Would you like it there tomorrow?

[Lynn Simpson]

PO1, I know it is difficult but the sales culture is not going to go away and most clerks know this which is why many are receiving good SIS payments every quarter. However I appreciate your point that some offices are able to sell certain products better than others because of the type of office that it is i.e high benefit office or a deprived area etc. However I fear that POL will get tougher on people who 'won't sell' as opposed to 'can't sell' as the new hierarchy seem to be getting closer and closer to zero tolerance.

With regards the future, there is no question that we are facing difficult times but the CWU has a responsibility to be involved in negotiating for our future. Their involvement in the transformation talks is to ensure that they protect workers jobs and terms and conditions in a very difficult environment. There may have to be difficult decisions and some of it is likely to be painful but I am confident they will be pragmatic and they have not let us down yet. The business knows that they have the support of the membership which strengthens their hand. I am in no doubt however that if the union and POL cannot come to an agreement in the transformation talks then the CWU will be coming to their members to stand up and be counted and we will once again be facing a dispute.

[PO1]

I fear that POL will get tougher on people who 'won't sell' as opposed to 'can't sell' as the new hierarchy seem to be getting closer and closer to zero tolerance.

But what if plain and simple the customers don't want what you're offering or simply can't afford it? Are you then saying that the conclusion will be that it's all our fault?

[MinisterofCucumber]

It looks like 'death by a thousand cuts'.

What Crown Offices need are Union Reps who are expert advocates that can defend the members from attack via Attendance Procedure, Conduct Code and MUP. It would also be an advantage if the reps were Grievance Procedure experts and knew the MTSF inside out.

We need to maintain the level of staffing until Postbank is set up. Maybe Counters Clerks should be asking customers if they want any cash. I don't believe that many people are aware that they can access their bank accounts at the Post Office. At least it will keep people coming through the door and management won't be able to argue that demand has gone down so staff must go.

http://www.postoffice.co.uk/sites/defau ... 201211.pdf" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

[Lynn Simpson]

PO1, If your manager is doing his job properly as per the Sales Code of Practice, then he/she will be observing conversations and know that you are doing your bit. They can't put you on the MUP if you are informing customers of their options. If you really are feeling that your manager is being unreasonable and crossing the line with regards unreasonable pressure i.e bullying or dishonesty to the customer then you need to raise it with your area rep. Thats what I would do anyway

[Lynn Simpson]

Mof C, I should think any counter clerks reading your latest posting are exasperated at your ignorance of counter transactions. Asking customers if they need any cash today or informing them that they can access cash from their bank accounts is 'bread and butter' stuff to a counter clerk and something they now do on automatic pilot.

With regards the CWU reps knowing the National Agreements such as those you cited and numerous others is basic training for ALL AR reps and in fact any union rep in any business and in any union should know the agreements that apply to the members they represent.

[claire1.9]

date stamp trish you seem to be missing the point. You are absolutely spot on about giving the customer all their choices especially when it comes to posting however managerment don't want you you to do that because the first question you are suppose to ask anybody posting anything inland uk ' do you want it there tommorrow?' The customer can either say yes or no. Some customers say 'yes' knowing what they are saying 'yes' to, others that don't have a clue and it is these ones The Post Office are targeting you don't have to go any further with your conversation and you know damn well what they are sending and knowing that a first class stamp would of done the job. Where is that being clear and transparent and where does good customer service come into it. I also know that managers don't give a damn because I was in an formal interview a couple of weeks ago as a note taker and the charge against the counter clerk was not having the special deliverly conversation. Luckly the out come was more training, however the counter clerk pointed out to manager that they felt like they were miss selling special deliverly and the priorty services abroad because once they say yes you are not allowed to explain the other services. The manager was have none of it and said it was good customer service. I wanted to strangle them. But as a note taker you are not allowed to speak. Lastly all I can say on this matter is our area cwu rep was in office and went in with the counter clerk when a decision had been made by the manager on the out come of the meeting. I also complained to my second line manager about how the interview was handled by the first line manager as I was expecting it to go to a first stage conduct. So no date stamp trish all the manager is bothered about at the end of the day is the targets and that is that.

[PO1]

Exactly.

[fishtank]

I suppose you could be honest and say if you use a first class stamp it will have a 92% chance of getting there tomorrow and if you spend 10 times as much you will improve your chances by as much as 7%.
How's that for a "conversation"?
Not much of a sales pitch i admit but at least it's honest.

[Lounge Lizard]

The honest question would be "would you like (a) a 95% chance of it getting there tomorrow for 46p or (b) a 99% chance of it getting there tomorrow for £5.45 ? " not that that would be asked because 99% of customers would opt for (a) at 46p just as they always have done anyway.

[The BFO]

Isn't this a right old conundrum?

Two customers today, almost identical scenarios:
'I want to post this First Class please'.
'Do you want it there tomorrow?'
'Yes please'.
'We can track it, and guarantee delivery by 1 o'clock lunchtime for £5.45. Would that be all right for you?'
'Yeah, that'll do'.

As opposed to this, I had numerous rejections at my second question, where I freely and happily gave the alternatives.

What is wrong with what I did?

[fishtank]

What is wrong with what I did?

To find out whether you did anything wrong at all you would need to be able to see inside the heads of the numerous customers who refused your second question...and the one who accepted.
That is the risk with active selling...not knowing how the customer feels about being on the receiving end.

[subbie]

This thread has generated about 56 posts so far, most being from people who either do not sit on the front line facing the public, or from people who do not directly depend on sales for their salary.

As someone who does both the above, may I say butt out!

Special Delivery under 2 kg in weight is an excellent value for money product. It is one of the few products anyone who works on the Counter can be proud of recommending to the public in purchasing, which says a lot given the other dross products we are asked to push. How any Counter based worker can complain about being asked to push SD beats me. Jeeze

Subbie

[PO1]

Special Delivery under 2 kg in weight is an excellent value for money product. It is one of the few products anyone who works on the Counter can be proud of recommending to the public in purchasing, which says a lot given the other dross products we are asked to push. How any Counter based worker can complain about being asked to push SD beats me.Subbie

Couldn't agree more with your praise for Special Delivery but the point is the underhand way they are trying to trick our customers into using a guaranteed service which goes against everything we should be about. We're not allowed to mention the word guaranteed for god's sake because "you'll have more chance of obtaining a yes."

When the desperation for sales/targets reaches fever pitch we'll be told to say "Would you like to get it there?"

[Lynn Simpson]

claire 1.9 The interview you sat in was an 'informal' investigatory interview and quite frankly I would have refused to have been a note-taker at an interview of a colleague. If managers want note-takers they should get them from the management grade not fellow CWU members. Also I suspect the Area Rep went into the outcome interview to remind the manager that this was a performance issue not a conduct issue which is why the manager had to back off.

[claire1.9]

date stamp trish I wish i could discuss this issue with you more about my collegue but I can't. I am glad i was that note taker because I did intervene and reminded my collegue of their rights because the manager was taking the p**** (sorry i don't mean to swear) And subbie yes it is an excellent service special delivery no one is disputing that but treating customers fairly has gone out of the window.