Pro Bono O.R. Mapping the UK dog population with the RSPCA
Mrs Felicity McLeister (The OR Society) and Mr Ian Seath (Improvement Skills Consulting)
This workshop will give you an overview of the Pro Bono O.R. scheme as well as a chance to take part in an interactive session based on a real project with RSPCA mapping the UK dog population.
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OR58 Conference: Pro bono OR and a case study
1. Pro Bono O.R.
OPERATIONAL RESEARCH
FOR THE THIRD SECTOR
Contact
Email: felicity.mcleister@theorsociety.com
Phone: 0121 234 7826
2. Pro Bono O.R.: An
Overview
What is Pro Bono O.R. and how did it
come about?
What are its aims?
To help Third Sector organisations to do a
better job
To promote O.R. in the Third Sector
To promote effective use of O.R.
To give O.R. analysts an opportunity to
practise in a wider arena and widen their
skills
3. How it Works:
Organisations
Expression of interest
Registration form
Scoping conversation
Project scope sent to volunteers
Organisation selects volunteer
Pre project survey
Project proposal drawn up
Project commences
Feedback sought
Post project survey
4. How it Works: Volunteers
THE ROLE OF A
VOLUNTEER
Work with organisation to
specify project
Undertake project, either
individually or in teams
Write up and/or present
their work wherever
appropriate
Mentor junior volunteers
WHO ARE THE
VOLUNTEERS?
O.R. / analytical
professionals
Retired
Consultants
Government employees
Employed professionals
Academics
5. Types of Projects
Strategic
planning/review
Process
improvement
Impact
measurement
Data analysis
Business planning
Efficiency
improvement
Options appraisal
Decision making
Scheduling
Risk analysis
6. Location of projects
0
5
10
15
20
25
30
35
Region (completed projects)
0
5
10
15
20
25
East
Midlands
London and
South East
Midlands North East North West
and North
Wales
Scotland
Region (active projects)
7. Types of organisations
0 2 4 6 8 10 12 14
Animal welfare
Parent & Families/Children & Young
people
Community
Disadvantaged groups
Education
Elderly
Health
Mental health
People with disabilities
Type of organisation (completed projects)
0 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8
Community
Disadvantaged groups
Education
Elderly people
Heath
Mental health
People with disabilities
Type of organisation (active projects)
8. Category of project
0 5 10 15 20
Advisory
Business planning
Data analysis
Database design
Impact measurement
Modelling
Process
analysis/improvement
Resource planning
Scheduling
Strategic review/planning
Systems mapping
Category (completed projects)
0 2 4 6 8 10 12 14
Advisory
Business planning
Data analysis
Database design
Impact measurement
Modelling
Process analysis/improvement
Resource planning
Scheduling
Strategic review/planning
Systems mapping
Category (active projects)
9. Achievements
PROJECTS
90 projects advertised
58 projects completed
32 active projects
VOLUNTEERS
Over 450 volunteers
230 volunteers applied
for projects
117 volunteers on
projects
12. Benefits
Consultanc
y Skills
Build Your
CV
Making a Real
Difference
Work in a Different
Sector
Team
Building
Soft
Skills
Take Part
in the
Whole
Project
Cycle
Seeing how other
organisations work
Positive
Learning
Experienc
e
LearnNew
Skills
Unique
Opportunitie
s
Project
Management
Meeting
New People
13. How to get Involved
Sign up online
http://www.theorsociety.com/Probono
Come and chat to me now
Drop me an email
felicity.mcleister@theorsociety.com
15. “It’s a dog’s life”
A Case Study in
Operational
Research
16. Can we answer the following
questions?
• How many dogs there
are “in the system” in the
UK and how do they
move between different
parts of the system?
• How many dogs are
relinquished and why?
Which type of dog?
• Can we forecast the
likely impact of different
interventions ? The RSPCA is the UK’s leading animal welfare charity.
17. Key project stages
Review the available
data
Design and build a
model
Develop
recommendations for
possible uses and
future development of
the model
18. What data would you
want to collect and
where would you find
it?
Workshop exercise 1
19. Literature Review
• Literature Review of
relevant papers and
reports
• ~50 different sources
• ~100 data points and
times series
• Assessment of data
quality
20.
21. Can we model the UK dog
population?
Workshop exercise 2
Stock
Inflows
Outflows
22. A Stocks and Flows Model of
UK dogs
A Stocks and Flows Model helps
us to understand the “system” in
which dogs exist; where they are
and how they move between
different parts of the system
Task 2a: decide what are the four
“stocks” of dogs that you would
want to include in a model, based
on the overall population data
from the literature review
Stock 1
Stock 4
Stock 2
Stock 3
23. A Stocks and Flows Model of
UK dogs
Here is a model answer
that defines four main
stocks of dogs
Task 2b: what do you
think are the inflows and
outflows that lead to
increases and
reductions in each of the
stocks?
N.B. there may be more
than one inflow and/or
outflow for each stock
Companion
dogs
Working
dogs
In Rescue
Strays
24. A Stocks and Flows Model of
UK dogs
Companion
dogs
(99.8%)
Working
dogs
In Rescue
Strays
• Births
• Imports
• Deaths
• Exports
• Births
• Imports
• Deaths
• Deaths• Deaths • Births • Births
• Imports
26. Factors affecting the flows
Canine
birth &
death
rates
Political
Economic
Social
Technology
Legal
Environment
If you were the
RSPCA, what
interventions would
you want to make to
improve the
system?
27. How the RSPCA has been
able to use the results
Helping to scope the
direction of their
campaign to tackle
the illegal trade in
puppies
Using the data to
inform their response
to DEFRA’s
consultation on
overhauling
existing pet vending
legislation
Notes de l'éditeur
To help Third Sector organisations to do a better job
To promote O.R. in the Third Sector
To promote effective use of O.R.
To give O.R. analysts an opportunity to practise in a wider arena and widen their skills
Taking part in the whole project cycle
Learning new skills
Meeting new people
Seeing how other organisations work