Changing the way people work needs to be handled sensitively to be successful. A tool which means people can not only see the benefits of change, but see for themselves that it is for the better, is a welcome addition to any manager´s toolbox.

Part of the Department for Education and Employment, the Employment Service has nine regions supporting 1,299 Jobcentres dealing with the differing requirements of two million customers and 76,000 new claims a week.

Following the introduction of a more streamlined information technology network which has made a different way of working possible, the Employment Service wanted to replace its traditional multi-queue approach with a single queue system.

Modelling and Simulation Manager Janet Griffiths explains, "We used to be a functional organisation: you went to one place to sign on, another place to enquire about jobs, and yet another to get labour market advice. But multi-queue systems are not very efficient because the result is often several people in one queue and none in another. "

"With the new IT system and its single-terminal access, each member of staff can now deal with almost any request relating to job search and benefit requirement. This means we could change to a more efficient one-queue system with access to a multifunctional front line in the office."

"However, we found traditional modelling tools didn't provide us with the answers we needed about queues, and on whether the front-line people could actually handle the processes in this new way."

Having decided that simulation would help speed up the process of change, the Employment Service acquired its first copy of WITNESS. A pilot study in the jobcentre in Thorne, near Doncaster, provided material for the first model.

"We used to spend hours discussing changes and their implications. Now we can use simulation to assess quickly a range of alternatives in an unbiased manner." says Janet.

"Undoubtedly the biggest benefit for us is management confidence. Before, when we wanted to change a process, big or small, we had to convince people that it would work; now we can evaluate any number of alternative redesigns - including the most radical - without risk. And we can do it visually, which makes it more persuasive as a tool"

"We get a much more realistic idea of what is achievable and what resources we need. In the past we've had to make a lot of assumptions for performance targets for staff and customers service agreements. The Employment Service can also say 'is this something we want to fund, or should we modify the policy and do it differently?"

Having bought the Employment Services´ first copies of Witness, the in-house modelling team developed a front-end wrapper which they called Eye Witness. This is used by regional managers to provide a consultancy service to district managers and local offices. The wrapper means that data to configure the model can easily be entered by a non-simulation expert. People can change the data to reflect accurately their own resources, timings and shift patterns and so on, but not change the logic behind the model.

"Because the layout of the model can be configured to make it look like an individual office, it is a good internal selling tool and helps with gaining commitment to change," says Janet.

As part of the reorganisation process in the Northern Region, Witness was used to model one of its largest Jobcentres, with 6,500 clients on the register. As well as successfully comparing a range of scenarios, its visual persuasiveness was considered compelling and the region is hoping to make a lot more use of Witness in the future.

Janet knows that every year the Employment Service is required to deliver better and better value for money, so needs to become more and more efficient.

"We have to be smarter about where we put our efforts for the best results, and Witness helps us to do that."