Labor Standards (MPT) FAQ


Why does a company need an outside consultant to establish standards for labor expense control?
What is unique about the Scheduling Dynamics approach?
Isn't a POS/Time and Attendance based electronic scheduling system just as effective?
How does the approach work?
What does the client company have to invest?
How long does it take to roll out a program?
Why does it take so long?
How do we bill for our services?
What kind of return could your operation expect?
How could your operation know the potential return?
What kind of support do we offer at the conclusion of our services?
Why are we so confident in our approach?


Why does a company need an outside consultant to establish standards for labor expense control? A successful long-term program requires commitment from the top down and participation from the bottom up. A good consultant will focus on all levels of the organization to ensure they are informed and understand all aspects and impacts careful norm setting will bring about. Back to top ...
What is unique about the Scheduling Dynamics approach? Rather than staffing our projects with many individuals (and billing hours), we provide a single project director who relies on internal manpower provided by the client supermarket or drug store chain. The approach guarantees the organization will learn and understand all aspects of the effort and can successfully carry on without additional consulting help in the future. We have the experience to eliminate the trial and error a company faces on its own. We have been recognized by Food Marketing Institute and the National Association of Chain Drug Stores as a leader in labor scheduling for more than 20 years. Our approach costs less and works better. Back to top ...
Isn't a POS/Time and Attendance based electronic scheduling system just as effective? A computer based system must have three necessary components to be successful: 1.The norms used in the system must be adapted to the specific store, department and company. One size does not fit all. 2.The people at store level who will use the system must believe the standards used are applicable to their own operation. If they are not convinced the norms are correct, they will not use the system effectively. 3.Application. The entire budgeting and weekly performance evaluation must be premised on the requirements generated by the scheduling system and not the other way around. Computer based systems have been successful in scheduling frequent customer activity departments such as the supermarket front-end. They have had much less success in production departments (produce, deli, bakery) or departments highly tailored to individual company strategies or policies (pharmacy, café, service center, etc.). Back to top ...
How does the approach work? We provide an experienced project director who is assigned to the client on a long-term basis. We assist the company in developing and internal approach through training a dedicated team of company associates to implement and administer the labor scheduling system. We assist the company in clarifying its internal goals and policies to they can be supported by the effort. The system can be simple or sophisticated, but it will be based on the needs of each location. Back to top ...
What does the client company have to invest? The organization must provide one or more individuals with a good knowledge of the operation to work with us on a full-time basis during the development phase. This individual or group will be responsible for the administration and updating of the scheduling and reporting system after our work is completed. The organization must also provide a commitment to participation of all department and location managers as well as supervisory and executive management in a series of training sessions and policy definition sessions. Back to top ...
How long does it take to roll out a program? Requirements will vary based on the number of stores and departments, the geographical spread of the locations, and the availability of the key management players during the start-up phase. Normally it requires a minimum of twelve weeks of our assistance spread over approximately 18 calendar weeks to install a program in a group of 8-12 stores. Additional stores and districts will require additional time. Back to top ...
Why does it take so long? It takes at least 12 calendar weeks to train the team, collect factual data for a good data base and observe enough tasks to establish proper norms. Speeding up the process decreases the likelihood of long-term success. Back to top ...
How do we bill for our services? We bill on a weekly basis for each week of services we provide on the company's premises. The weekly fee is not based on the size of the company or the potential savings to be generated, but on the work we will actually provide. The company does not have to buy any additional store or computer equipment or software packages, although we may require assistance from the internal MIS department to tailor the reporting system of simplify long-term data collection. Back to top ...
What kind of return could your operation expect? Unless you currently use a labor scheduling system that sets norms for all activities in all departments (including management) at store level and then matches performance goals to those individually tailored weekly requirements, your operation can improve its expense control. A fairly administered labor scheduling program will also enhance customer service levels and store conditions. The size of the return will vary by company, but can be more than enough to justify the effort. Back to top ...
How could your operation know the potential return? We generally perform an analysis outlining the specific return by department for each potential client. The analysis also highlights other opportunities that may exist to improve expense control, customer service or store conditions. Contact us regarding the specifics of the process. Back to top ...
What kind of support do we offer at the conclusion of our services? We provide follow-up services at minimal cost. We provide telephone support and can offer contacts through our user groups. Back to top ...
Why are we so confident in our approach? We have experience in so many kinds of operations in so many geographic regions. We have put companies on the road to success that tried to develop their own labor scheduling systems. We have assisted companies exasperated in making electronic systems work in the whole drug store or supermarket. We have replaced other consultants to make failed systems successful. We have saved our clients millions of dollars dealing in a straightforward, professional approach. We can succeed in your operation because we have succeeded in so many others. Back to top ...

Why does a company need an outside consultant to establish standards for labor expense control?

A successful long-term program requires commitment from the top down and participation from the bottom up. A good consultant will focus on all levels of the organization to ensure they are informed and understand all aspects and impacts careful norm setting will bring about.

What is unique about the Scheduling Dynamics approach?

Rather than staffing our projects with many individuals (and billing hours), we provide a single project director who relies on internal manpower provided by the client supermarket or drug store chain. The approach guarantees the organization will learn and understand all aspects of the effort and can successfully carry on without additional consulting help in the future. We have the experience to eliminate the trial and error a company faces on its own. We have been recognized by Food Marketing Institute and the National Association of Chain Drug Stores as a leader in labor scheduling for more than 20 years. Our approach costs less and works better.

Isn't a POS/Time and Attendance based electronic scheduling system just as effective?

A computer based system must have three necessary components to be successful: 1.The norms used in the system must be adapted to the specific store, department and company. One size does not fit all. 2.The people at store level who will use the system must believe the standards used are applicable to their own operation. If they are not convinced the norms are correct, they will not use the system effectively. 3.Application. The entire budgeting and weekly performance evaluation must be premised on the requirements generated by the scheduling system and not the other way around. Computer based systems have been successful in scheduling frequent customer activity departments such as the supermarket front-end. They have had much less success in production departments (produce, deli, bakery) or departments highly tailored to individual company strategies or policies (pharmacy, café, service center, etc.).

How does the approach work?

We provide an experienced project director who is assigned to the client on a long-term basis. We assist the company in developing and internal approach through training a dedicated team of company associates to implement and administer the labor scheduling system. We assist the company in clarifying its internal goals and policies to they can be supported by the effort. The system can be simple or sophisticated, but it will be based on the needs of each location.

What does the client company have to invest?

The organization must provide one or more individuals with a good knowledge of the operation to work with us on a full-time basis during the development phase. This individual or group will be responsible for the administration and updating of the scheduling and reporting system after our work is completed. The organization must also provide a commitment to participation of all department and location managers as well as supervisory and executive management in a series of training sessions and policy definition sessions.

How long does it take to roll out a program?

Requirements will vary based on the number of stores and departments, the geographical spread of the locations, and the availability of the key management players during the start-up phase. Normally it requires a minimum of twelve weeks of our assistance spread over approximately 18 calendar weeks to install a program in a group of 8-12 stores. Additional stores and districts will require additional time.

Why does it take so long?

It takes at least 12 calendar weeks to train the team, collect factual data for a good data base and observe enough tasks to establish proper norms. Speeding up the process decreases the likelihood of long-term success.

How do we bill for our services?

We bill on a weekly basis for each week of services we provide on the company's premises. The weekly fee is not based on the size of the company or the potential savings to be generated, but on the work we will actually provide. The company does not have to buy any additional store or computer equipment or software packages, although we may require assistance from the internal MIS department to tailor the reporting system of simplify long-term data collection.

What kind of return could your operation expect?

Unless you currently use a labor scheduling system that sets norms for all activities in all departments (including management) at store level and then matches performance goals to those individually tailored weekly requirements, your operation can improve its expense control. A fairly administered labor scheduling program will also enhance customer service levels and store conditions. The size of the return will vary by company, but can be more than enough to justify the effort.

How could your operation know the potential return?

We generally perform an analysis outlining the specific return by department for each potential client. The analysis also highlights other opportunities that may exist to improve expense control, customer service or store conditions. Contact us regarding the specifics of the process.

What kind of support do we offer at the conclusion of our services?

We provide follow-up services at minimal cost. We provide telephone support and can offer contacts through our user groups.

Why are we so confident in our approach?

We have experience in so many kinds of operations in so many geographic regions. We have put companies on the road to success that tried to develop their own labor scheduling systems. We have assisted companies exasperated in making electronic systems work in the whole drug store or supermarket. We have replaced other consultants to make failed systems successful. We have saved our clients millions of dollars dealing in a straightforward, professional approach. We can succeed in your operation because we have succeeded in so many others.