MSS405033 - Optimise office systems to deliver to customer demand assessment tool

Assessor Resource

MSS405033
Optimise office systems to deliver to customer demand

Assessment tool

Version 1.0
Issue Date: May 2024

This unit of competency covers the skills and knowledge required to establish new or improve existing office systems so that work flows in response to demand from downstream customers, and then to level the flow of work by managing variations in demand and allocation of resources.

The unit covers individuals in office leadership positions and others in an office of competitive systems and practices implementation who need to set up new or improve existing systems that enable the office work to flow in response to customer demand signals. This is often known as a customer pull system. Such a system responds to a cue that the work is required at the next stage of the process. Ultimately it is a customerâ€™s demand for the deliverable that draws the work along the process via a series of cues.

Office processes may include administrative, transactional or service-based processes in, or attached to, a manufacturing organisation, within their value stream or similar environments, such as health care, education, financial, construction or Defence services.

This unit has a strong emphasis on understanding demand and value from the perspective of internal and external customers, planning and change management.

No licensing, legislative or certification requirements apply to this unit at the time of publication.

You may want to include more information here about the target group and the purpose of the assessments (eg formative, summative, recognition)

Evidence Required

List the assessment methods to be used and the context and resources required for assessment. Copy and paste the relevant sections from the evidence guide below and then re-write these in plain English.

Elements describe the essential outcomes.		Performance criteria describe the performance needed to demonstrate achievement of the element.
1	Facilitate the pull system	1.1	Review current systems to identify customers and demand signals that trigger the flow of work.
		1.2	Determine if and how current office systems respond to identified demand signals.
		1.3	Identify where demand signals either do not exist or are not built into processes.
		1.4	Facilitate the adoption of appropriate demand signals for processes currently not responding to customer pull.

2	Level the flow of work	2.1	Identify where optimal flow of work is not being achieved within the pull system.
		2.2	Identify variations and barriers that prevent the optimal flow of work.
		2.3	Establish routines and/or systems to promote the consistent flow of work at the optimal rate.
		2.4	Establish mechanisms to remove or minimise variations and barriers to flow.
		2.5	Establish mechanisms to manage the impact of variations and barriers that cannot be removed.

3	Allocate resources to balance work flow	3.1	Establish mechanisms that indicate when variations in flow of work require more or fewer resources.
	Allocate resources to balance work flow	3.2	Develop routines and/or systems to re-balance flow through the allocation of resources to meet variations.

4	Evaluate improvements	4.1	Review the changes to the pull and levelling systems.
		4.2	Identify causes for areas of poor performance.
		4.3	Implement further improvements to address areas of poor performance.
		4.4	Monitor the systems to identify further improvements.

5	Embed improvements	5.1	Establish mechanisms to ensure new systems and/or practices are communicated to relevant personnel.
		5.2	Motivate team to apply the new systems and/or practices.
		5.3	Ensure the new systems and/or practices are reflected in relevant procedures.

Evidence required to demonstrate competence in this unit must be relevant to and satisfy the requirements of the elements and performance criteria and include the ability, for one (1) or more office work areas or product families, to:

interpret office processes in terms of customer demand and flow of work

establish and/or optimise office related levelled pull systems

motivate others to implement, sustain and improve office related levelled pull systems.

Must provide evidence that demonstrates sufficient knowledge to interact with relevant personnel and be able to establish new or improve existing office systems, including knowledge of:

methods of calculating rates of demand and flow of work (e.g. takt and pitch)

application to office work of demand signals, such as kanban and electronic demand signal systems

techniques for achieving a smooth and consistent flow of work

visual displays.

The unit should be assessed holistically and the judgement of competence shall be based on a holistic assessment of the evidence.

The collection of performance evidence is best done from a report and/or folio of evidence drawn from:

a single project which provides sufficient evidence of the requirements of all the elements and performance criteria

multiple smaller projects which together provide sufficient evidence of the requirements of all the elements and performance criteria.

A third-party report, or similar, may be needed to testify to the work done by the individual, particularly when the project has been done as part of a project team.

Assessment should use a real project where development of a new, or improvement of an existing office system occurs in an operational workplace.

Knowledge evidence may be collected concurrently with performance evidence or through an independent process such as workbooks, written assessments or interviews (provided a record is kept).

Assessment processes and techniques must be appropriate to the language, literacy and numeracy requirements of the work being performed and the needs of the candidate.

Conditions for assessment must include access to all tools, equipment, materials and documentation required, including relevant workplace procedures, product and manufacturing specifications associated with this unit.

Foundation skills are integral to competent performance of the unit and should not be assessed separately.

Assessors must satisfy the assessor competency requirements that are in place at the time of the assessment as set by the VET regulator.

The assessor must demonstrate both technical competency and currency.

Technical competence can be demonstrated through:

relevant VET or other qualification/Statement of Attainment AND/OR

relevant workplace experience

Currency can be demonstrated through:

performing the competency being assessed as part of current employment OR

having consulted with an organisation providing relevant environmental monitoring, management or technology services about performing the competency being assessed within the last twelve months.

Submission Requirements

List each assessment task's title, type (eg project, observation/demonstration, essay, assingnment, checklist) and due date here

Assessment task 1: [title] Due date:

(add new lines for each of the assessment tasks)

Assessment Tasks

Copy and paste from the following data to produce each assessment task. Write these in plain English and spell out how, when and where the task is to be carried out, under what conditions, and what resources are needed. Include guidelines about how well the candidate has to perform a task for it to be judged satisfactory.

Elements describe the essential outcomes.		Performance criteria describe the performance needed to demonstrate achievement of the element.
1	Facilitate the pull system	1.1	Review current systems to identify customers and demand signals that trigger the flow of work.
		1.2	Determine if and how current office systems respond to identified demand signals.
		1.3	Identify where demand signals either do not exist or are not built into processes.
		1.4	Facilitate the adoption of appropriate demand signals for processes currently not responding to customer pull.

2	Level the flow of work	2.1	Identify where optimal flow of work is not being achieved within the pull system.
		2.2	Identify variations and barriers that prevent the optimal flow of work.
		2.3	Establish routines and/or systems to promote the consistent flow of work at the optimal rate.
		2.4	Establish mechanisms to remove or minimise variations and barriers to flow.
		2.5	Establish mechanisms to manage the impact of variations and barriers that cannot be removed.

3	Allocate resources to balance work flow	3.1	Establish mechanisms that indicate when variations in flow of work require more or fewer resources.
	Allocate resources to balance work flow	3.2	Develop routines and/or systems to re-balance flow through the allocation of resources to meet variations.

4	Evaluate improvements	4.1	Review the changes to the pull and levelling systems.
		4.2	Identify causes for areas of poor performance.
		4.3	Implement further improvements to address areas of poor performance.
		4.4	Monitor the systems to identify further improvements.

5	Embed improvements	5.1	Establish mechanisms to ensure new systems and/or practices are communicated to relevant personnel.
		5.2	Motivate team to apply the new systems and/or practices.
		5.3	Ensure the new systems and/or practices are reflected in relevant procedures.

This field allows for different work environments and conditions that may affect performance. Essential operating conditions that may be present (depending on the work situation, needs of the candidate, accessibility of the item, and local industry and regional contexts) are included.
Competitive systems and practices include one or more of:	lean operations agile operations preventative and predictive maintenance approaches statistical process control systems, including six sigma and three sigma Just in Time (JIT), kanban and other pull-related operations control systems supply, value, and demand chain monitoring and analysis 5S continuous improvement (kaizen) breakthrough improvement (kaizen blitz) cause/effect diagrams overall equipment effectiveness (OEE) takt time process mapping problem solving run charts standard procedures current reality tree.
Pull system signals include one or more of:	visual cues or signs kanban cards/tickets computer alerts or computer-based workflows.
Identified demand is based on one or more of:	identifying a process and its internal and external customers gathering data on rate and amount of demand.
Variations and barriers include one or more of :	unnecessary movement of work due to physical layout of office incorrect or incomplete procedures lack of training or cross-skilling inadequate or inappropriate equipment slow or inappropriate communication systems levels of authority and delegation incomplete information required to complete task interruptions complex and/or unusual situations bottlenecks peaks and troughs in demand.
Routines and/or systems to level the flow include one or more of:	Heijunka boxes types and location of signals triggers, such as minimum and maximum queue limits and items that are replaced at particular dates sequencing (e.g. first in first out (FIFO) and due dates) safety resources buffer resources back-up systems, such as maintaining critical hard copy documentation visual tracking displays.
Optimal flow of work supported by activities including one or more of:	calculating takt time and pitch or similar levelling the flow allocating resources allocating and scheduling work cross-skilling.