In a previous article, I discussed the Psychology of Queueing and my experience at Disneyland while on vacation with my family.   In this post, I want to briefly talk about FastPass at Disneyland, in the context of Queueing.

FastPass is a feature that Disneyland offers its customers, wherein a customer is invited to obtain a pass, redeemable only at a certain time and ends at a certain time.  The idea is that during those times, theoretically, the lines will be shorter and the wait time will be shorter also.  Below is a picture of what that looks like at Disneyland:

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Most organizations collect and report on metrics that are not descriptive of their processes. Some of you may have noticed that most metrics that are reported are the “average” and some organization also use the “median”. Most people do not understand elementary statistics and their application to business. Here is the truth of the matter: Your customers do not feel the average — they feel the variation.

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I went on vacation last week to Disneyland.  We had a lot of fun.  It was also a time to learn how organizations like Disneyland deal with queueing challenges, especially with systems under high stress and load.  In this post, I want to cover the Psychology of Queueing and how Disneyland satisfies several of the positive properties.

There are a few key behavioral responses or reactions to queues, or waiting. Below are the propositions:

1. Unoccupied time feels longer than occupied time.
2. Process-waits feel longer than in-process waits.
3. Anxiety makes waits seem longer.

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I’d venture to say that most products and services are bloated with features that customers most likely don’t care for;  I’ve been part of product development teams where the focus is on features, with an implicit goal to stuffing as many features as possible — in consumer packaged goods and in software.   This is the wrong approach to developing memorable and sticky products.

The above statement might be best described by Kathy Sierra’s Featuritis Curve:

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The Just-in-Time (JIT) approach attempts to reduce costs and improve workflow by carefully scheduling material to arrive where needed at the proper time. Consequently, costs of inventories can be substantially reduced and the use of space can be conserved. In some cases this approach can contribute to an improved quality of the product. 

What is not well known is Ford’s contributions to the JIT system, that is widely-known to be developed by Taichi Ohno, of Toyota.  Below is an article that explicates Ford’s contributions to JIT.  This article was originally published Peter Peterson in Management Decision, 2002, Vol. 40, Iss. 1/2;  pg. 82, 7 pgs.

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Flinders Medical Centre — Australia — implemented Lean over 2.5 years ago and has seen substantial benefit in the way they provide care and the amount of people they are now able to serve.  They report safer and more accessible care — the two goals they had made prior to their Lean implementation. 

The article below was originally published in the Australian Health Review, February 2007.  The authors are David I Ben-Tovim,  Jane E Bassham,  Denise Bolch,  Margaret A Martin,  et al. 

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Six Sigma is a business improvement methodology that was developed at Motorola to systematically reduce or eliminate defects and reduce variation.  Six Sigma typically follows the Define, Measure, Analyze, Improve, and Control framework (DMAIC).  Six Sigma also has the Define, Measure, Analyze, Design, and Verify framework (DMADV), for product design, or redesigning an existing process. 

Below is the DMAIC Framework:

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My family and I have been in Disneyland all week (since March 18 until March 23).  This has been a really fun break — I love spending time with my family.   While on my vacation, I’ve made it a point to see how Queueing works in theme parks, such as Disneyland, where a system is placed under intense and prolonged stress.

Specifically, when I return, I plan on posting on the following:

• How Disneyland’s FastPass actually works, in the context of Queueing Theory.
• How Disneyland satisfies the principles in the Psychology of Queueing.

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