Observation visit
The morning should look like your ordinary trade
This page is the practical side of an on-site wait-time study or a peak-hour map. It is not a product tour. It is how we sit in a Malaysian waiting room without turning the session into a performance.
Where we sit
We need a chair with a view of the door and the reception desk. We do not sit inside a treatment room. In a restaurant we stand or sit near the host, not among diners, unless you give us a side table that does not take a paying cover.
If a corridor is too narrow for an extra person, say so before the date. We can work from a spot you choose, as long as arrivals and call-outs remain visible.
What to tell reception
Introduce us as people taking notes on waiting times. Staff do not need a speech. Guests do not need a leaflet. If someone asks, reception may say we are looking at how long the wait is today. We will not interview a guest unless you introduce us and they agree.
What we need from the booking list
A view of that day’s list — a screen at the desk or a print — is enough. Guest phone numbers can be covered. We do not take the device away. We do not log in as you. If the app shows late marks and no-shows the way your desk already uses them, keep using those marks; we will copy them into the log.
What goes in the log
Clock time of arrival. Name or ticket as called. Booked slot. Time the guest is taken in. Walk-in or booked. Late mark, if any. Standing or seated. We do not time the filling, the colour, or the meal. The wait, for our purpose, ends when the person leaves the bench or the door.
What we will not do on the day
No photographs of faces. No recording of conversations at the desk unless you have asked for a lateness review and staff know we are listening for late marks only. No moving of appointments. No advice shouted across the floor while guests are sitting.
After we leave
The written account for a flagship study usually arrives within ten working days. Peak-hour maps are shorter. If you later change buffers or walk-in rules, a follow-up observation is a matching day, not a new kind of visit.
Questions we hear before a first visit
Do you change anything in our booking app?
No. We look at the list you already keep — on a screen at reception or as a print you hand us. We do not log in as you, install anything, or move anyone’s appointment. If a crowding review suggests a slot cannot fit a chair, that remains your decision to change.
Will guests know why you are sitting in the waiting area?
Reception may introduce us as people taking notes on waiting times. We do not interview guests unless you ask us to and guests agree. We do not photograph faces. The log uses first names or ticket numbers the way your desk already calls them.
Which parts of Malaysia do you visit?
Klang, the rest of Selangor, and Kuala Lumpur are in the starting fees. Premises in Negeri Sembilan or further are quoted for travel and lodging. A booking-slot crowding review can be done from our office if you can send a sample.
How long until we receive the written account?
For an on-site wait-time study, usually within ten working days of the visit. Peak-hour maps and follow-up letters are shorter, often within a week. Calendar reviews depend on how quickly the sample arrives.
Can you come on our busiest Saturday?
Yes, if that is the day you want described. We would rather sit a typical Saturday than a quiet Tuesday you emptied for us. If a public holiday closes the list, we move the date.
Is this a report we can show staff?
The account is written so a floor meeting can read it. It names hours, chairs, and booking habits. It does not rank staff and it does not quote guests by full name.