The critical role of streamlined workforce management

Among the findings, the report notes the pace of change has accelerated and inflationary pressure has fast-tracked technology development, as miners focus on digital tools that can accelerate productivity. 

Poor scheduling that results in lower output and productivity is an area within the control of a company that can be avoided with tools that streamline remote operations and optimise productivity.  

In Australia, the world's leading hub for FIFO work, more
than 100,000 workers are on fly-in fly-out rosters and the management of scheduling creates a significant administrative burden, particularly on small and mid-cap companies.  

If managed poorly, workforce administration can have a significant impact on productivity.  

Mismanagement and scheduling errors can result in delays and workers being unable to get on-site, which hits the bottom line through lost output at a time when productivity is under scrutiny. 

EY’s Risks and Opportunities for Mining and Metals in 2024 underlines that data and technology, as well as costs and productivity, are among the key trends that will most impact resource firms in the coming year.     

Every day that a worker is not on site as planned is lost output and lost revenue, which impacts budgeting and financial planning at a time of rising costs and inflation. 

It's a particular challenge for the north of Australia, with Queensland, the Northern Territory and Western Australia all prone to cyclones, often requiring rapid mobilisation of personnel to safer locations.

Without access to up-to-date information about schedules, travel arrangements, and any last-minute changes, a company’s operations can easily be disrupted. 

Centralising workforce management operations allows for better tracking and visibility, ensuring bookings and transport are coordinated and minimising costly disruptions.  

Organising and communicating with a large workforce that is frequently on the move or located in remote areas is challenging enough, let alone utilising systems that don’t integrate well or at all.  

Companies that cannot drive efficiencies through workforce management risk being squeezed further, leaving them less able to compete and remain lean against competitors. 

Workforce management requires precise scheduling and centralised oversight, to ensure every worker gets where they need to be when they need to get there.  

Traditional management tools are often inefficient and lack real-time feedback, which means some errors may only be identified at the last minute causing the most detrimental impact on operations.

OZ Minerals System Administrator

INX InFlight gave OZ Minerals site-wide control and management, and the flexibility to adapt to ongoing business changes at Prominent Hill. It simplified normal work activities and business processes, allowed access to the latest data and delivered enterprise level reporting.  

As OZ Minerals recognised the value and efficiency of having linked solutions which use a single database for profile management, additional INX Software products were acquired that provided solutions for training, risk management, environment reporting and health management solutions. 

With multi-language support, seamless integration with existing systems such as MS Office and MS SharePoint, as well as OZ Minerals’ intranet, ERP and workflow systems, INX Software delivered a significant improvement in the company’s business efficiency. 

Each system or record was operated independently and required a separate system administrator, which meant that keeping personnel records up to date in each system was a heavy administration burden. 

Having identified the need for company-wide management of travel, flights, accommodation and rosters, a solution was sought to provide an integrated and centralised solution that replaced their disparate systems and documents.  

Oz Minerals operates two significant resources in South Australia — the Prominent Hill copper, gold and silver mine 130km south-east of Coober Pedy and Carrapateena, one of Australia's largest copper and gold resources, 470km north of Adelaide.  

Oz Minerals employs a 3,000 strong FIFO workforce, which includes 20 flights per week per site. At the time the Prominent Hill operation engaged INX, they relied on independent systems and spreadsheets to manage:  

"The benefits quickly became obvious for implementing a system that linked our competencies and compliances as a site requirement prior to any flights being booked."

We service clients around the globe in the areas of workforce mobilisation and travel logistics, delivering industry and use-specific software, supported by the lessons learned from serving clients in the most remote locations on Earth. 

Our clients work in complex industries and we are their partner in streamlining and expediting the planning, forecasting, workforce management, booking, coordination, and accommodation needed for remote operations.  

Clients around the world trust us to safely mobilise FIFO workforces, taking the process off spreadsheets and out of emails, to deliver intuitive, simple, and effective workforce management. 

Our software scales to meet the needs of our clients as their business grows. We provide easy-to-use, intuitive software designed in concert with industry for complex, high-risk and remote environments. 

INX Software prides itself on delivering an outstanding experience for clients every time. 

We take a multi-stage approach to implementing our workforce management solutions to ensure we thoroughly understand your business requirements. 

Find out more about each of the stages on your implementation journey to integrate INX InFlight and INX SAM Suite into your workplace.  

We work with you every step of the way to set your business and your team up for success.