SELECT PLANNING
National Covid Vaccination Service
James Fisher - Director of Performance National Covid Vaccination Programme
"Many thanks for your considerable contribution and for putting up with me and the challenges I have faced as Commissioner. It’s been quite a journey and you’ve been a massive help in providing me with the applicable information and recommendations which have enabled the programme to make some very significant decisions.
Hope our paths cross again in future."
National Covid Vaccination Contact Centre (119)
Sue Tucker - Head of Operations SCAS
"I have worked alongside Keith and Adrian for the last year setting up and running the National Vaccination Booking Service and NHS Covid Pass Services and they have been fundamental in the success of these services. The services were set up at extreme pace and in nationally challenging circumstances.
In addition to the modelling, forecasting and support for scheduling they provided to these services they delivered prompt insightful analysis of the live service activities and used that insight to build solutions to operational challenges that came along frequently. The ability to be agile and responsive was crucial in services like these where 90% of the activity is unprecedented and subject to much short notice policy change that occurred as a result of the changing clinical needs of the pandemic.
They have the ability to articulate their recommendations and decisions clearly to a range of audiences and present them both in reports or presentations supporting assurance and reporting support to the wider team. This wealth of skills and knowledge meant they were widely respected for their contributions across the national programme.
I would highly recommend Keith and Adrian as an asset to any service."
National Covid Vaccination Contact Centre (119)
Steve Allington & John Tyrell - Contract Performance Managers
Steve Allington:
"Against a backdrop of confusion and uncertainty surrounding the roll out of the National Vaccine program in the UK; both Adrian and Keith brought a sense of order to the Planning function within the sphere of contact centre planning. Despite having no historical trends upon which to base forecasts they modelled response rates with credible accuracy and kept a commercial focus on their recommendations.
With limitless budgets being released by Government to handle the Pandemic it was refreshing to work with a Planning team that brought a private sector mentality to the public sector, thereby saving millions of pounds being mis-spent.
I would recommend them both to any organisation looking for experienced planning professionals for their business; especially in the area of contact centres."
John Tyrell:
"I worked with Keith & Adrian for over a year – managing call centres as part of the 119 Covid Response Service.
I can say without a shadow of doubt that these guys know what they are doing when it comes to call forecasting, agent scheduling and equally importantly but often forgotten – the ability to converse with people at all levels of the organisation.
The best and simplest recommendation I can give is – I would have no qualms working with them again should the opportunity arise."
National Covid Vaccination Service
Mark Busuttil - Head of Planning (HGS Service Provider)
"Just thought I would say a quick goodbye, that’s come around quick. Its been a pleasure working with you and I can only imagine trying to forecast a pandemic."
Wakefield Grammar School Foundation
Ben Ward - Head of Human Resources
"Keith and Adrian developed a capacity model for the Foundation which enabled us to have a greater insight into the cleaning resource requirements across multiple sites and at different times of the year. They took the time to understand our organisation and our project objectives. They are knowledgeable and skilled in their questioning which enables them to gain a real understanding and insight. They also have the ability to communicate and convey datasets and models in layman's terms."
Mobile Staff and Resources Schedule Tool
Anna Bradshaw-Jones - MISS Planning Manager
We were commissioned to build a tool to aid the scheduling of both personal and facilities for the MacMillan Mobile Information and Support Service (MISS).
To achieve the right outcome it is important not to solely focus on the tool itself, but also the processes and who uses it, otherwise the planning has to fit the tool and that is certainly the wrong way round.
This is a short, but telling, note of thanks from the Planning Manger who we worked very closely with:
“Thanks for all your help and guidance getting these to a place that will support the staffing and driver hours and all the other requirements that we have.
It’s been great working with you, your advice and guidance has been invaluable.”
Staff Availability & Attrition Forecasting
Tracey Tallant - Service Director
"We contacted the Forum on the back of a recommendation from a former colleague. Adrian and Keith took the time to get to know our business and what we wanted to achieve. They were able to offer valuable insight and guidance including ideas on how we could develop our workforce planning in the future.”
Customer Relations Blended Capacity Planning
Lorna Stanley - Head of Resource Planning
"Select Planning were able to offer insight into our requirements, but also into how we might want to consider planning the flow of workload and calls. We found Keith exceptionally easy to work with, he has a very relaxed but informative style, he learnt our business very quickly, it felt like he had worked here for years and totally understood what we were trying to achieve.
Select Planning have given us a firm foundation for our future planning and helped us learn new skills that we can take forward."
Best Practice Speaking
Nicola Callan - Head of Engagement & Learning
"Keith was recently a panel member in our webinars as part of our Best Practice week on Improvement & Process. We asked Keith to support this due to his involvement across multiple organisations and sectors and his ability to draw on varying experiences to help our members engage with and understand the subject.
Keith shared the insight he had gained and was able to inspire others into starting on the improvement journey through the webinars that we held. His contribution was valued by both the organisers and the attendees and we look forward to working with Keith in future Best Practice weeks."
IT Support Helpdesk Scheduling
Dionne Cleall - Service Delivery Manager
"I engaged Adrian a few years ago to assist with the scheduling for a small team of 24/7 bilingual agents that I manage. The problems I was encountering were that the team had been set up with insufficient headcount to handle the bilingual calls and not all staff spoke two or more languages. The shifts had no pattern to them and no thought for the language capability was taken into account. My request to Adrian wasn’t an easy one to say the least, but Adrian was fantastic in seeing new ways to approach my dilemma. We tried a few different approaches to the scheduling in the first year until we found one that both suited the needs of the business and the staff.”
Household Claims Resource Planning
Claire Hird - Head of Household Claims
"Keith and Adrian worked with us alongside our Planning team and the Household Claims area, looking at everything from the Real Time planning right through to long range forecasting, capacity planning and budgetary process and control. What impressed me most was how intuitive they were in getting the root of the issues in such a very short space of time. They have very credible backgrounds in both planning and insurance so we were able to speak the same language and therefore understand the issues faced"
Corporate Contract Bid
Carole Campbell - Corporate Call Centre Manager
"We had previously worked with The Forum their credentials and resourcing excellence were the foundation for selecting them to work with me on this project. Not to mention the fact that the initial conversation gave me total confidence that experts, Adrian and Keith, were engaged and they understood the challenges, handled things in a logical and confident manner, and made the decision to work with them perfect sense. The outcome is an agile resourcing model that gives me and my teams the flexibility to forecast channel by channel, year by year and adapt it regularly throughout the year to make sure we are working to deliver excellent service to the customer."
Customer Service Call Centre Schedule Review
Emma Botfield - Head of Customer Service Europe
"Keith is a highly professional, experienced and knowledgeable person who has supported and enabled the Planning Team to produce an excellent schedule review whilst also referencing other considerations and challenges. Keith has a calm approach and is able to work with a range of stakeholders to gain relevant information and identify the key elements to support the work that is being undertaken. Keith produced a high quality written report that was articulate and clear and was engaging with all parties when presenting the report and findings.”
“Keith’s approach is a welcome change to consultancy support as he wants to ensure a difference is made and provides a clear overview of all risks, challenges and issues and provides practical solutions that can be implemented”
A copy of the testimonial written by the Trust’s associate director can be viewed here
Yorkshire Ambulance 111 Care Line
Keeley Townsend - Associate Director
A copy of the testimonial written by the Centre's Head of, Operations Manager and Service Team Member can be viewed here