Learning Academy Box Sets

Take the opportunity to gain accreditation in a specific subject. Our Box Sets are groups of related modules that help you focus your learning. The full box set cost includes your accreditation. To complete accreditation, you need to watch all the modules and send an email to accreditation@theforum.social to describe what you have taken from the modules and how you have applied these in your role.
Each Box Set costs £325 +VAT. (Free to anyone on an Assisted Learning Pathway). Click on the descriptions below to book your place now.

Student takeaways

One of our members from Lifeplus completed the Capacity Planning, Budgeting & Forecasting box set these are the headline takeaways:
- A small impact in your field can have a good effect higher up in the ranks at board level i.e. matching up with a higher strategic objective

- Planning teams need to collaborate with other areas/organisations, engage stakeholders

- Increase Operational effectiveness - As a team, we have vastly increased our communication channels

- Improve and manage the flow of your data cycle and version control

- Long Term: Financial and Budget Planning – Operational: Drives capacity, scenario planning, and risk

- In the middle of a transformation/plan, the challenges are still there, and targets not being met --> this must lead to evolving the approach to capacity and demand

- Improve the quality of the data, focussing on what/why/how, determine what happened to the customer base

- Demonstrating Value and ROI – benefits achieved, costs avoided, risks avoided

Published on 20 December 2022

Box Set: Planning & Insight in the Back Office

Watch at your own pace

Modules

1: Introduction to Back Office & Digital
This module introduces the series, by describing the methods we are teaching and the type of work they apply to. We look at what makes these kinds of operations different from a contact centre and what is similar. We alos learn about some of the specific skills needed amd some of the challenge we might face and how to overcome them with self-service and digital channels as well as more focus on planning in the back office.

2: Driving Improvement The Planning Cycle
This module covers:

The various styles of planning, including detailed, flexible, short-term, and long-term plans, highlighting their importance in both personal and business contexts.
The introduction of the planning cycle as a fundamental framework applicable to all roles within an organisation, emphasising its role in achieving desired outcomes.
A detailed breakdown of the planning cycle into six critical steps for strategic delivery, emphasising continuous assessment, learning, and adaptation to enhance organisational effectiveness and drive improvement.

3: Driving Improvement The Planning Cycle Exercise

4: Capacity Planning Fundamentals for Digital & Back Office
In this module we want to look at the fundamentals of capacity planning for back office and digital. What makes it different from contact centres? What are the key inputs you need to be tracking and forecasting? Explore the importance of setting work priorities and allocation rules.

5: Capacity Planning Models & Exercises
In this module we invite you to open up some spreadsheet planning models and work with them interactively, to explore how you can optimise your resource allocation and skills mix to achieve better service by using resource in different ways. Download the three spreadsheet models here:

Monthly Operating plan
Weekly Operating Plan
Daily Operating Plan

We end by focussing on what is most important

6: Introduction to Shrinkage
Discover what shrinkage is and the correct way to calculate basic shrinkage and tiered (or primary and secondary shrinkage). In this module, you will;

Understand the problems caused by incorrectly calculating shrinkage
Learn about when it is best to use budget shrinkage targets and when using recent historical data will be to your advantage.
See the value of managing shrinkage and the return on investment that it can bring to your business.

7: Data preparation & analysis
Look at how to prepare your data for resource planning and operational management. See what you need to do when you start planning in these areas for the first time.

8: Back Office - Skills, Task Timings and Work Allocation
We look at the importance of getting the handling time correct, how we get this data and ensure it is accurate. We examine how to manage work in progress, in the context of service expectations for the end-to-end process and the skills available, so as to forecast where queues may get out of control and what work needs prioritising for which people. Explore this both tactically and strategically

Learning From Best Practice

These final modules show how different members of our Back Office & Processing Operations Network Group have put these principles into practice in their own operations. Many thanks to the members who have shared their learning with us. Before you apply for your accreditation we expect you to have watched at least two of them.

The cost of this mini series including accreditation is great value at £325 + VAT and free for students on our assisted learning pathway.