Critical Competitive Factors

Critical Operational Aspects

The Materiel Services Department is in charge of receiving and delivering merchandise. Customer service is the most critical operational aspect in gaining orders and retaining customers. If there were no customers there would be no orders, which in turn would mean there would be no deliveries. Therefore, it is very important for the Materiel Services Department to keep their customers satisfied with the services they provide.

During the interview, the Assistant Director of University Purchasing and Materiel Services explained, “this department deals both directly and indirectly with several departments, faculty members and over 21,000 residents. It is not an easy task to keep all our customers happy.”

 

Management Accomplishments

The storekeeper, Frank Vollero, informed our team about some of the new management accomplishments. He emphasized on the word "teamwork,” he did not take credit for the organization in the warehouse. He went on to explain how every employee worked equally for the benefit of the department. The first accomplishment was the implementation of computer systems to assist with department processes. In the past, the Materiel Services Department did not use computers; everything was done on paper by hand. Today, the receiving and delivering of merchandise is a much more efficient process.

The second accomplishment was increasing the dependability of communication between the Materiel Services Department and all other departments at Kean University. Unfortunately in the past, incoming calls were not received right away; creating dissatisfaction with the department. That problem has been fixed; Vollero assured "I make sure we call back the department the same day or the next."

 

Main Annual Operational Targets

Kean University Materiel Services operational target is to make sure customers receive packages on time. In comparison to past years, the number of complaints about delivery time and customer service has decreased. Although there has already been much improvement, management plans to continue to improve the efficiency of delivery and customer service.