I think of Circuit City when they changed the pay structure and got rid of their most tenured knowledgeable employees. I still think it will take 5 or 6 years to burn off the inventory of smart knowledgeable employees here and I don't think it will be the end of the company. I just think customers will see a clear cut choice between companies and I also believe a third carrier may rise that is focused on service and a strong company culture. There is a regional carrier here that already stole a fair amount of business from us. They have better service and a better price.
Sent using BrownCafe App
I agree that there is an opportunity for another carrier to step-up and provide a superior level of service through recognizing that a strong company culture matters. Rewarding superior effort goes directly along with a strong company culture of service. One of the biggest reasons the original Federal Express succeeded was an extremely strong corporate culture of superior service. Customers knew that they would receive better care than from UPS, and they were willing to pay the difference. This is no longer the case, and cost trumps service every time, at least as far as Express management is concerned. We still charge a bundle, but Fred wants a WalMart-style employee to be the provider of "great service". It isn't going to happen, even if we are whipped and threatened daily.
However, when you are charging someone high rates for an overnight product that actually needs to be there within a rigid timeframe, customers have every right to expect both superior service and a commitment to do everything possible to ensure their vital package gets delivered as promised.
We're giving them fake promises and very little commitment. In other words, we are screwing them with the poor quality of employees we have and our equally poor service.