Virgin Media's Shared Services department implemented an operational excellence program over 16 weeks to improve processes and reduce waste. Key activities included scoping current performance, engaging staff, providing Lean training, implementing 5S practices, mapping over 147 processes to identify waste, and establishing visual management systems. These changes reduced processing times, eliminated over 190 non-value added steps, and reduced the workforce by 14% while improving quality. The program established a foundation for continuous improvement through sustaining audits and a Lean coaching role.

1. Operational Excellence in
Virgin Media
June 2010
Peter R Evans

4. Virgin Media

5. We Are Virgin Media…
• Formed by merger of ntl, Telewest, Virgin.net, Virgin Mobile – Feb
2007
• Over 14,000 staff
• Over 100 offices
• Over 5,000 vehicles
• Almost 10 million customers
• UK’s first quad-play provider of broadband, TV, phone and
mobile
• Largest company in the Virgin Group
“The Simple Choice in a Complex Digital World”

6. In 20 yrs….
I’ve learned that:
– You can’t manage change with a toolkit - you facilitate change
through hearts and minds and shared journey’s and experiences
– The tools required are governed by the situational circumstances
not the training manual and the chosen methodology
– It’s not about having your leadership team at the front of
everything – it’s about having them at the front of the right things
• This Lean stuff Works!

7. Interesting times…
“The greatest danger in times of
turbulence is not the turbulence: it
is to act with yesterday’s logic”
Peter F. Drucker

8. The Objective…
“Lets make Quality part
of our DNA in Virgin
Media”
Neil Berkett, CEO

9. My Role as Leader…
• Create the ‘North Star’
– “Getting Quality Into the DNA of Virgin Media”
• Create the environment for change
– People, People, People,
– “Hard” link to annual objectives
• Establish the governance
– Personal accountability for delivery
• Talk the talk….
– “Genchi Genbutsu” = “Go and Look For Yourself!”
“Better Quality Might Just Be A Short Walk Away”
“Norman Bodek - Kaikaku – The Power & Magic Of Lean”

10. Shared Services Operating Model
Service Delivery Service
Service
Development Performance
Accounting Services
Service
Continuous Insert graph or spreadsheet here Account
Finance Services Management
Improvement
Measurement & Reporting
Billing & Payment Services
Employee Engagement
Capacity Planning
Business Process
New technology
Compliance
Re-engineering
Employee Services
Lean 6 Sigma
& Budget
Service
Assurance Services
Management Information Services
Transactional Services
New Services External Project
Locational Consolidation Change Activity
Systems Integration & Development
Revenue & Direct costs
EPM – MI, CPR, GMIP, MDM, OBIEE+, BO, Essbase, SAS, Oracle New systems
assurance systems & tools
Clarity Accountability Delivery

11. Finance Shared Services (Bradford)
Introduction
Bradford Shared Services consists of 7 operational Teams across 3 core
functions.
Purchase to Pay Order to Cash Contractor Payments
Invoice Data Entry Billing Services Contractor Payments
Invoice Query Handling
Credit & Collections • The Contractor
Payments Function
Payment Services has the responsibility
Bank Reconciliation
of validating 1.5
million work orders
• In 2009 the value of • Billing Services per annum.
invoices into AP processed c50,000 • Its turnover for
amounted to invoices per year residential payments
£3.263bn worth c£1bn alone per year is over
• They process 12,500 • Credit and collections £120m
collects £70 million • Business contractor
invoices on average
per MONTH payments has
per month • Bank Recs. Reconcile processed over £54m
£3bn annually work applications and
£43m GRN’d

12. Operational Obesity….
SYMPTOMS:
• Slow to move and to react
• Processes are complex
• Making Change is difficult
• “Hard To Do Business With”
• Clogged Arteries
• Internal Comms Channels are slow
• Controls and Checks everywhere
• Getting Stuff Done is Too Hard - “Hard To Do Business In!”
• Spirit is Willing ……
• Lots of Change ---- Very Little Improvement!!

13. The Virgin Media Approach
• Define & Create a Route to “Operational Excellence”
• Understand the End To End Processes – “The
Customer Journey”
• Apply Lean Operations Techniques – “Learning To
See”
• Graduate to more Complex Interventions and Tools
as we progress (Six Sigma & Design for Six Sigma)

14. The Various Production Systems
Toyota Carnegie Melon Model ISO
Strategy
Customer Focus
Techniques & Automation
Leadership
Technology
Management Behaviour
Performance Measures &
JIT
Process Understanding & Awareness
Customer Process & Practice
Process Management
People Structure, Skills & Compliance
Voice of Customer
Decision Making
People & Teamwork
Supplier Roles & Responsibility
Supplier Dvt
Projects, Change Mgt & Training & Communication
Improvement
Jidoka
Expertise

15. Our Operational Excellence Journey…
• Strategy Linked
Summit Top To Bottom
• Improvement A
Way of Life
• Customers See
and feel It in
Every
Basic Lean Interaction
Principles In Place Base Camp
“Learning To See”
(We Are Here!)
Swamp
(This is where Most Of Us Start)

16. The Model…..

17. Scoping Tool

18. Shared Services – The Initial Scores
Operational Excellence Management
Operational Excellence
Foundations
Building Blocks
Customer
Awareness
Managing 6.0 Supplier
Customer
Technology Awareness
5.0 6.0
TM Training Capacity
& Development Planning 5.0
4.0
4.0
3.0 Skills
Leadership Change Management and CI Supplier
Management 3.0
2.0
2.0
1.0
Managing Process
1.0
Costs 0.0 Management
0.0
People Performance Operational
Management Communication
Work Productivity Process & Performance Measures Strategy & Leadership
Organisation Management
Improvement Quality & Risk
Basics Workplace DeliveryManagement
Environment Management People Skills & Resources
Bradford Building Blocks June 2009 Bradford Foundations June 2009

19. Shared Services – The Plan to improve
Base Camp
Cap Planning
Visual
Management
Data Capture
Process
5S
TRAINING
ENGAGE
SCOPE
14 Weeks

20. Scoping Shared Services
SS Team Manager Activity v. Ideal Model
Graph 1 Graph 2
SCOPE

21. Engaging Management and Staff
"Without involvement,
there is no commitment.”
Stephen R. Covey
ENGAGE

22. ‘Hearts and Minds’ with all Staff
• Project Background
• The purpose of the project
• Overview of the Tools and Techniques of Lean Sigma
and how they will apply in Shared Services
• How each staff member will be involved
• “What’s in it for them!”
ENGAGE

23. Believe In Quality Day: All staff
Effective Team Work
Voice of the
Customer
Rapid
Improvement The Impact
of Variation
in Process
ENGAGE

24. Training for all staff
• ‘Rough Guide to Lean Sigma’. Web Based
• 5S Training
• Virgin Accredited ‘Lean Sigma Green Belt’:
• C. I. Green Belt Projects with onsite mentoring
• Cardiff University Lean Basics 1a (1 day course).
– Lean Tools
– Role that each staff member plays in increasing performance
and in Continuous Improvement in their day to day duties
ENGAGE

25. Site visits
• 12 Staff took the tour of
Operation at Burnaston, Derby.
• All Bradford Team Managers visited
current Virgin Media Lean Model Office
area at Telephony Operations,
Manchester
ENGAGE

26. ENGAGE

27. 5S
The 5s Principles
•SORT The Necessary from the Unnecessary
•SET IN ORDER Locating according to frequency of use
•SHINE A pleasant working environment
•STANDARDISE Agreeing the Team Standard
•SUSTAIN The 5s Audit & Competition
5S

28. 5S ‘Sort’ Journey

29. AROUND THE WORLD IN 5S’s!
5S THE LEADERBOARD
Leader board
UPDATED 11/12/09
Australasia 614
Asia 587
Antartica 579
Americas 540
Africa 525
Europe 504
Week 12 Results: Week 13 fixtures:
Europe vs Antartica Antartica Win Africa vs Antartica
Africa vs Asia Africa Win Europe vs Americas
Americas vs Austratasia Americas Win Asia vs Australasia
Results Commentary:
Australasia continue to hold on to the lead but Asia and Antartica are catching up and closing the gap, Americas and Africa
are catching up after winning the competition this week and Europe are still going strong after winning the fortnightly
competition. ENGAGE

30. Bringing the Team Together…
Keeps staff updated, provides forum for
questions and to give out prizes for all incentives
ENGAGE

31. If all else fails….. Dress-up!

32. The ‘Lean Model Office’ Main Steps
Base Camp
Cap Planning
Visual
Management
Data Capture
Process
5S
TRAINING
ENGAGE
SCOPE
16 Weeks

33. Process Mapping and Eliminating Waste
• We have mapped 147 processes
• Eliminated >190 ‘Non Value Add’ steps
• Each process step in all 147 maps has been risk assessed, the
outcome being the formation of ‘Critical Control Points’ that
will be audited and monitored weekly to reduce Risk Events.
• The Mapping and Critical Control Points form the basis of each
teams Skills Matrix and Quality measure
Process

34. Accounts Payable: Data Entry
Time to Input
Summary for Time to sort and Input
A nderson-D arling N ormality Test • of all
A -S quared 2.59
P -V alue < 0.005
Invoices fail to
M ean 5.1538 meet the 48 hr
S tD ev 4.8425
V ariance 23.4494 SLA
S kew ness 0.95917
Kurtosis 1.99294
N 39
M inimum 0.0000
•Average speed of
1st Q uartile
M edian
0.0000
8.0000
invoice
0 5 10 15 20
3rd Q uartile
M aximum
8.0000
22.0000
processing in Data
95% C onfidence Interv al for M ean Entry was days
3.5841 6.7236
95% C onfidence Interv al for M edian
1.0000 8.0000 •Oldest Invoice
95% C onfidence Interv al for S tD ev
9 5 % C onfidence Inter vals
3.9575 6.2409 was in backlog
Mean
for days
Median
0 2 4 6 8
Data Capture

35. Accounts Payable: Data Entry
COPQ (cost to our business) of not paying on time
•Graph shows
Pareto Chart of Type of Query because of the
1000 100
time it takes to
be paid; 39.5%
of the query
800 80 demands are
‘Progress
600 60
Percent
Count
Updates’,
basically our
400 40
suppliers
chasing
200 20 payment.
•We have 11.5
0 0 FTE currently
Type of Query Progress Update Other Doc Copies Receipting List of Invs Others
C ount 393 293 91 64 53 100
working in the
Percent 39.5 29.5 9.2 6.4 5.3 10.1 team ‘Query
C um % 39.5 69.0 78.2 84.6 89.9 100.0
Resolution’.
Data Capture

36. Accounts Payable: Data Entry
Visual Management Introduced
Short Interval Control
•2 weeks, cleared their backlog of 11 days of invoices.
•Ever since, ALL invoices processed within 48hours

37. Accounts Payable: Data Entry
Results
• 25% less
Overtime (hours)
resource 120
100
Overtime (hours)
80
60 Overtime (hours)
40
20 November = 12 hours
0
Jun Jul Aug Sep Oct Nov
(average overtime
71.5 hours per month)
Data Capture Process

38. Visual Management - Example
Cost Measure
Quality Measure
Delivery Measure
Risk Cross People Development Measure
Problems & Countermeasures
5s Audit
Daily Huddle

39. Accounts Payable: Data Entry
Process Flow – UKTV Invoices
7. DATA ENTRY
4. STICKER
Query Resolution
Post Desk
8. QR PROCESS
2. SORT
5.SCAN
Scan
Station
3. QR PROCESS
6. QR PROCESS
9/ QR TRANSPORT 1 START (AFTER POST ROOM
TO FILE ROOM SORT IN OTHER BUILDING)
NB: INVOICE JOURNEYS DIFFERED BASED ON THE SUPPLIER Process Data Capture

40. Accounts Payable: Data Entry
Process Flow – All Invoices
5. QR PROCESS 4. DE DATA ENTRY
ANY QUERIES
3.SCAN
Scan
Post Desk
Station
2. STICKER
&SORT
6. QR TRANSPORT
TO FILE ROOM 1 START (AFTER POST ROOM
SORT IN OTHER BUILDING)
Process Data Capture
NB: ALL INVOICES FOLLOW THE SAME JOURNEY

41. Future State - The Value Stream Layout
Making Value Flow Whilst Creating Increased Process Visibility
BRADFORD SHARED SERVICES
CONTRACTOR BANK
Value Stream
PAYMENTS RECONCILIATION
ACCOUNTS ACCOUNTS
Value Stream
RECEIVABLE PAYABLE

42. Sustainability Audits…..
Re-visit the Scoping Tool and create the plan for Continuous Improvement – 6 Monthly
Operational Excellence Management
Foundations
Customer
6.0
5.0
4.0
Change Management and CI 3.0 Supplier
2.0
1.0
0.0
Process & Performance Measures Strategy & Leadership
People Skills & Resources

43. Lean Coaches role and responsibilities….

44. Finance Shared Services
Closure & Benefits Realised
ORIGINAL IN-SCOPE FTE
FINANCE MGR
6
TEAM MGR
8
These results happened in 16 weeks CO-ORDINATOR
4
PROCESSING
and with the Sustaining and C. I. plan 62
OVERALL
going forward Shared Services is set 80
to make exponential improvement
and become the flag ship Lean
Operation in Virgin Media. Due to the FTE REDUCTION
FINANCE MGR
success of Bradford, Birmingham 6
TEAM MGR
Billing and Payment Services and 6
CO-ORDINATOR
Preston Business Billing & Payments 4
PROCESSING
53
are now replicating the Lean Model
OVERALL 69
Office
PROC FTE RED 15%
TOTAL FTE RED 14%

45. The summit is only attainable as a
whole organisation…..
• The Business Leadership Team defining strategy and
enabling cascade mechanisms that ensure E2E Alignment
• The Business Leadership Team leading by example, visiting
‘The Gemba’, using the same ‘Visual Management’
techniques, driving ‘Continuous Improvement’ at all levels,
aligning ‘Reward & Recognition’ to delivery of the strategy
…. Hoshin Kanri starts here!!!

46. In conclusion….
• It depends where you start….
– Obvious but rarely acknowledged
– Can only work if Organisation Mobilised and Up-Skilled to
support the effort
– Sophistication of approach determined by internal
capability (Not by your Consultants)
A Fool With a Tool….. Is Still A Fool!

47. Thank You!
Peter.evans3@virginmedia.co.uk