It’s not easy to keep an eye on more than 230 public assembly facilities at a time. Luckily, SMG VP of Operations Michael Godoy has set up a way so that he doesn’t have to. For perfecting the venue management company’s web-based intranet site and proprietary preventative maintenance program, Venues Today readers have recognized Godoy with the 2014 Hall of Headlines award for Operations.
O.S.C.A.R. (Operations Support through Communications And Resources) first launched as an early version in 2009 to serve as a repository for facility documents, but has grown into an interactive intranet that not only hosts operating procedures and other documents, but also is a hub of activity where venue operators can discuss ideas, share information, and answer each other’s questions.
(Caricature by Greg Dohlen)
O.S.C.A.R. also hosts vendor cut sheets and RFPs for technical specifications so that venues can use them to figure out sourcing or purchasing.
The Ask O.S.C.A.R. section allows facility staff to get real time responses to issues they’re facing from others who have gone through the same problems.
“I’ve always touted that O.S.C.A.R. is really those who operate the venues — it’s not me, it’s not corporate, it’s SMG’s people,” said Godoy.
Four regional operations directors help Godoy keep the program relevant. SMG’s Randy Philipson said that O.S.C.A.R. allows SMG’s staff to be better venue operators. “They get RFP samples, best practices, and things that they use in their every day lives in one location that captures it all instead of having to search all over the internet to try to find a form, format, or regulation.”
Ryan Thorpe, director of Facility Operations for McCormick Place in Chicago said that he thinks of O.S.C.A.R. as SMG’s private social network, while SMG Exec. VP - Stadiums and Arenas Doug Thornton said the site differentiates SMG from other management companies.
Altum (Latin for ‘maintain’) provides an accountability tool for facility maintenance. The customized CMMS solution (Computerized Maintenance Management Software) helps SMG venues document and maintain their client’s assets.
Claude Molinari, regional director of Operations — SMG Midwest, said the Detroit Regional Convention Facility Authority uses the results of Altum’s quarterly reports to gauge the performance of the operations team at Cobo Center.
Altum allows SMG executives to track the maintenance productivity of every facility remotely.
“I track the facilities I oversee in 30- and 60-day increments on the number of work orders completed, the number of preventative versus reactive maintenance work orders, and the percentage of work orders completed on time,” said Molinari.
The system also serves as a scheduling tool. When maintenance is first performed or a piece of equipment is installed, information including warranties and maintenance schedule is uploaded into Altum, which will then send alerts when it’s time to service the piece of equipment or retrain staff. Altum also keeps SMG safety programs, protocols and training documentation on file.
SMG has seen a return in a few major ways: in easing the transition when taking over management of existing facilities, helping existing operations run more efficiently, and creating a more attractive bid for new contracts.
New employees can tap into the information in O.S.C.A.R. and Altum to familiarize with SMG best practices. Thornton said both programs make facilities more efficient by providing access to information, leading to tremendous timesaving.
SMG recently secured the management contract for the new NFL stadium being built for the Vikings in Minneapolis.
“Those folks are building a $1 billion stadium and they want to know that their asset is going to be protected. We have a program to do that — it’s not just one person in the back room maintaining work orders manually,” said Thornton.
As the ‘man behind the curtain’ for both programs, Godoy has succeeded in creating programs that maintain accountability and serve as an informational operations resource for all of SMG’s facilities.
“As President and CEO, I challenge my senior management to innovate and strive to keep SMG at the cutting edge of venue management,” said Wes Westley. “Michael has answered the challenge.”