Executive Summary
Over the years, CSV have continuously strived to improve its processes and exceed our customers’ expectations. One of CSV’s key strengths is its dedicated team of professionals who share a passion for excellence. CSV have created a culture of continuous improvement where everyone is encouraged to contribute their ideas and suggestions to enhance our operations.
Innovation is becoming a core of how CSV operates, and it is always seeking new ways to improve its processes and service delivery. CSV believe that its commitment to excellence has been reflected in its achievements, including the vastly improved asset information maturity and positive culture. In conclusion, it is an honour to submit this excellence award application and believe that our commitment to excellence has set us apart from our competitors. CSV remains dedicated to delivering exceptional quality and service and look forward to continued success in the future.
Summary of the Asset Information Management Culture at
CSV
Since its establishment in 2014, Court Services Victoria (CSV) has undergone a transformative journey to enhance its asset information management practices. Over the last four years, CSV has made significant strides in improving its organizational asset information management maturity, resulting in the achievement of a rating of “Optimising” and zero AMAF material compliance deficiencies as per the Asset Management Maturity Assessment tool established by the Victorian Government.
CSV is dedicated to further improving its asset information management maturity and establishing a thoroughly documented asset management practice. To attain its current level of information management maturity, CSV has implemented numerous large-scale initiatives. The leadership at CSV is committed to fostering a culture of collaboration and continuous improvement by developing a roadmap to guide future efforts and applying targeted continuous improvement measures to uncover potential areas for enhancement.
Description of the Asset Information Management system
In June 2019, CSV underwent an Asset Management Maturity Assessment, which served as a
baseline for evaluating its asset management capability, information management, and compliance with the mandatory requirements of AMAF. The assessment identified several key challenges, including inconsistencies in documented information around processes, policies, and information governance, resulting in operational issues around asset visibility, failures, and maintenance errors. CSV had limited understanding of its assets, lacked centralized systems and processes, and had no overarching information management strategy or tools to enable quality outcomes.
Another concern was the perception of CSV’s asset management competency by key stakeholders. To manage their expectations, CSV needed to assess its own capabilities, but lacked the necessary frameworks.
However, by June 2022, CSV had achieved compliance against all 41 mandatory AMAF clauses,
demonstrating its assessed asset management capability. In 2022 there were no AMAF material
compliance deficiencies and CSV exceeding the minimum standards for seven mandatory clauses, resulting in a rating of “Optimising” as per the Victorian Government’s Asset Management Maturity Assessment tool. This was achieved through continuous improvement activities, a cultural shift aided by CSV’s leadership team, stakeholder engagement, and support, as well as a focus on information management.
CSV has made significant progress in its information management maturity journey by establishing its Asset Information Model, Data Reference Model, Asset Management System, and Asset Information Strategy. These models, strategies, and systems are the foundation for CSV’s information management, reporting, engagement, and communication activities. A brief outline of these is below:
The Asset Information Model (AIM) is a comprehensive collection of data, documents, models, and other records that are gathered from all sources within CSV to enable the ongoing management of assets. It serves as the sole source of verified and authorized information for each asset across the entire portfolio.
The Data Reference Model (DRM) is utilized to categorize, describe, and share data, promoting the exchange and reuse of information throughout CSV. By using the DRM, CSV is able to streamline its data management processes and improve collaboration and efficiency across the organization.
The Asset Management System (AMS) empowers asset managers to make informed decisions
about the assets they oversee, ensuring that they operate effectively and efficiently while aligned with the organization’s overall goals.
The Asset Information Strategy (AIS) enables CSV to plan and execute maintenance activities
more effectively, providing valuable insight into the maintenance requirements of each individual
asset. The 10-year asset maintenance program helps to demonstrate the criticality of ongoing
funding to the Department of Treasury and Finance for the effective management of CSV’s assets. Asset Performance Reporting, Integrated Project Database Reporting, and Courts Asset Information Management Systems (CAIMS) are some of the key reporting and information tools established and utilized by CSV to help meet their service delivery outcomes. These tools have enabled CSV to achieve a comprehensive overview of all its assets, resulting in increased asset longevity, improved maintenance management, and more efficient project scheduling.
3.1 Use of Best Practice Asset Management Principles
CSV achieved operational excellence by following industry best practices and shifting from reactive maintenance to predictive maintenance. This involved considering all stages of an asset’s utilization, including risk, quality, safety, service level, data and management systems, policy and procedures of asset management, and engaging employees to adopt innovative and more effective ways of working.
However, achieving best practices in both operations and information management, as well as
stakeholder engagement, required a collaborative approach. CSV’s success highlights the importance of strong engagement, encouraging leadership that supports change, effective change resources, and a culture that is open to new ways of working when addressing information, process, and technical challenges. This approach allowed CSV to move away from siloed operations and adopt a more holistic approach that supported its journey towards operational excellence.
3.1.1 Best practice – stakeholder engagement and change practices
CSV’s leadership team implemented a culture of ownership and accountability to manage assets
differently, with whole-of-asset management as a key priority. They recognized the importance of change management capabilities and identified managing resistance to change as critical.
CSV underwent a cultural shift with positive engagement and support, attributed to the leadership team’s desire to engage in the change. Notable initiatives included improved stakeholder engagement, investing in people with change management skills, recognizing the role of leadership in successful change, and creating a plan outlining the responsibilities of the Built Environment team and jurisdictions.
Some notable initiatives are as follows:
- Improved Stakeholder Engagement – The CSV team and jurisdictions have established a
strong and effective relationship, with a focus on open communication, transparency,
collaboration, and shared goals. The Executive Director of Built Environment (BE) (a division
Court Services Victoria Asset Management Information Management Award
within CSV) has provided ongoing support to improve stakeholder engagement through various initiatives, such as roadshows, centralised reporting using CAIMS and project database reporting. In addition, BE staff have been given the opportunity to visit courts and participate in presentations to gain a better understanding of court operations. These proactive measures have significantly enhanced information transparency and improved stakeholder engagement across the board. Other engagement activities include Courts Insider Newsletter, Monthly newsletter prepared by stakeholder Engagement Manager sent to all jurisdictions and quarterly catch ups with all jurisdictions and CSV. - Emphasising the importance of the change capability – Investing in people with change
management skills was a critical step for CSV in addressing various change-related
challenges. This decision helped improve overall engagement and resilience within the
organization, highlighting the importance of change leadership. - Recognising the role of leadership in successful change – CSV leadership understood the
crucial role played by project sponsors in driving and implementing successful change
initiatives. As a result, the executive team became more actively involved in project meetings and forums where their presence was critical for the success of a particular initiative. This helped to ensure that initiatives were aligned with the strategic objectives of the organization and that the necessary resources were allocated for their successful implementation. The involvement of the executive team also helped to build trust and confidence among employees and stakeholders, creating a positive environment for change to occur. - Catalogue of Services – It sounds like there was a plan or document created that outlined the processes and responsibilities of the BE team and the jurisdictions, with specific deliverables that could be measured. This plan was then shared and approved by both the BE team and the jurisdictions, which helped to reinforce the importance of the BE team within the broader Courts Group that includes both CSV and the jurisdictions.
CSV has made significant effort to implement best practices in stakeholder engagement and change management.
3.1.2 Best practice – Operational and Information Management
CSV recognizes the importance of effectively changing and continuously improving to improve execution and build coordinated capabilities. Information governance has been key to improving operations and adopting a QMS 9001:2015 approach to information management and establishing an internal audit process is an excellent initiative to ensure quality.
CSV has implemented several frameworks, models, and policies and developed various information and reporting tools, including a 10-year asset maintenance program, asset performance reporting, and integrated project database reporting, among others. These efforts aim to improve efficiency, reduce errors, and ensure effective and secure information management, ultimately leading to better service delivery and competitiveness in the market.
The tools mentioned above have aided CSV in successfully addressing operational and technical issues around asset visibility, maintenance and information sharing and collaboration. By continually improving its processes, BE is becoming more efficient, improving CSV’s overall performance. Additionally, the implementation of information governance practices will help to ensure that information is managed effectively and securely, which is critical in today’s operating environment. CSV has implemented several frameworks to improve its asset management processes, including the
Asset Information and Systems Management, Asset Management Competency, Asset Project Management, and Maintenance Risk Management frameworks. These frameworks have helped to improve asset information management, close the skills gap, standardize project management protocols, prioritize maintenance works, and promote a culture of collaboration and teamwork within BE. Overall, these initiatives have contributed to improved asset performance, better risk management, and a safer working environment for CSV.
With the implementation of various asset management processes and frameworks, CSV has been able to gain a comprehensive understanding of its assets, their condition, and their lifecycle stage. This has allowed CSV to make informed decisions about deploying resources and projects based on accurate and transparent information, ultimately enabling CSV to achieve operational excellence.
3.2 Degree of originality and ingenuity of solution
CSV has developed a customized asset management system tailored to its specific needs, which includes an asset management policy, objectives, and processes. They conducted extensive consultation with stakeholders, particularly the jurisdictions. The system is structured with a hierarchy of systems and plans for each level, and a major two-year project was undertaken to create 52 Asset Management Plans (AMPs) for each of the buildings owned by CSV. The CSV Asset Management System is a mechanism for informing CSV’s asset managers of the viability of assets in terms of their performance, future financial liability, and importance to the organization. It comprises of people,
processes, and technology across the functional areas of CSV, collectively delivers the asset management objectives that support the Court’s mission and goals.
3.3 Program and project management
To develop and endorse the Asset Information Management (AIM), Data and Records Management (DRM), Asset Information System (AIS), and Asset Management System (AMS), governance arrangements were established with representatives at both a senior stakeholder and practical end user level.
The Asset Management Objectives were the guiding principles that supported the delivery of services in alignment with overall Government Strategic Directions. These objectives captured the required outcome or performance of an asset to deliver or support the achievement of the organization’s
objectives. To ensure that the Asset Management Objectives were at the forefront of the information strategy and various frameworks and models, a systematic approach was taken. This approach included the development of a Terms of Reference, Project Plan, project registers, project status reports, monthly
Project Control Group (PCG) meetings, and subsequent minutes. All decisions were endorsed at every step of the process within the appropriate governance structures and documented in the minutes. The adopted Governance Structure is as follows:
The program of framework and models’ development was supported by a strong focus on
engagement, communication and change management.
3.4 Benefit/Value of the project or service to the community or organisation
The implementation of AIS, AIM, DRM, and AMS has provided significant benefits to CSV and the wider community. These include a greater appreciation for information governance, identification of critical assets, access to high-quality asset information, a common understanding of CSV’s mission and vision, a proactive approach to asset management, operational and technical issue resolution through information tools, asset performance measurements and analytics, accurate lifecycle maintenance planning and reporting, compliance with DTF AMAF requirements, improved stakeholder engagement,
better-informed BE staff, and a proactive maintenance culture. Overall, CSV has gained a reputation for operational excellence, transparency, and stakeholder engagement across the jurisdictions.
3.5 Specific contribution made by the nominated individuals, team, and
stakeholder
The Department of Justice’s CSV has undergone significant changes, including increased
interconnectivity, complexity of information, and contributions to the wider community. Transformational
leadership, led by Executive Director Nicole Opie, has played a vital role in establishing a culture of shared understanding, promoting transparency and collaboration, and improving relationships within CSV and with other Jurisdictions.
CSV’s leadership has set high performance expectations, inspired, and empowered their teams, and created a positive attitude towards change, resulting in improved morale and a collaborative culture within the organization.