Managing Customer Expectations: A Successfocused Process

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Managing Customer Expectations A Success-focused
Process

• Larry Kelley, Vice President
• Administration Finance
• Bob Kitamura, Director
• Facilities Planning Capital Projects
• Cal Poly, San Luis Obispo

Sunday, July 9, 2006
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BASICS Full name California Polytechnic State
University Usually referred to as Cal
Poly Mascot Mustangs Location At San Luis
Obispo - midway between San Francisco and Los
Angeles, approximately 10 miles from the Pacific
Ocean. Affiliation Part of the 23-campus
California State University system Emphasis
Comprehensive undergraduate education - combining
technical and professional curricula with the
arts and humanities Guiding philosophy "Learn
by doing President Warren J. Baker
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Student body Roughly 18,500 Cal Poly is
organized into seven colleges Agriculture,
Architecture Environmental Design, Business,
Education, Engineering, Liberal Arts, and Science
Mathematics Campus size Total 9,678
acres. The main campus occupies 6,051 acres.
Cal Poly is the second largest land-holding
university in California, second only to UC
Berkeley, and one of the largest land-holding
universities in the nation. Cal Poly uses all of
its land holdings in active support of the
education of its students.
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500 Million in Projects Underway to Support
Planned Growth
Engineering IV
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• 1. What business are we in?
• 2. Who is our customer?
• 3. What does our customer value?

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• We plan and build or renovate facilities.
• The Dean or Department Chair who will occupy the
  facility is our customer.
• They value on time, on spec, and on budget
  performance.

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1 What business are we in?

• We plan build or renovate facilities.
• but there is morewe build success.

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2 Who is our customer?

• The Dean or Department Chair
• who will occupy the facility is our customer.
• but there is moredo we really know who they are?

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3 What does our customer value?

• They value on time, on spec, and on budget
  performance.
• but there is moredo we know what their emphasis
  is?

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Managing expectations for a new project is like
herding mustangs.
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Youre handling customers, scope, budget,
schedules, and expectations.
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Somewhere along the way, customer expectations
can be left astray.
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Finding the right management approach will
rope-in success.
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Use a clear, understandable, relational process
to roundup customer expectations.
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Start with 7 Practices for Success to guide you
through the territory of the capital project
process.
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Practices 1 2 will establish a strong team.
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Practice 1Select and retain the right people.
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Practice 2Develop the talents these people bring.
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Practices 3, 4 5 will map a clear trail to
follow.
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Identify and live by common principles1.
Integrity 5. Collaboration2. Commitment 6.
Equity3. Empowerment 7. Trust 4.
Creativity 8. Respect
Practice 3
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Practice 4Promote a clear purpose.
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Practice 5 Establish and share expectations for
performance.
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Practices 6 7 will promote credibility and
accountability to stay on track.
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Practice 6Encourage flexibility and innovation.
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Practice 7Promote Ownership.
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Know the landmarks of the successful management
approach.
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I. The project is about, for, anddone with
people.
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II. Building relationships is the focus
the building is only one outcome of the
process.
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III. It is about building trust.
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Lay down the ground rules to overcome obstacles
and manage customer expectations.
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Remember that any project is 20 process 80
relationship.
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1. Identify users and their expectations at
the beginning of the project.
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2. Be patient.
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Corral customer expectations in the Programming
Phase.
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Establish a realistic project scopeknow the
expectations.Step 1 in the LOU.
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2. Develop a real budget. Step 2 in the LOU.
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3. Generate a schedule. Step 3 in the LOU.
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• The Cal Poly Letter of Understanding
• Section 1the scope
• Section 2the budget
• Section 3the schedule
• Section 4the accountability

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In the Design Phase, steer clear of major changes
in the project program.
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1. Educate customers to the process.
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2. Use the process.
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3. Use example i.e., construction site visits
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4. Integrate the users and stakeholders into
the process.
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Keep the communication trail open to drive the
project home on the range.
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The art of communicating keepsthe project on the
high road, which leads to relationship-building
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2. Communication encourages listening for
opportunities.
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3. Communicate even when there is nothing to
say.
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4. Communication is a key to the project
teams success.
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The Team Approach - A Cal Poly ModelProject
Coordinating Committee
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Using a success-focused process will roundup
customer expectations and rope-in a successful
project.
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SUMMARY

• Know your purpose
• Identify who you serve what they value
• Apply the successful management process using
• the 7 Practices
• clear ground rules and understandings through
  the LOU
• and
• strong relationships
• Enjoy the ride

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Managing Customer Expectations A Success-focused
Process by Larry Kelley Bob Kitamura Cal
Poly San Luis Obispo, California