Who makes your project happen and what happens behind the scenes?
How long have you been with Lima Kitchens?
Almost 2 and a half years
How has your role developed over this time?
Since I began this role, the whole process has become a lot more thorough. Quite early on I introduced a process of listing the furniture part codes on the fitter’s plans to make it easier for them to know which material to use where, which is especially useful if it’s a big project with lots of material, or for custom pieces. I’m constantly trying to improve the way I create the plans for the trades, to make them as clear as possible.
What does an average day look like as an Operations Co-Ordinator?
Every day is different! But things I can expect to be on my radar a lot of the time include drawing up plans after survey, meetings with the designer, producing site packs, post-survey meetings with clients, placing and checking orders, creating schedules and booking in trades people and sending them details of works.
What is the most enjoyable part of this position?
I love seeing kitchens coming together and seeing the end result after working mainly on the on-screen plans. It’s great to see the transformations.
On average how long do you spend on project planning, order process and delivering this to the relevant teams?
After survey when the plans get handed over to me, I usually spend 2-3 days re-drawing up the plan to make sure all measurements and technical details are correct. I will produce elevations, fitters plan, project plan, electrics plan etc for the trades, and usually come up with a list of questions for the customer of things still to be finalised which we will cover in the post-survey meeting. Once the post survey meeting in the showroom is completed, there are usually additional adjustments to be made before we can the final paperwork sent over to the client, get the go ahead from them, and then place the furniture order. Orders will take a few days to be acknowledged and confirmed by our suppliers.
What changes do you expect to see in 2023 with how you deliver your service and client expectation?
We aim to look at updating our processes for further clarity, for example we have discussed checklists for clients to ensure everything is covered and clients have things listed in one place to refer to easily.
What is your top tip for clients to help you deliver everything as accurately as possible?
Try and make as many decisions as early as possible – ideally we would like everything finalised at the post survey meeting otherwise things could get delayed.
