Peter Roles, Senior Consultant, 4xi Global Remote Site Consulting
I remember when working in the UK, many years ago, and absolutely dreaded the day that the auditor arrived with their checklist and clipboard. They would come to check the accuracy of the inventory or count the petty cash - in both cases a £10 shortfall in either was considered a 'breach of the regulations' but paled into insignificance for the multi-million £ operation and thousands of daily customers I was overseeing.
The auditors were normally accountants looking for problems or non-compliance so they could report it back to the boss more to justify their existence than actually improve the businesses.
"In the bigger scheme of things this meant nothing at all!! They never looked at the standards of operations, service standards, food quality, or customer satisfaction - these non-material issues became more important than what really mattered for the long term success of the business."
I wanted to refine auditing to operational matters. I spent 5 years visiting sites around the world for an international company and we dropped the word 'auditor' from our title and renamed ourselves Operational Advisors. We were focused on standards through the lens of the customer first and foremost and the company in second - this was a refreshing approach that was less about compliance with sometimes unnecessary rules but focusing on the things that really mattered.
We spent most of our time talking to clients and customers about the quality of the services and how we could improve our offering and experience. Of course, compliance with the fundamentals around financials, governance, health and safety remained extremely important but through the lens of materiality our focus was on where we could make the biggest and most important impact.
Rather than applying a 'Gothca' approach of catching the operations teams out for not complying with some irrelevant rule, we worked with them on practical ways of how to improve - once they saw us with them shoulder to shoulder, vested together to improve their businesses, rather than dread, they welcomed us with open arms as trusted advisors and solving challenges together.
Having spent the last 30 years working in remote site services around the world this experience has taught me that 'auditing' and the way that word is interpreted, is no different now as it was when I started in the hospitality industry.
Compliance is of course important, but unless material it is not the be all and end all of the business - in fact often diverted operators into administrators rather than business leaders and entrepreneurs focused on the customer experience.
"We've all witnessed operations managers being bogged down in the office with piles of overwhelming paperwork. What they should be doing is greeting their guests at the front door, welcoming them, connecting with them, understanding how they can make their guest experiences the best it possibly can be."
Looking after the interests of the clients and customers is more important because if we can encourage and help to get this right, the financials will fall in place. Remote sites should be a 'home away from home' for all on the site and once that is working properly other aspects of the operation will improve, and in many cases exceed expectations.
Our approach to this is simple. Give us the opportunity to advise you so that you can concentrate on your core business, whether it is mining, oil and gas, or any other market sector.
4xi Senior Consultant, Peter Roles has an impressive resume in the field of global remote site services, equaled by few in the business. Prior to joining 4xi he was lead of a flagship project at HKIA base, Kabul in Afghanistan working with NATO and running an 8,000-person camp.
With stints across Africa, Australasia, and the Middle East, Peter has led operations in Australia, United Arab Emirates, Iraq, Mali, Kuwait, Haiti, Germany, Angola, Congo, Somalia, Zambia, and Sierra Leone. He was also the Honorary Consul for Australia for while in Angola!
Peter is also joined by Gary Mackay, another global remote site operations expert based in Santiago, Chile.
4xi, headquartered in the US with co-founders Simon Elliot based in San Francisco and Barbara Boden based in New York continues to grow its range of services and expertise, focused on driving value in the world of work.
Their global remote site practice focuses on Oil & Gas, onshore and offshore, Mining, Military and Government and Construction projects helping them get a better work experience, drive efficiency and transparency in operations and performance.
“We see a lot of opportunity in this field where often the camp management and services are ripe for driving efficiency and improvement, and an industry that will benefit from our global expertise.”
Utilizing not just our experience and expertise, and the collective strength of the 4xi network, we will be leveraging our Innovation Partner, MyFieldAudits and with this technology that gives clients 24/7 visibility into operations and tracking key performance indicators in real time.
4xi is approaching the business from the essential building foundations of Health & Safety, and Quality Assurance of the facilities services.
But we're really drilling down into the efficiency of each individual service provided – from food to housekeeping to maintenance to transportation, and the personnel employed, supply chain, and the actual quality and cost of the outcomes delivered.
“Our 4xi Global Remote Site Consulting offering is designed to really help clients get hold of their camp management services, hold their contractors accountable, and get the very best experience for their people at a fair and reasonable price.”
For more information on 4xi visit www.4xiconsulting.com
Inspiring the future, together.
4xi Global Workplace Consulting & Solutions provides a range of services to support Corporations, Service Providers, Innovators, and Accelerators to navigate the world of work. Inspiring the future of work, together.
4xi is proud to be Chair of WORKTECH Academy for North America and a member of its Leadership Advisory Board. 4xi is a Global Ambassador for WORKTECH Academy.
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