1. Small Office Variance (SOV)
Course Number 100####

2. The main goal of this course is to provide the learners with an overview of the Small Office Variance model (SOV).
Upon completion of this course, the learner will be able to:
Improve operation efficiency by identifying earned workhours and complement.
Generate reports; drilling down to National, Area, District, and Unit levels.
Download and analyze report to identify staffing improvement opportunities.

3. Function 4 Variance Programs
Provide Standardized Performance Assessment and Daily Automated Staffing / Scheduling Tools at an Operations Level.
Small Office Variance (SOV)
Provides earned workload using the same nationally established factors as CSV.
A Postmaster/MPOO level performance management tool used to right size complement and identify workhour opportunities down to the unit level.
The Function 4 Variance Programs provide standardized performance assessment and daily automated staffing and scheduling tools at an operations level.
SOV provides earned workload using the same nationally established factors as CSV.
SOV is a Postmaster/MPOO level performance management tool used to right size complement and identify workhour opportunities down to the unit level.

4. SOV Data Sources: End of Run – Automated/Mechanized Volumes
eFlash – Distribution, Box Volumes and Workhours
Window Operations Survey (WOS) – Earned Hours and Workload
WebBATS – Callers
Address Management System (AMS) – Routes and Deliveries
WebCOINS – On Rolls Complement and MPOO Designation
Facilities Database – Hours of Operation
The SOV Data Elements include:
End of Run – Automated/Mechanized Volumes
eFlash – Distribution, Box Volumes and Workhours
Window Operations Survey or (WOS) – Earned Hours and Workload
WebBATS – Number of Callers
Address Management System or (AMS) – Numbers of Routes and Deliveries
WebCOINS – On Rolls Complement and MPOO Designation and
Facilities Database – Hours of Operation

5. To get to the Variance Program website from the Blue Page, type CSV in the address line. This will launch you to the Variance Program welcome page. You will note the Variance Programs are divided into three categories; Mail Processing F-1, City Delivery F-2B, and Customer Services F-4.
Let’s take a look at SOV located under the Customer Services F4 column. Begin by clicking on the SOV button.
SOV
CFV

6. SOV
Use the radio buttons to select the Variance Program Area. Next, click on the Variance Select radio button for the correct variance programs; CSV, SOV, or CSAW.
Dates when the reports were last updated are included in the Data Files section.
SOV displays the source files used in the models and the benchmark used, as a point of reference. The benchmark for SOV is the previous fiscal year.

7. Once the Area has been selected, use the “Choose Scope” drop down menu to drill down to the next level.
By selecting the Area name, a report can be generated containing all offices by Area or District. By selecting the District name, a report will be generated containing all offices within the District by MPOO Area.

8. From the drop down menu, select the Cluster or the Area to drill down to the desired level. If the Area name was selected in the first step, a second drop down box will appear that will include the Area and District name. By selecting the Area name, a report is generated containing all of the offices within the Area. Selected District name and a list of offices within the District will appear.

9. If a District is selected, a list of MPOOs will appear in the left column. Select the desired MPOO, in this case MPOO 3. Once the MPOO has been selected, a list of the offices for that MPOO will appear on the right. To drill down to an individual office, select the office from the list. If no office is selected, the report will contain all offices within the selected MPOO’s area.
Then select the date range for the report.

10. SOV
SOV Summary
The SOV Summary provides data from a variety of source files for the selected time period. The report provides performance indicators for LDC 47 and LDC 80. The overall staffing performance is expressed in Full Time Equivalent Staffing or FTES.
Review the column headers.
The unit names are to the left followed by the unit level
The next header is the manual volume % variance from benchmark
The next header is retail transaction % variance from benchmark
The next 2 columns breakout the actual to earned hours variance by LDCs 47 and 80. In SOV, the Postmaster workload is included in the total workload. The first 8 hours of workload is assigned to the Postmaster with any remaining hours assigned to the clerk craft.
The next 3 columns show the performance achievement in LDCs 47 and 80 followed by the combined total SOV % achieved.
The next column is the FTES actual. It the sum of the actual function 4 and function 8 hours recorded divided by that divided by the number of days in the selected time period.
The next column is the FTES earned. It is the sum of total function 4 and function 8 hours divided by divided by the number of days in the selected time period.
And the final column is the FTES variance, the sum of the actual function 4 and function 8 FTES minus the earned FTES.
Click on a unit name to generate a Unit Variance Report.

11. SOV Unit Variance
The Unit Variance Report contains a Complement Analysis, a Workhour Analysis, a Workload Analysis, a Productivity Analysis, and a Route and Delivery Analysis for the unit and time period selected. In addition, benchmark information is also provided for comparison purposes.

12. FTEE Complement Analysis
Let’s review the report in more detail starting with the FTEE Complement Analysis.
The Unit Variance Report for this unit, shows a total of 2 Full Time Equivalent Employees (FTEE) for the benchmark period.
The office is currently earning 1 Postmaster and 0.93 PTF clerk and has 1 Postmaster and 2 PTF clerks on the rolls for a variance of 1.07.
FTEEs Benchmark numbers are based on the daily earned FTEEs from the previous year. The earned FTEEs are based on the average daily earned workload for the selected period. The actual shows the current on rolls as reported in WebCOINS. The variance is the sum of the actual FTEEs minus the earned FTEEs. The final column is the Percent Achieved, the sum of the earned FTEEs divided by the actual FTEEs.
The report shows the overall % Achieved for this unit for FTEEs is

13. Workhour Analysis
Next is the Work Hour Analysis section of the Unit Variance Report displays the Automation/Mechanized, Manual, and Retail/Admin Workhour Analysis.
The Unit Variables in the left hand column include workhours for:
Automated/mechanized letters and flats
Manual letters, flats, parcels, distribution allied time, and PO Box
Business Return Services, retail, function 4 administrative, and Postmaster administrative
Benchmark data represents the average daily earned worked hours for the prior fiscal year multiplied by the number of days in the selected period.
Earned workhours are based on the reported volume for the selected period.
Actual workhours are those reported by the site for the selected period.
The light gray rows show the total workload and the unit’s hours of operation. The unit’s total earned hours will equal the greater of the workload value or the value of the hours of operation. A notation will be displayed to indicate the numbers of weeks in which the workload exceeded the unit open hours.
The bottom 3 rows display the variance between earned and actual workhours. In this example, the unit earned hours including the Postmaster administrative workload. As shown, the first 40 hours is credited to LDC 80 and then the remaining hours are credited to LDC 47. The percent achieved is the sum of the earned workhours divided by the actual workhours.
This report shows an overall performance % Achieved of

14. Workload Analysis
Next, is the workload analysis section which provides an analysis based on information provided by the unit through eFlash and End of Run reports. The Workload Analysis section is divided into three groups; Auto/Mech volume, Manual volume – unit and PO Box, and transactions.
The benchmark is the average daily workload from the prior fiscal year multiplied by the number of days selected. Earned workload is not applicable to the workload analysis section.
Actual numbers, are what was recorded by the unit for the selected period. The difference between the benchmark and the actual, is shown in the variance column. The Percent Variance column represents the sum of the variance divided by the benchmark workload.
In this example, distribution letters have decreased by 20.08%, Flats by 24.10%, PP/SPR volume by 5.77%, Box Letters by 5.77%, Box Flats by 17.05%, and transactions by 7.30%.

15. Productivity Analysis
Next is the Productivity Analysis of the Unit Variance Report.
Elements in this section are:
Auto Letters Pieces Per Hour
Mech Flats Pieces Per Hours
Distribution Volume Letters Feet Per Hour
Distribution Volume Flats Feet Per Hour
Distribution Parcel Post/SPRs Pieces Per Hour
Distribution allied Hours per Day
Box Letters and Flats Feet Per Hour
Minutes per Transaction and
Number of transactions per 1412.

16. Route and Delivery Analysis
The next section of the Unit Variance Report is Unit Route and Deliveries which displays the Unit Route and Delivery Analysis. This report allows the user to conduct a review of city routes, rural routes, Contract Delivery Service (CDS) routes, and P O Box equivalent routes.
The columns included in this section are:
Benchmark - which includes route and delivery information from the previous fiscal year.
Actual – which includes actual route and delivery data recorded for the selected period.
Variance – which is the difference between the actual and benchmark, and
Percent Variance
Our example shows an increase of PO Box routes and deliveries for this year and a decease in rural deliveries.
The last section of the Unit Variance Report is the FTES Daily Staffing Analysis. FTES is equivalent to the average daily number of on duty employees. In this example, the unit is staffing based on the workload.

17. To the right of the report is an icon which looks like a computer
To the right of the report is an icon which looks like a computer. The icon is the access point to other reports in SOV. When you click on the icon, a list of other reports will appear. This allows the user to move from one report to another.
We will click on Workload to go to that report.

18. Workload Page
The Workload Report provides the details behind the earned hour calculation that are reflected in the Unit Variance Report. Each section of the Workload Report provides information on Benchmark and Earned data. The Benchmark data is in blue font and the Earned data is in green font.
The auto/mech section of the Workload Report provides the details on the calculations for the report period selected by equipment type. The next column displays the national productivity factors used in the calculations which with DBCS machines is 12,500 pieces per hour and the allied factor of minutes per machine. The hours column displays the earned hours based on the volume and productivity columns. The STB column displayed the earned time added for stand-up talks and breaks calculated at 35 minutes per 8 hours earned.
The Analysis Prd column is the sum of the earned hours plus the stand-up talks/break time. The last column is the Net Rate or the productivity rate resulting from the volume from the Volume column divided by the hours in the Analysis Prd column.

19. Workload Page (cont)
The manual distribution section of the Workload Report provides the details on the calculations for the report period selected by mail type. The volume column displays the volume reported to eFlash and the number of rented PO Box for allied box notice time. The next columns display the national productivity factors by mail type used in the calculations and the earned hours based on the volume and productivity columns.
The STB column displays the earned time added for stand-up talks and breaks calculated at 35 minutes per 8 hours earned. Similar to the auto/mech section, the Analysis Prd column is the sum of the earned hours plus the stand-up talks/break time and the Net Rate column is the productivity rate resulting from the volume from the Volume column divided by the hours in the Analysis Prd column.

20. Workload Page (cont)
The retail section of the Workload Report provides the details on the calculations for the report period for retail operations. The volume column displays the transactions as reported to RDM volume reported to eFlash and Open/Close which indicates the average daily number 1412s. The next columns display the WOS productivity factors used in the calculations and the earned hours based on the volume and productivity columns. The WOS Ancilliary time is equivalent to 15 minutes for each 45 minutes earned for soft time activities which includes stand-up talks/breaks. The same as for the previous sections, the Analysis Prd column is the sum of the earned hours plus the stand-up talks/break time and the Net Rate column is the productivity rate resulting from the volume from the Volume column divided by the hours in the Analysis Prd column.

21. Workload Page (cont)
The Delivery Admin section of the Workload Report provides a summary of the calculations for the report period for administrative activities. The volume column displays the average daily benchmark deliveries as reported in AMS times the number of days in the selected report period. The Prod Rate columns displays the national productivity factor representing a summarized factor of the delivery driven elements. The Adjusted for Delivery row, credits the unit for the change in deliveries from the benchmark period. In each section, the yellow highlighted boxes will reflect the Flex time entries as approved by the Area.
The Earned Postmaster Admin section provides the details of the calculations for the administrative activities associated with the Postmaster’s responsibilities. Postmaster workload factor for level EAS 18 office is 4 hours per day plus the route and clerk/PMR credit. The Postmaster workload factor for level EAS 15 and 16 offices is 2 hours per day plus the route and clerk/PMR credit. And the Postmaster workload factor for level EPM 51 to EAS 13 is 1 hour per day plus the route and clerk/PMR credit.
In the example, the level 18 Postmaster has 4 hours per day of administrative work. In addition, 0.34 hrs workload credit is provided for each city and PO Box route, 0.25 hrs for each rural and CDS route, and 0.17 hrs for each clerk or PMR. The Postmaster time built into the model in this example totals 5.86 hours per day.
Next, we will click on the icon to the right to go to the Business Svc report.

22. Business Return Service Worksheet
The Business Return Service Report displays each workload element, data source, and factor included in the Earned Workhours.
The Earned Minutes per Day shown in the right hand column is based on editor entries that are maintained by the District designee.
Next we will click on the icon to the right to go to the Delivery Admin page.

23. Delivery Admin Page SOV
The Delivery Admin Report displays each workload element, data source, and factor included in the Earned Workhours.
The Earned Minutes per Day shown in the right hand column is based on the benchmark route and delivery data.
The bolded items; Average Mailings Per, Cancel Mail, Collections, Express Mail Delivery, Flex Time and Offsite Travel/Admin are input and maintained by the District designee.

24. Delivery Admin Page (cont)
At the bottom of the LDC Report you will find Total Benchmark Minutes per Day. In this example, the total benchmark minutes per day is for the six day period selected which includes stand-up talks and breaks. The total LDC Benchmark Hours equals the sum of the Benchmark Minutes per Day, divided by 60 minutes, multiplied by the number of days in the selected report period equals 8.13 hours.
Next we will click on the icon to the right to go to the Complement page.

25. Complement Page
The top section of the Complement Report displays the overtime and leave rates used in the model on the left side and the calculation used for leave replacements. In this example, the unit earns 0.13 of a clerk for leave replacement.
The next section of the Complement Report provides current on rolls from WebCOINS and CSV Earned Complement Statistics. The section on the left shows the current on roll complement. The same numbers are on the Unit Variance: Postmaster, 1; part time flexible clerks, 2; with a total on Rolls of 3 employees on the rolls. This illustrates the unit is over staffed by 1 FTE.
All data on the complement page is based on the a previous rolling 52 week period .
The earned complement is based on the total earned hours for the rolling 52 weeks then spread into employee types – always starting with the Postmaster, then if more than 8 hours are earned per day, a clerk is earned. If the earned hours are less than 8 hours per day, a PMR is earned.
The complement page should be used along with other available tools to determine unit staffing.

26. Complement Page (cont)
The top section, Workload Window, provides the operational window as in FDB. To the right is the target window based on the earned time with the calculated number of employees.
Under the Workload Window is the breakout of the total unit actual hours by LDC. Adjacent to this, is the total earned hours by LDC. In this example, the projected annual hours, 3,785, based on the actual daily hours of The earned projected annual hours is based on the daily hours earned times the days of the year for a projection of 3,862.
Next we will click on the icon to the right to go to the Facility DB page.

27. Facilities Data Base Page
The Facilities Data Base page displays unit times on the left side as they are listed in FDB.
On the right hand side, the unit times are used to display the operational hours. The top line indicates is the unit is open more hours than the unit earns. In this example, the “No” indicates that the unit is not open more hours than it earns. Annually this unit is open 2,589.5 hours and earns 3, hours annually.
On the right hand side, the hours the unit is open Monday to Friday and Saturday are also provided. This information is useful when determining how the unit’s operational hours impact the unit’s efficiency.
Next we will click on the icon to the right to go to the What If page.

28. What If Page
The What If page allows you to adjust the operational window for auto/mech, manual, retail, or admin to calculate the change in daily earned hours and the number of employees required to complete the workload within the adjusted window.
If we wanted to look at changing the manual start time to 7AM, we would click on Manual and then click on 6.00 Hours – the new proposed window. We might also look at adjusting the Admin start to 7AM, we would lick on Admin and then click on 8.50 Hours – reducing the window by 45 minutes. This changes will calculate the number of employee required to complete the workload within the adjusted window. In this example, if the proposed changes increase the manual or admin employees to greater than 1 then you may need to reconsider the proposed times or be prepared for additional staffing needs.
This information is useful when determining how the unit’s operational hours impact the unit’s efficiency.
Next we will click on the icon to the right to go to the Data Stream page.

29. Data Stream Page
The Data Stream Report provides a list of all data elements being used in the model.
The top of the report starts with the district code, the office finance number, the name, the unit number, the unit finance number, and the level. The next section of the report illustrates benchmark and earned information for volumes, hours, and productivity.

30. Summary… How should a Postmaster use this tool?
Use these Performance Report data points to assist you with scheduling the day-to-day function 4 activities in relation to the current workload and to capture identified weekly staffing opportunities.
How should a MPOO use this tool?
They can review the daily Week-to-Date performance of units and use the Vital Few drill down methodology to drive improved performance, identify improvement opportunities by operation, and trend actual to earned full time equivalent staffing performance.

31. Let’s see what you’ve learned about the Small Office Variance model.

32. Congratulations!
You have successfully
completed the
Small Office Variance
model course.