Enhancing Efficiency of Community Workers Allowance - Centacare Cairns - Case Study Example

Business Case: Enhancing Efficiency of Community Workers Allowance to Promote Assistance to Disadvantaged Groups in the Community (Cairns, Queensland) Name of University Submitted by Names: Tutor: Date Business Case: Enhancing Efficiency of Community Workers Allowance to Promote Assistance to Disadvantaged Groups in the Community (Cairns, Queensland) This Business Case on enhancing efficiency of community workers allowance will propose options to the Management of Cairns’ Centacare to solve the current limitations in the ICT solution to support the effective and efficient payment scheme of community workers to improve services provided to disadvantaged groups in Australian community of Cairns, Queensland. Therefore the document will give detailed costs, benefits and the risks that various options bear (Home 2014). Moreover, there will be additional information to support the preferred way forward from the options discussed. Introduction Centacare Cairns is a charitable organization that provides social services to the people of Cairns, extending to the wider region of North of Queensland, particularly to those who are disadvantaged, vulnerable or marginalized within the community. Its vision is to enhance the community that is healthy and connected which supports and reflects equality, dignity and participation of all its members. Through its Christian support, assistance and care, the community aims at restoring the balance in each individual’s life in the community. In doing so, the organization will be acknowledging the deep relationship of the Torres Strait Islander and Aboriginal people to the country. Furthermore, it will be acknowledging and respecting the custodians of the past and the present cultural history: the Gimuy Yidinji, the Kuku Yelangi, the Yirri-jandi and the Guru Gula Gung-Gand-ji and their ancestry (About US 2014). Over time, it has been noticed that the number of people wishing to register with the organization to provide the services to community has been declining. In bid to respond to this problem, the organization proposes that the current community workers allowance scheme be extended. It is because, according to the recent internal reviews and external reviews, the community members and the scope of the coverage of the community’s services have increased tremendously. This puts pressure to the ICT department to change its policies to cope up with the emerging trends and circumstances. It should be mentioned that of late, in attempt to solve the situation, the Community Worker’s sector has been making some critical changes to its business operations. However, these have resulted to some operations functioning semi-autonomously and regionally inconsistent. Consequently, there have been high costs of labor, lack of agility and stresses in changing environment among other issues. For the effective management of the implementation of the Community Workers Allowance Scheme, so that the objectives of meeting the needs of the community can be assured, Centacare should revise its service delivery model so that data are collected electronically, to enhance earlier and sophisticated processing of payments. Nonetheless, the move should be in line with the client’s expectation when interacting with the organization online. The Current Problem Centacare’s community workers play very important roles in meeting the needs of the vulnerable groups, but the current payment administration system is causing many of them to quit or reduce the number of hours they have to work at the organization. Taking into account that many families are increasing, due to immigration and expansion in area of service coverage, the organization’s services may not reach many of the needy citizens. Therefore as a measure to address this issue, the office of Executive Director of the Centacare Cairns has proposed the introduction of a new efficient allowance scheme to retain the existing community workers and attract others as workers and volunteers in the organization (Chamorro-Premuzic 2013). In this regard, all identifications, reporting, verifications and payments will be processed electronically. Background of the Organization The origin of the organization can be traced back to the Natural Family Planning Teachers’ Group that begun to spread its counseling to other clientele, other than the teachers themselves. However, the group became Centacare Cairns in 1992. For the thirty years, the organization has been offering relationship services, emergency relief, residential care, family support, individual and family counseling, migrant services, day respite services, pregnancy care and neighborhood support. Moreover, in heady days, it offers refugee settlement services, employment services, schools’ program, youth mentoring, mental health, youth support and men’s program. The Organization Vision Centacare’s vision is to have a community that is healthy and connected to reflect and support the equality, dignity, and participation of all members. Purpose/ Mission The organization’s mission is to strengthen its community by providing necessary human services, as underpinned by its catholic teachings. Its Values The organization’s four major values are human dignity, solidarity, community and common good, and special recognition to those that are much in need. Strategic Goals Have a community that is connected Provide services that are innovative and sustainable Maintain an organization culture that fosters a work force that is confident, creative and effective. Principles for Integrated Quality Business Management Leadership Client focus Involvement of people Process approach Systems approach Continual improvement Decision making by factual approach Mutually beneficial relationships Integrated business management Existing Software and Hardware Currently, most processes regarding identifications, reporting, verifications and payments are done manually, as essential softwares and hardwares that can enhance electronic transactions have not been installed in place. Consequently, there have been a lot of inaccuracies in financial reporting of the community workers’ payments, leading to increased staff turnovers and toil costs due to the decreased morale of the staff (Martin 2014). This unsuccessful delivery of accurate payment system has cast doubt on the organization hopping to attract more workers and retain the current ones due to increased demand for their services. Moreover, without the need to correct the situation effectively, the public will have a negative perception to the organization’s payment scheme; this may in turn not attract donors and grants from the government to support it (Andre 2014; Nornberg 2014). Stakeholders in the Project The Office of the Corporate Service has carried out a survey to evaluate the impact of the current payment scheme to all stakeholders in the organization. Key players such as community workers and members of the billing department noted the complexity of the process and long time of processing as the major contributors of the decline in their morale to work for the organization over last past few years. Business Objectives Once the business issues above have been resolved, by seriously taking into consideration inputs of all clients and the executives, the responsible department calls for the following objectives: The clients will be able to understand and utilize all payment products and channels that the new system would have chosen There will be integrated system that is much efficient to eliminate the need of a third party so that clients can have more optimized experiences and outcomes The system will be able to support more efficient decision making and processing All services will be coordinated for effective support to the organization’s community worker. How the Objectives will be measured E-Business activities- To determine the number of people that are comfortable with the system, there will be tools on the company’s website, to measure the number of business activities that have taken place. Service Centre- The number of and the usage of service centers will determine the employees’ response to the new system. They will afford e-channels and payment products that the clients will no longer require a third party. The service centers will enable support staffs to know any difficulties, if expressed, so that they can be counted. Risk Analysis- There will be evaluation of the risks the new system may be bringing such as high costs of transactions and so forth. However, since it is expected that there may be community workers who may not feel comfortable at first, Service Delivery Partners may be employed to guide them so that paper claims can be successfully be converted into electronic formats. These service partners will be noting the number of complaints or other concerns that users experience with the system. Critical Assumptions and Constraints The first assumption is that there will be no technological limitations, on both sides for the transactions between the billing department and community workers to be successful. The items bought will be around for a relatively long time to enhance stability; they will not become perished easily. In this regard, the organization will have to have a website equipped with ecommerce capabilities. There will also be need of intranet so that customer orders can be processed very fast. The company also assumes that there will be a robust internet that is reliable for everyone in Cairns and beyond in Queensland. Lastly, it is assumed that the pricing structure of the internet will not panelize the consumers, as there will be a lot of centers for customers to use for free. However, the company faces constraints such as older people seeing it as much revolutionary. Some people also still do not want to transact over the internet due to lack of trust or knowledge. Therefore it will require that the employees and the management become IT-literate to manage and maintain information flows. Analysis of Options and Recommendation To address the business problem stated above, the following options were mentioned: doing nothing, developing and implementing ICT and devolved scheme management. Option Description Option 1 – Do Nothing Description Costs This will require continuing with the existing systems and processes. Current costs for the existing processes and systems are likely to grow. Risks Barriers Inaccuracies in financial reporting of the community workers’ payments, leading to increased staff turnovers and toil costs due to the decreased morale of the staff. This unsuccessful delivery of accurate payment system will cast doubt on the organization hopping to attract more workers and retain the current ones due to increased demand for their services. Moreover, without the need to correct the situation effectively, the public will have a negative perception to the organization’s payment scheme, this may in turn not attract donors and grants from the government to support it (Nornberg 2014) The old systems may not be reformed in future due to obsolescence. Strengths Weaknesses No or very minimal funds will be needed to maintain the status quo. Accumulating maintenance and replacement costs Currents risks and negative issues continue The system may not easily be changed in future Technical problems are expected to grow As it ages, there will be difficulty in retaining its knowledge and experience. Option 2 – ICT Development and Implementation Description Costs Business process re-engineering is expected. It may not undertake the whole system redesign The company should be prepared to incur re-engineering and system maintenance costs Risks Barriers Risk of obsolescence Risk of employee turn down (ICT Champions 2014) Employee ICT illiteracy level High installation costs(ICT Champions 2014) Strengths Weaknesses Employee retention Employee attraction as volunteers and workers Good public image More donor funding Reduced recruitment costs Improved overall performance (Martin 2014) Low level of ICT literacy in rural areas (Buzzle.com 2014) Option 3 – Devolved scheme management Description Costs This will involve transferring the billing and payment roles to the local communities so that it becomes easy to pay the workers accurately. More costs for the employed local officers More costs for establishing office functions Risks Barriers Inaccurate and inefficient payments to employees may continue Lack of More funds to pay new officers and building new field offices Strengths Weaknesses There will be no need of spending to install and maintain new ICT facilities Currents risks and negative issues continue The system may not easily be changed in future Option Analysis by NPV Financial Year 1 2 3 Internal (Agency) Costs [A] 1000 250 500 External (user) Costs [B] 500 0 125 Internal (Agency) Benefits [C] 0 250 250 External (User) Benefits [D] 0 1500 1500 Net Value Flows [E = C+D-A-B] -1500 1500 1125 Discounted Value Flows (10% discount rate for this project) -1363.6 1024.5 845.2 Recommendation From the option description and NPV analysis, it is notable that the option of developing and implementing ICT as a solution to the new efficient payment scheme is the most efficient and therefore the firm should choose it. Although there may be high installation costs, the overall benefits as revealed by the NPV analysis are huge. Therefore, they will be realized by the organization having the following strengths: Employee retention Employee attraction as volunteers and workers Good public image More donor funding Reduced recruitment costs Improved overall performance Preliminary Project Requirement Functionality The system should enable workers to perform online registration and process their payments with a lot of ease. Specifically, it should perform community worker registration and de-registration and payment processing (National Audit Office 2014). General Requirements Generally, the system should ensure security and privacy, according to the Australian online transaction policy. It should be adept in performance, and have manual steps that are easily managed for easier and comfortable usage. Importantly, it should be available, reliable and maintainable. All systems that transact electronically in Australia are supposed to adhere to the requirements of the Australian Government Architecture. In this regard, major external interfaces of the system should be dependent on the legislative policies (National Audit Office 2014). Preliminary Budget and Financial Analysis Schedule Estimates Activity 2015/16 2016/17 Q1 Q2 Q3 Q4 Q1 Q2 Q3 Q4 Perception of the Business problem Project management team scrutiny XXXX XXXXX XXXXX XXXXX XXXXX XXXXX XXXXX XXXX Project governance structure formulation XXXX XXXXX XXXXX XXXXX Project background preparation and presentation XXXXX Allowance for more updates on the project XXXXX XXXXX Benefits/ risks and management plan XXXXX XXXXX XXXXX XXXXX XXXXX XXXXX XXXX Preparing for ICT and other options analysis XXXXX First detailed options analysis XXXXX XXXXX Second options analysis XXXXX XXXXX XXXXX Planning for project implementation XXXX Planning for risk mitigation XXXXX Estimating project costs XXXXX Finalizing the business case XXXX Completion of the first phase and proof of concepts XXXXX Completion of the second phase and proof of concepts XXXX Project delivery XXXX Potential Risks The most expected risk to the scheme is the management of the project itself. Therefore there should be specific strategies put to mitigate them. It implies that the management will have to draw benefits matrix, risk register, and risk management plan (ICT Champions 2014). The Project Scope Statement Project over view This project is being undertaken to correct inefficiencies in the current payment scheme of the Centacare Cairns charitable organization. Most processes that regard identifications, reporting, verifications and payments are being done manually, as essential softwares and hardwares that can enhance electronic transactions have not been installed in place. Consequently, most employees have not been receiving their fair dues due to a lot of inaccuracies in financial reporting of the community workers’ payments, leading to increased staff turnovers and toil costs due to the decreased morale of the staff (Chamorro-Premuzic 2013). Externally, the organization has been losing its image due the increased turnover of its workers. Thus it has been of great concern that the new system becomes installed so that it can attract more workers and retains the existing ones, taking into account that the demand for its services is increasing. Equally important, without the company correcting its image, donors and grant providers will ultimately shy away. The project which is supposed to take two years, will see the Centacare organization meeting successfully, the needs of its community such as relationship services, emergency relief, residential care, family support, individual and family counseling, migrant services, day respite services, pregnancy care and neighborhood support. The Scope of the Project The whole project is supposed to cost AUS $750,000. Governance The completion of the project must be achieved within two years. The oversight for the development and delivery of the project will sit with the Executive Committee. The executive Committee will have to appoint the Senior Responsible Officer who will take the responsibility of the whole project. The officer will be supported by the Project Management Office. They will be coordinating the provisions of external and internal environments to get assurance on the reliability and validity of the project. However, since the project is supposed to meet the needs of stakeholders, they will be involving them in all crucial stages and aspects of the project development. Project Milestone Perception of the Business problem Project management team scrutiny Project governance structure formulation Project background preparation and presentation Strategic solution alignment, revision and presentation Allowance for more updates on the project Benefits/ risks and management plan Preparing for ICT and other options analysis First detailed options analysis Second options analysis Planning for project implementation Planning for risk mitigation Estimating project costs Finalizing the business case Completion of the first phase and proof of concepts Completion of the second phase and proof of concepts Project delivery Project Approach The project contractor will keep all documents and schedules relating to the project He will perform his work keeping in touch with the company’s project management team which will be reviewing its development according to the needs of community workers and members in the billing department. However, the project contractor will be responsible for any negligence or misconducts that may arise. During its execution, he will be providing necessary periodic report to the project committee (Wiley Online Library 2014). Communication Management The contractor will be presenting the status of the project on a weekly basis to the project committee. If there is an urgent issue, the contractor and the responsible officer should communicate through emails or phone numbers. If there are any modifications in schedule, budget or scope, the contractor should inform the Project Committee or the Senior Responsible Officer. However, any change in communication mode can be done through telephone. Resource Management The contractor should be informed that he will be producing a Resource Management Plan that will indicate the following: All services and materials/ equipment delivered along with the project’s quality information and cost estimates. Any materials or services obtained outside sources should be immediately disclosed to the project management team or the Senior Responsible Officer. Outstanding Issues The contractor will be responsible for all workmanship and work rendered. The contractor is also supposed to take notes on the expected environmental changes such as climate among others. There will be an incentive of 5% of the total contract value for early delivery. Likewise, there is an approved penalty of 5% of the total value for any late delivery (Wiley Online Library 2014). Approvals All funding have been preapproved before being placed in a reserve account. The contractor may therefore withdraw on quarterly basis in equal installments. This will begin at the second quarter, as Centacare expresses that it will withhold the amount of the first quarter until all the proportionate work is completed and approved. However, it will be the duty of the contractor to generate invoices at the close of every transaction/ construction quarter. Therefore the contractor will be expected to do the following: Invoicing all documents of materials that will be purchased in every quarter Invoicing documents of works completed during the previous quarterly session Payment in a year will be four: they will be made in four quarterly proportions Any anticipated variance of materials/ equipments above 2% will require explanation and approval (Wiley Online Library 2014) List of References About US, 2014, Centacare Cairns, viewed on 08 September 2014, Andre, C 2014, Voluntary Health Risks: Who Should Pay?, Santa Clara University, viewed on 08 September 2014, Buzzle.com, 2014, Advantages and Disadvantages of Electronic Commerce (e-commerce), viewed on 08 September 2014, Chamorro-Premuzic, T 2013, Does Money Really Affect Motivation? A Review of the Research, Harvard Business Review, viewed on 08 September 2014, Home, 2014, Centacare Cairns, viewed on 08 September 2014, ICT Champions, 2014, What are the health and safety risks when using ICT?, viewed on 08 September 2014, Martin, L 2014, The effects of ICT use on employee's motivations: an empirical evaluation, Ideas, viewed on 08 September 2014, National Audit Office, 2014, Managing the risks of legacy ICT to public service delivery, nao.org, viewed on 08 September 2014, < http://www.nao.org.uk/report/managing-risks-legacy-ict-public-service-delivery-2/> Nornberg, V M 2014, The Annual Pay Raise Is Dead. Here's Why I'm Not Mourning, Inc., viewed on 08 September 2014, Wiley Online Library, 2014, Project Scope Statement Example, viewed on 08 September 2014, Read More