A day in the life of our Business Improvement Executive - Sam Lee
As Sowga's Business Improvement Executive Sam's roles and responsibilities are varied and wide reaching.
Spanning across all areas of the company, Sam supports organisational functions to develop processes that facilitate continuous improvement.
Working closely with the Commercial and Deputy Managing Director Aaron Guidice, Sam's role is centred around adapting to the ever-changing landscape of engineering and the evolving demands of facilities management.
Having joined Sowga as a Maintenance Engineer, Sam transitioned into his current Business Improvement role, earning his HND in Business along the way. With a sound understanding of both the operational and commercial aspects of the business, Sam is able to adapt to a variety of challenges, of which there are many!
During the Covid-19 crisis Sam has been working remotely from home for the most part but has also been to the head office on occasion when required, working off his laptop in a spare meeting room or on a desk two metres away from a colleague to maintain good social distancing practices.
Being very IT savvy, Sam often provides internal IT support across the company, a responsibility that has been more demanding than ever given the current circumstances. Having someone internal who can fault find and problem solve has been invaluable due to the remote working that has been required, with Sam receiving consistent calls and emails from colleagues needing support. Examples being getting access to internal servers through a VPN or connecting to their office PC through remote desktop.
A core focus of Sam's role, when it comes to continuous improvement, is heavily centred around the development of our CAFM/business management software simPRO. It is via simPRO that we manage our operations, end-to-end. By continuously reviewing simPRO and the way we use it, Sam is able to provide essential information on where we can improve to get the most out of the system to improve our performance internally & externally as a result.
Sam also looks at how processes can be made smarter, such as utilising the way simPRO automates service dates for assets to build automated planners and maintain compliance and also simplifying the reporting process via the systems BI (business intelligence) reporting functionality which allows for a capture of multiple streams of data to be displayed in a simple, visual format which can be quickly interpreted and acted upon.
Through BI reporting, Sam has also developed a variety of reports using the data within the system, allowing for Contract Managers to better monitor the performance of their contracts and he is currently looking at how the system can be used to store vital service and contract documentation that is easily navigated and accessed.
The biggest challenge for Sam has been creating a structured environment at home to keep himself motivated, finding that establishing small projects to complete has allowed him to stay focussed whilst also being able to provide support across the organisation when required.
As an organisation we have taken advantage of Microsoft Teams through our Microsoft 365 package, with employees having regular check ins through the weeks via the platform, which has helped everyone stay connected and in some ways even improved the way we communicate
Sam has had regular contact with the Senior Management through Microsoft Teams, with the focus of these conversations being around internal process performance and where there may be opportunities for improvement to aid Sowga to develop and adapt to come out of this testing period in a strong position.
Sam has also used this platform to host workshops with colleagues helping the rest of the team to developing their knowledge and competency around optimising the use of internal systems.
As someone who likes to unwind and relax through the form of exercise Sam has also had to adapt this part of his life due to restrictions such as gym closures, using his downtime to get back into running and also utilising a free membership to Boxx online that is included in the employee engagement and reward platform PERKBOX.
As Sam's role is dedicated to business improvement, the most rewarding aspect for him is being able to see the work he does having a positive impact on performance, be it through helping colleagues achieve more in their roles or discovering a work-flow problem and developing or altering its structure.
Sam also enjoys being heavily involved in all things innovative at the company, currently working on innovative projects including IOT integration with our software providers simPRO, which will allow us to add value to the services we offer our clients and help future proof the company in these challenging and changing times.