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Lube Zone Challenges
Lube Zone Challenges
Lube Zone (pseudonym) is a franchiser of automotive service centers that offers oil changes, preventative maintenance, and other vehicle care services. Lube Zone has more than 500 centers operating mainly in the United States. In Eastern Idaho, there are four Lube Zone franchise locations owned by a single owner, who is the sponsor of this Needs Assessment project.
Lube Zone differentiates itself from its competitors by offering a “Pit Crew Guarantee” that promises that customers will have their oil change completed in under seventeen minutes or the company will take one dollar off the total bill for each minute the pit crew goes over time.
In recent months, the four franchise locations have struggled to consistently get cars serviced under the 17-minute deadline. Failure to consistently service vehicles within the 17-minute time frame reduces Lube Zone's competitive advantage, reduces its profit margins and hurts online customer reviews. We are seeking to answer the question of why there is inconsistency in servicing vehicles within the 17-minute time frame.
The Lube Zone owner authorized an evaluation team consisting of four masters degree students enrolled in the needs assessment course offered by the Organizational Performance and Workplace Learning (OPWL) department at Boise State University to conduct a formal needs assessment of Lube Zone's Pit Crew Teams and their efforts. We, the needs assessment team, conducted this assessment as our course project (Hansen et al. 2019) and it is presented here in a summarized case study.
The goal of our needs assessment is to support tactical and operational decisions that lead to both pit crews and their individual pit crew members consistently meeting the pit crew guarantee within the defined margin of error.
Needs Assessment Methods
Needs Assessment Methods
In order for the Assessment Team to gain deeper insight into the magnitude of Lube Zone’s problems, their causes and potential solutions, the team utilized several different assessment methods. By collecting quantitative and qualitative data from a variety of sources, we were able to triangulate the data types and sources and come to a reliable conclusion with corroborated evidence.
Extant data review
The assessment team reviewed existing job descriptions as well as standard operating procedures (SOPs) to gain an understanding of the Pit Crew team tasks and responsibilities, as well as, the language used in relation to servicing vehicles within the 17-minute time frame. Additional, Lube Zone’s own production reports showed performance data for each location and helped uncover greater details as to the size and severity of the performance gap.
Semi-structured interviews
The assessment team conducted semi-structured interviews with the business owner, operations manager and individual store managers to gain deeper insights into the performance gap. Using various sample interview questions recommended and provided by Watkins, et al. (2012), these interviews revealed more in-depth insights that helped to uncover tactical and operational data related to the gap.
Structured survey
The assessment team also conducted a structured survey that honed in on potential root causes of the performance gap, as well as, provide insightful data on the individual level of performance from Pit Crew Team Members.
Needs Assessment Models & Frameworks
Needs Assessment Models & Frameworks
This model was used to yield a deeper understanding of the gap we were addressing and refine our gap analysis. We engineered questions for our client leadership from the Organizational Analysis box in the model, asking questions about how each of the following items relate to the desired performance:
Vision, Mission and Values
Goals and Strategies
Critical Issues
We also utilized specific items in the Environmental Analysis section model, such as:
World - Culture, Society, and Social Responsibility
Workplace - Organization, Resources, Tools, Stakeholders, Competition
As these two models are related and similar, we used both of them in our analysis.
Our main use of the SAM Model was to identify barriers to performance, where they came from, and how we could address them. As we collected data from our sources, we used this model to help understand how the data highlighted environmental and individual factors at play, by coding each box within the model and populating the data into the lower 2 levels of SAM in order to corroborate our findings and further refine the cause analysis. The model provided key guidance in separating the individual and environmental factors so we could understand and make recommendations in appropriate ways.
We used the BEM to engineer questions for our interview and survey instruments (examples of these questions are below).
Information:
Do pit crew team members understand the expectations on them regarding the pit crew guarantee?
How is that feedback given and received?
Resources:
Do pit crew team members have adequate tools available for the different types of cars they encounter?
Are adequate resources available to them when they encounter something different from the norm?
Incentives:
Are the pit crew team members monetarily compensated adequately through salaries and bonuses?
Are adequate rewards in place that will help them want to continually strive for success?
Motives:
Are pit crew team members’ motives aligned with Lube Zone’s goals?
Are they motivated to hit the pit crew guarantee on a consistent basis?
Capacity:
Does the hiring process successfully add talent to the pit crew teams?
Do they build on each other in a positive way as a well-functioning team?
Knowledge / Skills:
Do pit crew team members have the basic skills needed to be able to succeed in this work environment?
Do they know each other’s roles well enough, and are they cross-trained well enough, to assist teammates with their responsibilities when needed?
Causes of Pit Crew Delays
Causes of Pit Crew Delays
From the data collected and with the help of additional models such as Ishikawa's fishbone diagram and Toyoda's 5 Why Technique, we were able to determine the following causes of Pit Crew Delays:
15% of Lube Zone survey respondents said they did not have the necessary parts and/or supplies to effectively service vehicles in 17 minutes or less. While this is a relatively small number the consequence of not having the right parts causes significant delays in service times.
10% of Lube Zone survey respondents said they did not have the necessary tools to service a vehicle with the 17-minute time frame. Missing tools also came up twice (11%) in the additional comment section of the survey.
27% of the Lube Zone survey respondents said that vehicle condition was a key factor in determining whether or not they were able to service a vehicle within 17 minutes or not.
16% of the Lube Zone survey respondents said that staffing issues (having one team service two vehicles) directly affect their ability to service a vehicle within 17-minutes.
35% of survey respondents said they received no negative consequence for going over the pit crew time and 10% said they did not receive any positive rewards when they do service a vehicle within the 17 minutes.
16% of survey respondents said that communication between team members was an issue that prevents them from effectively servicing vehicles within the 17-minute time frame.
Recommended Solutions
Recommended Solutions
Based on the research conducted and analysis performed, and using the client’s list of intervention criteria as a guide, five of the eleven solutions have been prioritized as the highest-value interventions the assessment team recommended to the client. Those five prioritized solutions are listed below:
Because damaged vehicle skid plates, over-tightened bolts, and different customer vehicle types can cause significant delays in servicing vehicles within the 17 minute time frame, it is suggested that the Pit Crew Guarantee apply only to “Standard Vehicles” that are in proper working order. The Pit Crew Guarantee would NOT apply to “Non-standard Vehicles.” For these non-standard vehicles the Customer Service Rep would notify the customer that their vehicle does not qualify for the pit crew guarantee due to its “unique needs” and additional time would be manually added to the pit crew timer to adjust expectations for service times.
Install a new procedure to ensure that parts and inventory items (air filters, oil filters, etc.) are well stocked and available at all times. An example might be - when an employee grabs the last oil filter from the shelf they are to immediately notify their manager of the shortage and to order a new one right away.
Establish procedural “triggers” that signify the need for additional help and support from other team members. During the pit crew service if a “trigger” moment comes an employee signifies that they need help from other team members. Train employees on the importance of these trigger moments and coming to the immediate aid of a fellow pit crew team member instead of waiting until the end to come help.
Store managers conduct a “mini-huddle” during a slow time or outside customer hours to review the experiences with the last several cars services. For vehicles that were serviced WITHIN the 17 minutes the manager asks questions like “What is working well that helps us get cars out within 17 minutes?” For vehicles that were NOT serviced within the 17 minutes the manager asks questions like “Where was the break down? What can we fix or change for next time?” For each situation the manager leads a short, focused discussion, invites the team to take action to continue their improvement and expresses confidence and support in their efforts.
A contributing factor to the delays in service times is having one person perform two jobs at the same time (or one crew servicing two bays). To remedy this situation, it is recommended to either:
Expand the staff on hand so that two teams can service two bays, or
Cross train employees and work to improve team communication so others can pitch in and help fill the gaps where needed.
References
References
Chevalier, R. (2008). The evolution of a performance analysis job aid. Performance Improvement, 47(10), 9-18. https://doi.org/10.1002/pfi.20034
Hansen, T., McClements, G., Snookes, J., Anderson, V., & Strasser, J. (2019, Sept). Needs assessment of Lube Zone's pit crew time guarantee [MS Word document]. OPWL, 529 course site. https//blackboard.boisestate.edu
Marker, A. (2007). Synchronized analysis model (SAM): Linking Gilbert’s behavior engineering model with environmental analysis models. Performance Improvement, 46(1), 26-32. https://doi.org/10.1002/pfi.036
Van Tiem, D. M., Moseley, J. L., & Dessinger, J. C. (2012). Fundamentals of performance improvement: A guide to improving people, process, and performance (3rd ed.). Pfeiffer.
Watkins, R., Meiers, M. W., & Visser, Y. L. (2012). A guide to assessing needs: Essential tools for collecting information, making decisions and achieving development results. The World Bank Group. http://documents.worldbank.org/curated/en/644051468148177268/A-guide-to-assessing-needs-essential-tools-for-collecting-information-making-decisions-and-achieving-development-results
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