Five Star's Approach

Five Star Service Systems, Inc. is dedicated to designing service systems that respond directly to the needs of our clientele. This attention to our client's needs is the hallmark of our corporation.
Service Excellence is achieved by Designing for Quality. Our methodology is based upon continually improving our service to the benefit of our customers. In brief, this continual improvement is accomplished by performing the following tasks:

Listen

When Five Star salespersons and engineers approach a facility, the emphasis is placed upon the expressed and implied needs of our prospective customer. We attempt to gather as much information as possible regarding the intended use of the facility, the people who will utilize it and the current condition of the building itself.

This process continues throughout our relationship with the client because buildings, populations and usages are constantly changing.

Measure

Five Star Services contracts routinely begin with a detailed inspection of the facility. Measurements of many factors impacting the service process are taken. These measurements determine the current conditions present at the site, the scope of services we shall provide, the type of building systems to be maintained, and provide a starting point from which future performance will be measured.

As Five Star operations personnel work to improve services, this information will be constantly utilized to test alternating service delivery methods.

Design

Depending on the service to be provided, Five Star service engineers design a method to accomplish our assigned tasks. Service engineers will create a computerized model of the facility based upon square footages, floor types, carpet wear and other pertinent information.

Industry proven production standards provide a means by which staffing, equipment and chemical estimates are determined. Service personnel are then assigned to specific tasks in particular areas of the facility ("work stations") which can be manipulated and improved as new and more effective service delivery methods are devised.

By measuring acreage and soil conditions (among other factors), Landscaping service engineers determine the amount of plantings, trimming, fertilizing and weed control a particular property requires. A computerized periodic schedule of service is compiled detailing the required manpower, equipment and materials.

Mechanical Maintenance engineers catalog the age, make, model and manufacturer of each piece of equipment. A computerized preventive maintenance program is designed for each individual unit. In addition, the man-hours required to implement the program are determined.

Combining the designed level of service (based upon the client's specifications) and the information we have gathered by listening to our customer, Control establishes a quality-rating target. All further efforts in training, inspection and performance will be geared towards meeting and exceeding this target.

Train

Essential to the delivery of our contracted service is the proper training of our personnel. All the previously mentioned efforts are useless unless our employee understands the who, what, when, where and how of their job. Implicit in understanding one's function is how to perform that function safely.

A large part of our training programs concentrate on Safety, Hazard Communications and Material Safety Data. Five Star will routinely incorporate the Safety and HAZCOM programs of our clientele into our training. The safe operation of all equipment and the safe usage of chemical solvents and finishes is not only the most efficient way of accomplishing tasks, but also ensures the preservation of our most important asset - our people.

Five Star utilizes a variety of training programs in classroom and audiovisual form and a variety of languages. Typically, training is performed prior to starting our contracts and is periodically updated as new methodologies are employed. Moreover, on-the-job training is employed extensively at all Five Star accounts.

Inspect

Five Star's continuous program of Quality Control inspections produces data that is crucial in analyzing our performance. Defects in the quality of our service are measured on an area-by-area basis. A report is compiled assessing the effectiveness of our service systems and determining a quality rating.

Review

Five Star Operations management review Quality Control Inspection Reports to determine deficiencies in our level of performance. Should a defect be shown to exist throughout the facility or should the overall quality rating fall short of the target, Five Star management will examine our computer model and initial service design in order to determine what steps are required to correct the situation. If the defect is present in a small area or work station, Five Star will examine the performance of individual workers and prescribe corrective action.

Reward

In many cases, specific areas or facilities will rate consistently above their assigned quality target. Five Star utilizes a variety of supervisory and employee incentive award programs to encourage above standard and/or innovative performance. Methods, which improve productivity, efficiency and/or quality, are studied and rewarded. Should these methods have universal applications, Five Star Operations management will implement their usage throughout the corporation by incorporating them into existing service system designs resulting in lower costs and improved service.

The key to service excellence is not merely listening to our clients concerns, or in designing a superior system to deliver our service, or computerizing our periodic maintenance programs, or providing top-notch, well trained personnel to perform it or even continual inspections of our operations. Five Star Service Systems believes that service excellence is providing cost-effective, ever improving services which consistently respond to and/or anticipate the needs of our clients, their properties, employees and guests.