Introduction/Background
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Contractor |
DOE Office |
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Contract No.: DE-AC03-76SF00515 |
CO Name: Tyndal
Lindler |
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Point of Contact:JerryJobe Associate Director, Business Services Division |
Telephone No.: (650)926-4963(SLAC) (510) 637-1885 (OAK) |
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Telephone No.:
(650) 926-4245 |
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FAX
No.: (650) 926-5360 |
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E-mail:
jlj@slac.stanford.edu |
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Date of last assessment: October 1999
Departmental Overview
The Stanford Linear Accelerator Center (SLAC) is dedicated to experimental and theoretical research in elementary particle physics and in those fields that make use of its synchrotron radiation facilities, including biology, chemistry, geology, material science and electrical engineering. This includes the development of new techniques in particle acceleration and detection, and of synchrotron radiation sources and associated instrumentation. The center is operated as a national user facility for the Department of Energy by Stanford University.
This Performance-Based Management (PBM)
Self-Assessment Report presents the results of self-assessments by twelve
functional areas represented by Business Services Division (BSD), Director’s
Office, Library/Archives, Human Resources, and Technical Publications.
The functional area self-assessments are based on, and measured against,
performance objectives currently agreed to between SLAC and DOE/OAK and address
customer satisfaction, cost efficiency, and contract compliance.
Names,
titles, affiliations of participants
Jerry
Jobe, Associate Director, BSD
Doug
Kreitz, Assistant Director, BSD
Ziba
Mahdavi, PBM Project Coordinator, BSD
Status
of Goals from FY 2000 Review
Continue progress on operations and updating of
SLAC’s Business Information System (BIS) and broaden its applicability and
usefulness to the laboratory community. This
will include successfully upgrading the PeopleSoft® Financials
application software to Version 7.5
The overall BIS/BAS system continues to be refined
and improved. Highlights of this
program are detailed below in “Overall Performance” and in the section of
this self-assessment entitled “Information
Management - Business Data Processing”
Successfully implement the SLAC Electronic Time and Effort Entry System
(SETEES) during FY2000.
Our SETEES system
was put on temporary “hold” during this past year. Recent developments in the web-based PeopleSoft® Release 8.0 open it to possible consideration since we are using
PeopleSoft® in other areas. Now that we
have the necessary information on commercial systems, we are in the process of a
“make-or-buy” analysis to see which approach is most efficient and
cost-effective. Our goal is to have
the system in use by the fourth quarter of FY 2001.
Continue
with efforts in Continuous Quality Improvement (CQI) and customer-focused
efforts.
Our
preparations for the Peer Review (scheduled for July 2001) has given us an
excellent opportunity to conduct large scale customer surveying and to once
again evaluate our business processes. All
of the comments (both “areas that work well” and “areas in need of
improvement”) are responded to, in writing, so that the SLAC community is
aware of improvements being made. In
addition, training tailored to preparing for the Peer Review was developed and
delivered with carryover benefits for day-to-day operations.
We have also actively pursued CQI through a number of Focus Group sessions and other activities both within BSD and elsewhere. These actions are listed in an attached document.
Continue to provide timely and accurate business services and information to further SLAC’s research mission.
The newsletter
entitled “The SLAC Bulletin Board” continues to be published every other
week in response to the need for an “official” document for announcing, and
giving notice of, important information so that all members of the SLAC
community have the facts they need to help them carry out their work.
We are also maintaining an up-to-date web version for those who wish to
read current and previous issues on-line.
SLAC’s
Interaction Point newsletter is published monthly by SLAC’s Public
Information Office. The Interaction
Point provides numerous articles regarding ongoing research, other events,
and happenings in the SLAC Community. The
Director’s Office also maintains a web-based news service entitled “Quick
News” which appears on SLAC’s Detailed Web Page.
“Quick News” is updated weekly and staff are given the option of
subscribing to an e-mail version if desired.
SLAC managers communicated with their DOE/OAK
counterparts several times this past year to discuss performance objectives for
their functional areas, and to encourage operational awareness.
The Self-Assessment Report that follows is based on those agreed-upon
performance objectives.
Overall
Performance
BSD and other SLAC Divisions performed
self-assessments based on performance objectives agreed upon between SLAC and
DOE/OAK. The results of the
self-assessments follow. In
accordance with performance-based management principles, the practice of
continuing process improvement and improved communication continue to be the
emphasis of our SLAC departments and functional areas.
SLAC managers seek to increase the quality of communication with their
counterparts in the DOE/OAK Field Office and strive to ensure DOE/OAK awareness
of SLAC processes and procedures.
The Business Information System (BIS)
During FY 2000, we continued to provide accurate
financial data to users by the 5th working day (or sooner) of each
month. Final implementation for
PeopleSoft® Financials Release 7.5 is mid-November 2000.
Other accomplishments included:
We began FY2000 by launching a massive move to
upgrade to Release 7.5 in PeopleSoft® Financials.
This was a complex upgrade of all modules and required planning and
testing throughout the year. To
ensure a smooth transition to the new system, our implementation date was moved
1.5 months forward to mid-November 2000.
Reorganization to Form Site Engineering and
Maintenance (SE&M)
In January 2000, the Facilities Office and Plant
Engineering were merged into one department now called Site Engineering and
Maintenance (SE&M). As a result of this organization change, a new group was
formed to create a customer service desk and information management system for
SE&M. Details on how this new
organization is accomplishing its goals are given in this report (Project
& Facilities Management).
Y2K at SLAC
SLAC’s four mission-critical
systems (BIS System, Main Control Center
System, SSRL Control System, and Waste Tracking System) continued to run
without problems when the clock moved us into Y2K. Hundreds of hours of preparation were invested in this effort
and staff were available throughout the critical period and reported regularly
to the DOE.
Efforts
In Continuous Quality Improvement (CQI)
Customer satisfaction, cost efficiency, and contract compliance continue to be important in all functional areas. Actions carried on by these individual functional areas are addressed in the following self-assessment report. Specifically, we have actively pursued CQI through a number of Focus Group sessions and other activities. These actions are listed in the attached document.
Documentation
Listing of CQI Activities and Focus Groups at SLAC in FY 2000
Root-Cause
Analysis
SLAC continues to mature in its experience and knowledge regarding the Performance-Based Management self-assessment process. Our knowledge and understanding has grown and we are committed to continuing this positive trend in the future.
Barrier(s)
to Improvement
BSD will continue to analyze and evaluate baseline and functional data in an effort to continuously improve performance. Surveys, interviews, reports, and/or comparison data will be sought in order to address customer service, cost/efficiency, and compliance in meaningful ways.
Recognized
areas of improvement
The SLAC Business Information System (BIS) continues to operate successfully and the on-line system for retrieval of data continues to be a forward looking and innovative use of web-based technology.
Our increased focus on individual accountability for property management is paying off. Our recent inventory results are very encouraging in that regard.
Business Services Division and other Divisions
continue with ongoing communications with DOE/OAK functional area leaders.
BSD will continue its positive efforts to achieve cost efficiency through
process improvement and appropriate staff development.
Goals for FY
2001