BNSF News

The BNSF Service Excellence Best Way Initiative: Metrics and Meetings Drive Change

2008-12-01

The goal of the metrics and meetings foundation initiative is to change the way terminal leaders drive performance by using a common goal (on-time departure), a common measurement system (the terminal dashboard) and a continuous improvement process (Issue Resolution Process or IRP). 

The combination of the terminal dashboard and IRP meeting process has effectively helped terminal leaders at Kansas City, Kan., (Argentine) and Galesburg, Ill., improve and sustain on-time departures, the key terminal performance metric. 

The metrics and meetings initiative follows a five-step approach to set the direction for a successful operations management process.

1. Metrics: Establishes comprehensive metrics and accountability.
2. Targets: Creates realistic targets, goals and plans.
3. Tracking: Tracks performance effectiveness.
4. Dialogues: Conducts robust performance dialogues to ensure continuous improvement.
5. Reward: Ensures accountability and drive.

The cornerstone of the metrics and meetings foundation initiative is the terminal dashboard. The terminal dashboard tracks the performance of terminal level metrics against goals, defining areas of success and identifying areas where improvement is possible.

Terminals receive a three-page automated terminal dashboard that supplies 85 key metrics to measure terminal performance on a daily, weekly and monthly basis. The first page of the dashboard covers high-level terminal metrics that track the overall performance of the terminal and its impact on the network. The second page provides terminal and process measures, which report on daily performance against terminal standard process times and train family standards. The statistics include high-level metrics and are divided into train types. On the third page of the dashboard, terminal performance is broken down by shift and position responsible.

Enabling leaders to quickly grasp and act on terminal performance is one of the most meaningful impacts of the Best Way meetings and metrics initiative. 

Galesburg Superintendent Rick Danielson said he used to review a stack of paper several inches thick on Galesburg operations every day. 

“Now, all I need is the dashboard that has been developed by the Best Way initiative,” he said.

Both the Argentine and Galesburg terminals have significantly reduced the time needed to prepare daily morning terminal performance updates. Argentine replaced a manually updated sheet listing more than 75 metrics with an automated terminal dashboard that tracks daily, weekly and monthly performance for each of its terminal and production metrics. Argentine leaders now need only about 30 minutes to provide its terminal with an update on the previous day’s performance. 

According to John Sutphin, assistant superintendent at the Kansas City terminal, “It only takes a few minutes to run the dashboard. The remainder of the time is using the data from the dashboard to develop the message we will deliver in our daily update.”

Terminal performance issues are addressed in weekly IRP meetings, which leaders from each department are required to attend. Dialogue in these meetings results in more effective cross-departmental coordination and planning, leading to robust solutions for issues that affect on-time departures.

The IRP meeting process itself is rigorous. Agendas are distributed days in advance of the meeting. The agendas clearly identify the performance issues that will be discussed. Performance issues are assigned to IRP team members and the resolution process is tracked using an online process improvement tool.

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