Substandard equipment and postie performance

[Newandscared]

Why are we assessed against the delivery performance indicators when the equipment is substandard and affects how well we can do the job. As a new starter the substandard equipment is even more of an issue. Why are posties using their own devices and dataplans to find addresses? Why can't we make manual addidtions to correct the PDAs satnav when it takes us to completely the wrong road or down dead ends etc?

Each minute we waste with the substandard equipment is an inefficiancy that affects the bottom line of delivering a certain percentage of post first time.

Having the performance targets and the PDA telling you you are below standard just leads to dangerous behaviour or posties leaving because they have high personal standards that they won't compromise. Surely those personel are the ones that are needed!!!

[BenacreNick]

You have no reason to look at performance targets as there is no agreement in place.

Just ignore them.

[TopperGas]

You have no reason to look at performance targets as there is no agreement in place.

Just ignore them.

How can anybody, particularly a new starter, just ignore them when the manager calls you in for a chat about them or, worst still, posts them on the noticeboard for the whole DO to see?

[scotchy1962]

You have no reason to look at performance targets as there is no agreement in place.

Just ignore them.

How can anybody, particularly a new starter, just ignore them when the manager calls you in for a chat about them or, worst still, posts them on the noticeboard for the whole DO to see?

Is this happening? If it is the union should be all over it, and anyone's personal named data shown would lead to some sort of claim as this is not the purpose of this info.
I haven't seen or heard of this happening in my part of the world.

[clashcityrocker]

Is this happening? If it is the union should be all over it, and anyone's personal named data shown would lead to some sort of claim as this is not the purpose of this info.
I haven't seen or heard of this happening in my part of the world.

The customer feedback is posted every month on a board in our DO.
The union isn't "all over it" and I doubt it would lead to any sort of claim.

[Basildon Bond]

Why can't we make manual addidtions to correct the PDAs satnav when it takes us to completely the wrong road or down dead ends etc?

I think they are updating (changing) the built-in sat nav the PDA uses and the DPR drivers rely on in the near future. They have realised, albeit too late, that the current navigation is way out of date.

So there's a plus, right?

[TopperGas]

Why can't we make manual addidtions to correct the PDAs satnav when it takes us to completely the wrong road or down dead ends etc?

I think they are updating (changing) the built-in sat nav the PDA uses and the DPR drivers rely on in the near future. They have realised, albeit too late, that the current navigation is way out of date.

So there's a plus, right?

Not really sure TomTom is going to be that much better than Copilot, it'll be interesting to see if it has live traffic info.

[eggraidonmojo]

Our board only has positive feedback, don't think they're allowed to show the negative publicly.

It's probably a lot harder for new starters, having to use the ad hoc delivery software etc. If most of the older staff at ours were sent out to do packets, they'd probably just sequence it all in their head.

[Smoothbackground]

Our board only has positive feedback, don't think they're allowed to show the negative publicly.

It's probably a lot harder for new starters, having to use the ad hoc delivery software etc. If most of the older staff at ours were sent out to do packets, they'd probably just sequence it all in their head.

No postie, longstanding or new, can sequence and remember 150-200 packets in their head.

[Mr Rush]

No postie, longstanding or new, can sequence and remember 150-200 packets in their head.

Not perfectly, no. Someone longstanding can certainly draw upon knowledge of duties to quickly formulate a path and load the van in that order and mentally reroute should problems arise. This is another instance where close-enough is better... and quicker.

From recent experience, putting a new start on a duty blind with a van full of Tracked that needs to be scanned into whatever replaced RO+N versus having the duty-holder present was a difference of 45 minutes. Let me be clear, I'm not criticising the reserve - all our reserves have less than six months service so I can't expect them to have learned more than a quarter of the duties in that time.

[Smoothbackground]

No postie, longstanding or new, can sequence and remember 150-200 packets in their head.

Not perfectly, no. Someone longstanding can certainly draw upon knowledge of duties to quickly formulate a path and load the van in that order and mentally reroute should problems arise. This is another instance where close-enough is better... and quicker.

From recent experience, putting a new start on a duty blind with a van full of Tracked that needs to be scanned into whatever replaced RO+N versus having the duty-holder present was a difference of 45 minutes. Let me be clear, I'm not criticising the reserve - all our reserves have less than six months service so I can't expect them to have learned more than a quarter of the duties in that time.

I hear you - to a certain extent. Knowledge is def power, and it can make a quick DPR driver even quicker, but it doesn’t necessarily equate to quicker or better quality work. In fact, complacency as to knowledge can cause sloppy work.

So let me give a slightly contrary situation to the one you posit. Longstanding 30-year postie takes out roughly 100 packets on Saturday. Professes to know the area like the back of his hand and refuses to use Ad-Hoc. Because of this, he: (i) misdelivered an item to the wrong Forest Road (we have two such roads on our patch); (ii) was unable to find two residential roads that have been built in the last 10 years and as a result brought back 15 parcels as check address/inaccessible. Also, he didn’t adhere to DPR standards and thus brought back an excessive quantity of 739’d work. Nice bloke but not very good.

[postslippete]

Because of this, he: (i) misdelivered an item to the wrong Forest Road (we have two such roads on our patch); (ii) was unable to find two residential roads that have been built in the last 10 years and as a result brought back 15 parcels as check address/inaccessible. Also, he didn’t adhere to DPR standards and thus brought back an excessive quantity of 739’d work. Nice bloke but not very good.

Apparently, if you scan a parcel and you're down the wrong street when you scan it - the PDA now alerts you. Haven't tried it out yet!

I'm not a DPR driver but I imagine if someone else had scanned the parcels in and given them to a driver to take out, does that mean that the estimated delivery window is way off?

[Mr Rush]

I'm not a DPR driver but I imagine if someone else had scanned the parcels in and given them to a driver to take out, does that mean that the estimated delivery window is way off?

Route headers are an absolute mess in our office due to the semi-officially aborted DPR revision last year. Four duties on the same core route can't be sending out remotely accurate delivery windows. Parcel Collects are all over the place because of that too.

[eggraidonmojo]

Our board only has positive feedback, don't think they're allowed to show the negative publicly.

It's probably a lot harder for new starters, having to use the ad hoc delivery software etc. If most of the older staff at ours were sent out to do packets, they'd probably just sequence it all in their head.

No postie, longstanding or new, can sequence and remember 150-200 packets in their head.

Our support drives do that every day of the week, delivering reg and packets over the whole postcode.

You don't have to remember them all, just the first one, then put the next one to that.

You don't always do it perfectly, sometimes forget one and have to go back, but it's possible.

What are DPR standards? To deliver to neighbour and safeplace?

[Smoothbackground]

Our board only has positive feedback, don't think they're allowed to show the negative publicly.

It's probably a lot harder for new starters, having to use the ad hoc delivery software etc. If most of the older staff at ours were sent out to do packets, they'd probably just sequence it all in their head.

No postie, longstanding or new, can sequence and remember 150-200 packets in their head.

Our support drives do that every day of the week, delivering reg and packets over the whole postcode.

You don't have to remember them all, just the first one, then put the next one to that.

You don't always do it perfectly, sometimes forget one and have to go back, but it's possible.

What are DPR standards? To deliver to neighbour and safeplace?

Yes, because they are “static” routes that stay the same day in, day out., consisting of Road A, Road B, Walk 1, Walk 2 etc…. When I do our various HCT Support drives I can do likewise (though I generally don’t because I like them on my manifest). However, DPRs are an entirely different kettle of fish.

Yes, DPR standards are predominantly D2N and/or safeplace, though it is mostly D2N shortfalls that people are now being picked up on.