so how should performance issues be handled?

[stevetheupsguy]

That I can believe ... come to Corporate if you want to see micro-management.
A center manager in the district probably has more authority to make autonomous decisions than a district manager in Corporate ... that might be a good thing!

If you mean WHERE he/she eats lunch and uses the bathroom, you're right. Other than that, I believe they need permission.

 

[brownmonster]

Enough people are saying this so I believe there is something to it but there are other posters that are saying this is not the way it is in their centers.

I don't know exactly why routes are cut and where that decision is made but I have been around long enough to see centers run very differently within a district and/or division and some management dodge confrontation by saying the decision was made from up above.

I've seen the center manager and the Supes pissed off more than once in the morning as they are trying to break a route at the last minute because the DM says the stops per car are half a stop too low. If it's not coming from above my Mgmnt team should win the Academy Award.

 

[Catatonic]

I've seen the center manager and the Supes pissed off more than once in the morning as they are trying to break a route at the last minute because the DM says the stops per car are half a stop too low. If it's not coming from above my Mgmnt team should win the Academy Award.

That one I believe and has been done for over 30yrs - been there, done that. Division managers or even District mangers have been known to step in, especially if they have a perception that the center management is not taking care of the business. Always been like that.
I was questioning whether these directions on routes dispatched are coming from Corporate IE - that just does not seem manageable.

 

[pretzel_man]

I've seen the center manager and the Supes pissed off more than once in the morning as they are trying to break a route at the last minute because the DM says the stops per car are half a stop too low. If it's not coming from above my Mgmnt team should win the Academy Award.

That one I believe and has been done for over 30yrs - been there, done that. Division managers or even District mangers have been known to step in, especially if they have a perception that the center management is not taking care of the business. Always been like that.
I was questioning whether these directions on routes dispatched are coming from Corporate IE - that just does not seem manageable.

If the definition of coming from above is the package division manager, then I agree. It has been said that the operators are not allowed to make dispatch decisions. That I disagree with.

From my perspective (maybe not everyone else here), the package DM is is an operator. It is ultimately his responsibility to balance cost, service, etc.

I have seen many supervisors (even managers) who don't like the dispatch... I have not seen a package division manager who says he is putting out the wrong number of cars each day. I have not seen one who says that decision is not his / her's.

P-Man

 

[FracusBrown]

If the definition of coming from above is the package division manager, then I agree. It has been said that the operators are not allowed to make dispatch decisions. That I disagree with.

From my perspective (maybe not everyone else here), the package DM is is an operator. It is ultimately his responsibility to balance cost, service, etc.

I have seen many supervisors (even managers) who don't like the dispatch... I have not seen a package division manager who says he is putting out the wrong number of cars each day. I have not seen one who says that decision is not his / her's.

P-Man

The have input of what route to cut, but not how many should be dispatched to acheive the plan.

They all have a target to reach. It's dictated from the top down. The corp, region, dist balanced scorecard sets the standard for what is acceptable. If you are not making the goal, it is the next levels obligation to take action. A center manager doesn't decide what his goal will be on a daily basis. In theory, the are supposed to have input, but it's just a theory. In the real world, the number they have to make in each element is dictated and tracked from above. In the case of routes, it's simple math. x number of packages = x number of routes to dispatch if the goal is going to be achieved. If you knowingly dispatch too many routes, failure to achieve the goal is certain.

I once heard a very well known upper level manager say "if you dispatch a driver with a 7 hour planned day, then the most you can get out of an 8 hour paid day is 7 hours worth of work. It's a plan to fail."

Seems like simple logic, but many seem not to understand the concept. You can apply this same simple logic to any element.

Would it make better sense to wait till the next day, and then say "darn, we didn't make the goal, looks like we dispatched too many routes?"