rwbarker wrote:The BFO wrote:rwbarker wrote:
Having done that, how about a few others making it clear who they are? I don't think it's fair that I should be asked to respond to questions from anonymous sources. What do you have to hide?
Dear Mr Barker, if you are genuinely serious about your contributions on this forum, and are prepared to enter an honest debate, then I will reveal my identity,
providing you give me a clear unequivocal assurance that nothing I have said previously on this forum will be used in punitive action against me. For my part I accept that given your position, you may not be able to answer every point or question. I am simply looking for your viewpoint.
I apologise if I have been a little ‘robust’ towards you - some of my posts have been made out of a deep sense of frustration, and yes, sometimes, anger.
And by the way, I took you at face value right from the start!
Very happy to give that assurance. Richard
POSTMAN EDIT:Can you PM this to him please,i have already spoken about this.
Perhaps you would be so kind as to comment on the following please. I think I already know what you will say to a few of these questions, but perhaps it would be good to clarify the position:
1. Who says we should make a profit, and what about the social need of the service we offer? Is the National Health Service profitable?
2. If you accept that Crown Offices should be run on purely commercial lines, then how is ‘Income’ attributed, and is it done so appropriately – the obvious example being the difference in Travel Money Margins, and the ‘Income’ attributed to the Branch. There are other questionable items in this regard.
a. Quote:
‘What you have to remember is that Firstrate is a joint venture between POL and Bank of Ireland. So, any profit made on foreign currency business is distributed at the end of the year 50: 50 between the two companies. The Crown network gets it's share based on the percentage of total travel money business which the 370 branches transact......and still we lose money!’ So who negotiated that contract, given that the majority of the work involved is conducted at the Branch?
3. Further, if we are not to be credited fully for our ‘Social Role’ then why do we continue servicing the needs of the ‘Financially Less Sophisticated’, and less able in society?
4. Why should we pay the price for mismanagement? We all see daily huge waste, caused by poor direction.
5. Ms Vennells cites wide disparity in Throughputs across Crown Offices, and implies this is our problem, when clearly Senior Management has failed to keep this under control. I suspect the poorest performing offices in terms of Throughput will be the ‘Flagships’:
a. Ticket Machines – cause a delay between calling for a customer, them awakening from their slumbers on the sofa, and arriving at the counter.
b. Financial Specialists – Of dubious value in terms of Income, and a disaster in terms of generating ‘Basic Transaction Hours’, which I assume are still being used to calculate Throughputs.
c. Meeter and Greeters – very pleasing aesthetically, but of almost zero contribution in terms of efficiency.
Finally, perhaps you could give an overview of the current position of the Crown Office Network as you see it?
Thank you for your time.
Paul.
