BSI's use of Entropy

As the old adage goes ‘practice what you preach’ and here at BSI we do exactly that. As a multinational matrix organization, we need to track incidents and complaints like anyone else. In order to increase the visibility and reduce the paperwork of this, BSI uses Entropy Software.

To find out more about BSI’s use of Entropy and how this works for us, I sat down with Andrea Cardenas, our Entropy project leader.

What is your background and what is your current role at BSI?

I am currently the EMEA Business Excellence Manager.

My home country is Ecuador. I am a Quality Engineer with a master’s degree in Business Administration and Quality & Productivity Management. My previous roles have given me a good understanding of different company processes, across several industries such as pharmaceutical, retail, bank (call centre) and education.

I am proficient in compliance, quality management, strategic planning, business continuity and project management, with a proven record of successfully implementing projects and solutions to meet organizational goals among them three successful ISO 9001 certifications for multinationals in Latin America.

When you were brought into your current role, what was the end goal?

I stepped up into a new role focused on optimizing the processes for complaints, appeals and code allocation. The objective was to analyse the processes with a fresh external approach.

When you first took over your role, how were complaints being monitored?

In the first month, I performed a detailed scan of the handling of complaints in order to spot opportunities for improvement. I Identified that the complaints were being processed manually, which limited our ability and resources to monitor and control progress against the KPIs set l.

Were there targets surrounding complaints (KPIs)? Were people meeting these?

Globally the company had stipulated 2 KPIs regarding complaints. The first one measured the efficiency for us to log the complaints (2 days) and the other one measured the efficiency in closing a complaint (10 days). When I asked the team, everyone assumed they were meeting the KPIs, but when we looked at the number it was difficult to tell.

How was documentation previously occurring?

Regarding documentation, I identified that the process had set templates for each type of complaint, which generated uniformity to the process. All backups were made on a hard disk and the backup process was manual.

When you took over, what was the biggest opportunity you identified? After a month, I knew that the process needed to be automated and be monitored and that is where software adds real value. We scanned the GRC software market and realised that we had a perfectly capable solution within BSI and thus chose entropy.  I am a firm believer of the saying "what is not measured cannot be improved".

 Which features of entropy do you find most useful in your role?

The main benefit of the system is the automation of the process. Currently, under my responsibility is the management of the complaints not only of the UK but across EMEA. The tool offers you a different type of reporting and trend analysis with real-life data. No matter where the key stakeholders are, they can access the information in minutes.

The traceability of each case is in the tool, it’s especially beneficial in an internal audit. The System automatically measures the KPI’s which allow decisions to be made correctly and on time. This traceability has enabled us to support our clients more efficiently. The system offers some flexibility, once the process workflow was defined, the team programmed it to our needs.

Since you implemented these processes, have you seen a reduction in the KPIs surrounding complaints?

I can proudly tell you that currently, we comply with the business KPI’s. Complaints are logged within 1 day and each month we close the complaints in an average of 10 working days. It has been a great opportunity for teamwork, a cultural change, helping us to put things right for our clients.

What feedback have you received from the team since introducing Entropy? Since the 1 July, the scope for handling complaints was extended across EMEA and feedback has been positive. The biggest benefit of the system is having a single process (criteria) as a region to handle complaints. In the end, despite the difference in language, culture and condition, the client is paramount to the company and it’s essential to solving the complaint and the source of it.

How does this affect your reporting to senior stakeholders?

The Director and Head of my Department are extremely satisfied. They can now access and analyse the status all the processes across the EMEA region in a matter of minutes to support their day-to-day decisions rather than having to wait at the end of the month to receive one report.

Do you think there has been a change in culture surrounding complaints?

Without a doubt, first people perceived that the process is now handled with maturity and professionalism and second, people are aware that there is a KPI and that it is being monitored. Therefore, the approach of stakeholders has changed as well, they are now responsive enabling us to respond to clients more efficiently.

Author: Chris Sumner-Smith,