How does Logistics support UCSF?
Logistics is a one-stop shop for mail and package services, storage, moving, installation, equipment receipt and delivery, surplus and we provide an online warehouse for gases and alcohol. Our team is located at Oyster Point in South San Francisco with two distribution hubs on the Parnassus and Mission Bay campuses. Every day, our roughly 50-person team is delivering mail, essential goods, and services to UCSF customers as far as the East Bay.
How do we use gas at UCSF?
Logistics fulfills about 3000 gas orders from both Campus and Health customers and delivers a total of nearly 45,000 gas cylinders every year. UCSF uses gas in many ways, from industrial-size gas cylinders supporting research activities to smaller, portable oxygen cylinders supporting patient care in our medical centers. Our goal is to provide next-day service for all gas orders.
What problem were you trying to solve with the "perfect orders" project?
Like any new leader in an organization, I was going through the learning cycle. I like to say, first you learn what you and your team do. Then, you figure out how much you do. Finally, you learn how well your team does its work. In our gas business line, we did not understand how well we served our customers. We created the “Perfect Order KPI Dashboard” to tell us how often we completed “perfect orders”—getting the right products in the right quantities delivered on time to our customers. We figured if we knew our perfect order fulfillment rate, we’d know how well we served UCSF departments.
Why does it matter?
We went from having no visible information to having detailed metrics viewable by everyone on the team. Our team can better see problems in real-time, investigate delayed orders more quickly, and ultimately provide better service to department customers. When we first analyzed the data, we found “perfect orders” were as low as 45%. With increased visibility and focus, we are now trending closer to 90%!
Fill in the blank: Continuous improvement is _________.
Essential. For us, it’s got to be our way of life. In Logistics, “We Deliver Excellence” is our moniker. This project has given us confidence that we are on the right track.
