EMAIL AND WEB DELIVER SHARPEST BLOW TO ROYAL MAIL FORTUNES

[dvbuk55]

I accept you believe what you say fozzie, though on what you base your assumptions I am in some quandry.

In the last three years staff has increased year on year and is still increasing, the number of deliveries has increased due to geo route, the delivery vehicle fleet has increased from 24 vehicles to 35 vehicles, though this in part has been attributable to park and loop and last but by no means least, overtime has increased - all this in a climate where mail volumes are falling. You see I don't believe volumes are falling at delivery level, processing and revenue are certainly falling and on that point I would agree.

Now if we require all the additional resources to deliver less mail than there truly is a failure in management of the highst order.

[F0zziebear]

dvbuk55. It would be interesting to know roughly where you are based. Considering all the cuts that have been put in place your experience seems to buck the trend.

[johnnyp]

dvbuk55. It would be interesting to know roughly where you are based. Considering all the cuts that have been put in place your experience seems to buck the trend.

Dont know his exact location but weve got this picture of him on his walk

Postman.jpg

[dvbuk55]

dvbuk55. It would be interesting to know roughly where you are based. Considering all the cuts that have been put in place your experience seems to buck the trend.

Dont know his exact location but weve got this picture of him on his walk

Postman.jpg

Yes just scraping the dog s**t off my shoe, this was a light day too

I'm based in the North West fozzie and our numbers have increased year on year - I don't honestly hear of anywhere in deliveries that has had any redundancies in the NW - maybe in MCs and maybe in ancilliary staff I couldn't say. In addition to the increase in staff we have had a curtailing of indoor duties which hasn't meant loss of staff - just no-one doing what used to be done. Some of those duties have to be picked up on overtime. I can't speak nationwide only in this office but I would find it strange if ours was the only office which has increased staff, vehicles and overtime.

[DGP1]

All I can say is the volumes are up in my office (based on their figures) because at SDD our average day was about 32,000 but now they say our average day is 40,000, so something is wrong somewhere with the figures

[dvbuk55]

All I can say is the volumes are up in my office (based on their figures) because at SDD our average day was about 32,000 but now they say our average day is 40,000, so something is wrong somewhere with the figures

I don't think there is any doubt that Royal Mail HAVE got it wrong - in this months courier there is a questionnaire asking if we think volume, not weight, is falling or not and I think the overwhelming answer will be it is not. BUT what begs the question is WHY DON'T THEY KNOW? If this super accountancy system so boastfully advocated by Tman is so good they should be telling us.

Interestingly enough on the same page is an item about response mail, which I also used to do prior to PIP and lo and behold the problems forecast have so far cost them £25 million a year - it was and still is in melt down. In order for the mail to be correctly priced you more or less have to put dozens of letters through the matrix, time which you don't have and so there has to be a little creative accounting. One delivery office losing £40,000, only small offices with a small response base would be free from these sort of losses.

Prior to PIP there was a running battle between higher management about accounting for response service licences, in which I was supposed to check each item of response mail to see if it conformed to RM standards, and if the licence was valid. Anyone who has or actually still does work on the system enters the accounting details into Doris for a bill to be produced. My argument was if a bill is produced the licence is valid if the account is paid and under the terms of granting the licence the stationery had to be checked first. I spent some considerable time explaining that the data should already be available from current sources, of course it wasn't because the stationery had never been checked, the licence numbers were wrong, the type of licence was wrong and no one seemed to be responsible.

Royal Mail are the architects of their own downfall because they rely on statisticians who can spout figures out of their backside but have absolutely no idea how this business should be organised nor how it actually works on the ground.

[Tman]

If this super accountancy system so boastfully advocated by Tman is so good they should be telling us.

Keep going, I'm sure you can kick some life into the dying embers yet...

"Boastfully advocated..."

I've told you how the stats are gathered from a technical perspective, and pointed out the frankly huge holes in your reasoning as to why you believe they aren't correct.
What more is there left to say? Probably nothing, as you're now tying in your point with some dumb poll run in the company rag.

I suspect the Courier will use the results of the poll to push it's own agenda/stories whichever way [as if there's any doubt!] the result goes.
I also expect you (among others) to gladly trumpet "I told you so" should the poll say volumes are up, but say "what a load of crap that Courier is" should the poll say they've gone down.
Oh well, such is the lot of the cynically fickle..

[TrueBlueTerrier]

Actually I think, as is common for him Fozzie has explained the discrepancy.

If I have got what he says is right Volume may well be down, however with effect if PIP and DSA and Pegasus the weight has increased but the value has dropped. I like the way he explained it as well no snidey comments and showing respect to others of different opinions.

In essence as I see if both side are right - the number and value of items going through the system may have fallen but the weight carried by individual postman has increased hence the difference in perception. Well explained by someone who is no longer in the business

[DGP1]

Actually I think, as is common for him Fozzie has explained the discrepancy.

If I have got what he says is right Volume may well be down, however with effect if PIP and DSA and Pegasus the weight has increased but the value has dropped. I like the way he explained it as well no snidey comments and showing respect to others of different opinions.

In essence as I see if both side are right - the number and value of items going through the system may have fallen but the weight carried by individual postman has increased hence the difference in perception. Well explained by someone who is no longer in the business

It doesn't really matter what Fozzie thinks because all he's using is statistics and as we all know they can be used to back up anybodies point of view.
One more thing, if mail volumes are down then why have the sales not reduced to reflect that as I posted before, sales are only down 0.1% and if you include the increase in DSA then someone, somewhere is abusing the figures.

[dvbuk55]

If this super accountancy system so boastfully advocated by Tman is so good they should be telling us.

Keep going, I'm sure you can kick some life into the dying embers yet...

"Boastfully advocated..."

I've told you how the stats are gathered from a technical perspective, and pointed out the frankly huge holes in your reasoning as to why you believe they aren't correct.
What more is there left to say? Probably nothing, as you're now tying in your point with some dumb poll run in the company rag.

I suspect the Courier will use the results of the poll to push it's own agenda/stories whichever way [as if there's any doubt!] the result goes.
I also expect you (among others) to gladly trumpet "I told you so" should the poll say volumes are up, but say "what a load of crap that Courier is" should the poll say they've gone down.
Oh well, such is the lot of the cynically fickle..

My my it must be wonderful to be perfect Tman - "some dumb poll run in the company rag"

What I would expect is the likes of your ilk to explain the consistency in delivery officers saying that volumes are up, the company admitting they don't know and if the volumes on balance are found to be UP then you would apologise with good grace - of course I won't be holding my breath.

[dvbuk55]

Actually I think, as is common for him Fozzie has explained the discrepancy.

If I have got what he says is right Volume may well be down, however with effect if PIP and DSA and Pegasus the weight has increased but the value has dropped. I like the way he explained it as well no snidey comments and showing respect to others of different opinions.

In essence as I see if both side are right - the number and value of items going through the system may have fallen but the weight carried by individual postman has increased hence the difference in perception. Well explained by someone who is no longer in the business

We have already debated the weight over volume issue, we are solely concerned with volume and I speak from the now experience.

[DGP1]

Actually I think, as is common for him Fozzie has explained the discrepancy.

If I have got what he says is right Volume may well be down, however with effect if PIP and DSA and Pegasus the weight has increased but the value has dropped. I like the way he explained it as well no snidey comments and showing respect to others of different opinions.

In essence as I see if both side are right - the number and value of items going through the system may have fallen but the weight carried by individual postman has increased hence the difference in perception. Well explained by someone who is no longer in the business

We have already debated the weight over volume issue, we are solely concerned with volume and I speak from the now experience.

[Tman]

What I would expect is the likes of your ilk to explain the consistency in delivery officers saying that volumes are up,

"my ilk"?

the company admitting they don't know

Don't be so naive. Of course they know, and there's whole RM departments whose sole purpose is to check, assimilate and forecast those same volumes.

{insert here....."Ah yeah but stats can be fiddled though...." type comment}

The Courier story is merely designed to stimulate debate, not change RM policy

and if the volumes on balance are found to be UP then you would apologise with good grace - of course I won't be holding my breath

Leave out the pomposity, please........ How can the volumes found to be UP when mech utilization and throughputs are showing a month on month decline, and have done for some time?
Oh yeah, I know, it's the "bag over the shoulder" infallible indicator again..

[dvbuk55]

My word Tman I have misjudged you - I mean if you know what RMs policy is - I'd tell RM if I were you - they may may even take you seriously, though it's not likely.

[Tman]

Same old same old, eh?

Suppose it must be easier any attempt at continuing the debate?