indicators for the demand management process.
Service Delivery Plan
As the experience and knowledge base of the organization grows, the level of detail in the service delivery plan will increase.
Each plan should have a reasonable amount of detail for the next three to five years, but will generally only have summary information for service and demand projected ten or more years into the future.
Asset service delivery plans can continuously evolve as customer and community needs, asset performance and the agency's priorities change. Plans also mature as service planners and asset managers improve their understanding of the community's expectations and the asset's performance.
A service delivery plan may consist of:
Executive Summary
The executive summary describes the key goals and actions of the plan. Typically it would include:
- The scope of the services provided by the asset
- Key service objectives
- The identified gap between service demand and capacity
- The range of service delivery strategies and the preferred plans.
Service delivery goals and objectives
This section gives a brief overview of the organization's service delivery goals and objectives for:
- Business asset management strategies
- The assets.
Strategic service delivery objectives
This section gives a brief overview of:
- The asset's goals and objectives for the delivery of services
- How these objectives are influenced by the organization as whole, and departmental imperatives.
Service demand
This section should provide details of growth forecasts that affect the management and utilization of assets, including:
- Non-asset solutions - available as alternatives to asset based solutions (i.e. demand management, insurance, managed failures).
- Demand forecast - details of projected growth or decline of demands on services, anticipated changes in customer expectations, demand management initiatives
- Changes in technology - use of new technology and effects on providing future services and obsolescence
- Capital works programs - summaries capital works programs and costs.
Service delivery levels
This section should define clearly the levels of service that are proposed and the basis of the decision to provide this level of service. It should include:
- Customer research and expectations
- Background and customer research undertaken
- Details of how research translates into levels of service.
- Strategic and corporate goals
- Organization strategic goals and impacts on the plan.
- Legislative requirements
- Background legislation or regulations that affect asset operation or require certain levels of service.
- Current level of service
- Define current levels of service being provided by the asset
- Identify related performance measures.
- Desired level of service
- Provide details on the level of service desired if it is different from what is currently being provided.
- Gap analysis
- Provide details of differences between current and desired levels of service.
Service delivery strategies
This section should identify the preferred service delivery strategies and the criteria used to select them.
An overview of the HR, IT and other resources required to support this program should also be provided.
The key performance targets for the service delivery should be identified, with benchmarks, if they have been set up.
Annual program
The annual program includes:
- Program imperatives and priorities based on the organization's goals and objectives
- New demand management programs
- New non-asset programs
- Performance of previous programs updated.
Program budget
This section includes:
- The projected demand management and non-asset expenditure for the five year term (the project asset program budget will be documented elsewhere)
- Special program budgeting and funding requirements
- Previous expenditure performance
- A detailed annual expenditure schedule for the next financial period.
Program implementation
This section covers:
- A brief overview of how the service delivery programs will be implemented
- Details of who will resource the programs.
Appendices
Detailed appendices cover:
- Service demand analysis and reports
- Strategy assessment criteria.