case study: benchmarking meals per labor hour (mplh) · pplhs include the amount of labor planned...

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Case Study: Benchmarking Meals Per Labor Hour (MPLH)


Speaker Slide

Jean Ronnei, SNS

Senior Consultant

ProTeam Foodservice Advisors


Employer:

Partners:

Affiliation or Financial Disclosure


• Understand why tracking Meals Per Labor Hour (MPLH) is important

• Defining MPLH

• Learn how to calculate MPLH Meal Equivalents (MEQs)

• Planned Productive Labor Hours (PPLH)

• Case Study: Benchmarking MPLH

Why Done

Surprise Results

Objectives


•Financial success of the SN program

•Monitor the efficiency of operations

•Determines appropriate staffing levels

•Developing Labor budget

Understand why tracking MPLH is important


Institute of Child Nutrition (ICN) Definition

The number of meal equivalents (MEQs) served

per labor hour represents the primary measure

of productivity and production.

Defining Meals Per Labor Hour (MPLH)


MPLHs are calculated based on actual productive, paid

labor hours assigned to a site.

# of Meals or Meal Equivalents (MEQs)

÷ # of Planned Productive Labor Hours (PPLH)

Rushing, K. (2017). Essential KPIs for School Nutrition Success. Hattiesburg, MS: Institute of

Child Nutrition, Applied Research Division.

How to Calculate MPLH


• MEQ is the conversion of different meal services (i.e., breakfast,

supper, and snacks) and non-program food sales to the equivalent

of one federally reimbursable student lunch for comparison

purposes.

• A federally reimbursable student lunch is the standard unit of

measurement.

• MEQs are used in many KPIs.


Child Nutrition, Applied Research Division

Meal Equivalents (MEQs)


(1) Lunch or Supper (student or adult) = 1 MEQ

(1) Breakfast = 0.67

(1) Snack = 0.33

Non-program food sales ÷ Free lunch reimbursement rate

+ current USDA Foods value


Child Nutrition, Applied Research Division

MEQ Values


Institute of Child Nutrition (ICN) Definition

PPLHs include the amount of labor planned by an SN

program for managers, kitchen staff, and cashiers. Paid

hours for substitutes are included, but not paid hours for

sick, personal, or holiday leave.

Productive Labor Hours (PPLH)


Insert chart

MPLH Sample Calculation


Number of Meals or MEQs = 41,643

÷ Number of Paid Productive Labor Hours = 2,289

= 18.19 MPLH

MPLH Sample Calculation


What factors influence how many labor

hours a school need?

Factors that Affect MPLH as a productivity measure


• 14-18 MPLH

⎻ If the MPLH for a site is inside this range, adjustments are

likely not necessary

• If MPLH is 18 or above

⎻ No adjustment is needed

• If MPLH is below 14

⎻ Labor hours may need to be adjusted

Industry Guideline for MPLH


Eastern Carver County, MN

•Director aware that labor hours in similar districts were

lower

•Were ECCs high schools not as efficient?

•What might she learn from an on-site observation

• Similar district comparison study

Case Study: Benchmarking MPLH


ENROLLMENT, ATTENDANCE AND VARIABLES


ENROLLMENT, ATTENDANCE AND PARTICPATION RATES


February 2017 Participation Data


•Who mops kitchen

•Who washes café tables

during meal service

•Who washes café tables

after meal service

# Daily menu choices

# Cashier positions

# Entrees

# Lunch periods

Other Survey Data Collected


Significant variance between all 8 high schools

• MPLH: 14.9 - 19.8

• Regularly scheduled staff: 8 - 19

• Daily labor hours: 37.5 - 91.25

• Cashier positions: 3 - 6

• Lunch entrée choices: 5 - 10

MPLH Survey Results


•MPLH variances are to be expected

• Tracking data is key

• Site managers are key

⎻ Understand MPLH

⎻ Track and report

⎻ Held accountable for results

Conclusions


Eastern Carver County, MN

Institute of Child Nutrition

⎻ http://theicn.org/documentlibraryfiles/PDF/20170404023743.pdf

Thank You!


• This session provides one (1) CEU

⎻ Key Area: Administration-3000

⎻ Key Topic: Case Study: Benchmarking Meals Per Labor Hour

(MPLH)

Professional Standards Code

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case study: benchmarking meals per labor hour (mplh) · pplhs include the amount of labor planned...

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