Our Services

Balance Scorecard - Using the model of financial, customer, learning & growth and process measures we can develop and prepare a series of bespoke metrics to enable your business to effectively, establish a base line and from which to measure and review its performance in each quadrant quarterly. This approach will assist your business to know how it is performing and to continually improve and grow. Click here for more information [pdf].

Bid writing – We can develop and prepare bids in association with you and your bid partner's in response to tender specifications, so a comprehensive tender is prepared which clearly demonstrates the organisations capability to robustly deliver the work being tendered for. Financial models can also be prepared that demonstrate the financial benefits to be achieved through successful delivery of the bid and which can be translated into programme management.

Business Continuity Management & Disaster Recovery Planning - Is an organisation's capability to continue to function in the event of an unforeseen occurrence taking place which could disrupt the businesses ability to continue to function.

We will facilitate your organisations capability to continue to function. This will be achieved through identifying the businesses core activities, assessing the risks which could arise, determining business continuity strategies, developing and implementing a customised business continuity response, exercising, maintaining, reviewing and auditing plans, and embedding and sustaining business continuity into the organisations culture. Click here for more information [pdf]. BCI Pocket Size Good practice guidelines (2007) [pdf].

Capacity Building - Is the process of building the potential for activities that increase an organisations ability to grow, develop or accomplish a goal or vision. Our consultants will work with you to identify areas for improvement and build upon these to enable your organisations to achieve its objectives.

Change Management - Is the ability to identify, plan, consult, communicate, implement and sustain organisational changes, be them, evolutionary or revolutionary. The approach you choose will be dependant on the needs of your business. We will work with you to undertake these activities so that change is not just implemented but sustained Click here for more information [pdf].

Contract and Supply Chain Management - Is the capability to manage contracts through the development of good partnerships and relationships, which result in the timely delivery of outputs to obtain value for money and ensure that quality measures are met. Our consultants will use their skills and experience to manage contracts on your behalf so they yield the outputs you require.

Evaluation and Research - Our consultants will conduct interim and final programme and project evaluations through conducting desk top research (both primary and secondary), the analysis of management information and customer feedback, the interviewing of stakeholders, participants, beneficiaries and learners to establish the experience they have received and how they have perceived the benefit gained from participating on the project or programme.

The programme or projects actual performance will be reviewed against the profiled performance to determine its delivery of outputs be they learner starts, jobs, sustained jobs, qualifications etc. We will further evaluate retention rates.

Maintenance Support Contracts - Maintenance Support Contracts will allow clients to receive ongoing support from Crown Weston Associates. They are designed and customised to meet client’s specific requirements. These packages can be based on one or more of the services we offer, so clients can have a long term supported relationship with Crown Weston Associates.

Organisational Development - We will work with customers to establish your organisation's capability to perform and adapt to change and then assist you to achieve the identified improvements.

Partnership and Relationship Management - Our consultants will work closely and effectively with you and your partners to develop strong relationships that will result in outputs being delivered and effective partnerships being maintained and nurtured.

Programme Management - We will use the programme specification and contract to establish and manage the programme so the required outputs are delivered in a timely manner, value for money is achieved and whilst ensuring the quality of the provision being delivered. Steering Groups will be established and/or attended, resources will be agreed, risks identified, programme planning undertaken, monthly delivery management and performance review meetings held (actual vs profiled), adhering to quality measures and criteria and feedback will be sought from beneficiaries, learners and participants. At the interim and end of the programme it will be reviewed to determine its effecti9veness and value for money.

Project Management - We will use simple yet effective principles to plan and deliver your projects, by confirming the objectives, identifying key stakeholders, defining the scope of the project, confirming the resources, identifying the risks, planning the project, managing the process, adhering to quality measures and criteria, seeking feedback, review, evaluation and closure of the project. This approach will result in projects being delivered on time and within budget. Click here for more information.

Process Improvement and Mapping - We will identify your core processes and confirm the scope of each (where each starts and finishes and what is the included and excluded from that process) with the process owners. We will undertake a review of each process and update or design new processes to meet your specific requirements. This will be done through working with you and your staff so the “as is” process which consists of the consecutive series of tasks undertaken by your staff is drawn out. For each individual task a paragraph is created which describes how the task is undertaken. Each process map and description is recorded on two individual sheets, and act as a reference source. Click here for more information [pdf].

Quality Assurance and Improvement - "Quality is the ability to continually improve in all aspects of the business, it is a degree of excellence, calibre, distinction, status, value or worth". It is a tool that assists in the running and managing of any business, against a recognised Standard. The provision of the highest possible levels of internal and external customer satisfaction enhance your businesses reputation and lead to both repeat business and lower levels of staff turnover. Achieving this requires the implementation and use of robust procedures so quality is at the heart of the operation of the business and can be developed and improved upon, leading to a cycle of continuous improvement.

We can:

• Analyse your business by identifying its core operating functions. This will determine those functions which are critical to the running of the business and the satisfaction of your customers.
• Plan the most appropriate approach by discussing with you which resources your business requires and the effectiveness of the businesses existing procedures.
• Review your organisations core procedures and targets to see how they are performing and contribute to the organisation in achieving its strategic and business goals. Through identifying any areas where these are operating ineffectively, inefficiently or are wasteful, where necessary we can suggest improvements so the organisation operates more efficiently and reduces wastage.
• Agree with you if any new procedures are necessary, discuss these with you and implement any agreed changes, providing any necessary training.
• Continue to review and update your organisations quality procedures on a regular basis to enable continuous improvements to occur as a result. Enable your business to have procedures which will enable it to function in an organized and structured manner. Click here for further information [pdf].

We can:

• Work with training providers to develop both self assessment reports, quality improvement plans and provide pre and post inspection support and guidance.
• Through a thorough understanding of the requirements of the Common Inspection framework, we can translate this into deliverable solutions and tangible outputs for Work Based Learning and Welfare to Work providers to achieve good Adult Learning Inspectorate grade's.
• Produce, revise, update and launch customer feedback, suggestions and complaints mechanisms that provide businesses and organisation with robust methods to collect and respond to feedback, and analyse and interpret the feedback on your behalf to assist businesses to improve the levels of customer satisfaction which it provides.

Our experience has:

• Enabled organisations to maintain their IS0 9001:2000 accreditation and become subsequently re-accredited for a further three years by BVQI.
• Resulted in a Private Sector Led New Deal provider being awarded good inspection grades against the Common Inspection Framework, by the Adult Learning Inspectorate following the organisations first inspection.

Risk Management - Our aim is to assist you to identify the key potential threats to your organisation in the achievement of its core objectives. This will be achieved through using a top down and bottom up approach resulting in risk registers being developed that allow risks to be recorded, monitored, managed, actioned and reported upon. Risk registers will include a risk description, risk owner, date risk identified, pop risks identified, archived risks recorded, Effect of risk, (risk gives rise to), causal factor (risk arises because), inherent risk (before actions taken), residual risk (after actions taken), likelihood of risk, impact of risk, Total score (Likelihood vs Impact), risk response (treat, tolerate, terminate or transfer the risk), key controls, actions taken, control evaluation, current review date and previous review date.

Click here for further information [pdf]
Click here for further information [excel]