Peak practice

Delivering the goods at Christmas

12THE FUTURE’S BRIGHTMD Gary Simpson on the year ahead

4WIN AN

IPAD MINITake part in our

competition

8READING LESSONS

Depot focus goes to

Berkshire

issu

e 60

D

eCeM

BeR

2015

issu

e 60

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PFW News December 201502

MY view

You can check the share

price any time the stock

market is open at myroyalmail.com

The price and value of securities can go

down as well as up. Past performance is not

a guide to future performance. Information

published in PFW News cannot be relied

upon as a guide to future performance.

465.90pper share when the market

closed on 3 December 2015

PFW News December 2015 03

May the STAMPS be with you These special Star Wars stamps are

available right now – not a long time

ago (or even in a galaxy far, far away).

The 18 stamps mark the release

of the latest film: Episode VII – The Force Awakens, and feature

classic characters, such as Luke

Skywalker, Han Solo, and Darth

Vader, alongside new characters Rey,

Finn and Kylo Renn.

The iconic stamps have been

illustrated by British artist Malcolm

Tween, showing a main character

with a secondary character and

scene. A miniature sheet of six

stamps has also been released,

featuring illustrations of Star Wars

vehicles, against a backdrop of the

Death Star.

The stamps are on sale at Post

Offices across the UK, from royalmail.

com or by calling 03457 641641.Royal Mail Group employees can

get a 10 per cent discount on framed

stamps and limited edition metal

covers by entering the code 15EMP.

This year’s Christmas stamps are now on sale. Illustrated by London-born artist David Holmes, the stamps tell the traditional Nativity story in an impressionistic style.

There are six designs, including the Archangel Gabriel appearing to Mary; Joseph and Mary arriving in Bethlehem; and the Three Wise Men. An alternative Madonna and Child stamp is also

available in 1st and 2nd Class.Christmas stamps feature secular

and religious imagery in alternate years.

Andrew Hammond, Royal Mail Stamps, said: “Christmas is a stamp issue we particularly look forward to. The charming style of these designs sets the perfect tone for the festive season.”

Colleagues in Parcelforce have been sent their annual Christmas card and free allocation of 50 First Class stamps. If you haven’t received your allocation yet, please tell your line manager who should email christmas _helpline@royalmail.com. All requests must be received before 15 January 2016. Anything received after this date will not be processed.

First class and Festive

Moya Greene, chief executive officer, Royal Mail Group

Christmas is really under way for us now. This year, more than ever, the competition for business is intense. Our rivals have recruited extra people like us, and boosted their delivery ability.

This month is hard work for all of us. I really appreciate everything you are doing, and will do, to ensure that once again we deliver a great Christmas for everyone.

Half year reSulTSWe announced our half year results in November. We have delivered a resilient performance in a really tough trading environment. We have maintained Group operating profit. We have delivered parcels growth in the UK and Europe, and letter volume decline was at the better end of our forecast range.

We are winning customers. Companies, such as Bertram Books and Nisbets, have chosen us to deliver their parcels because we offer a quality service. We cover the whole of the UK and have a good track record during seasonal peaks.

Our results mean that those of you, the vast majority of employees, who are Royal Mail shareholders, will receive an interim dividend of 7.0 pence per share. Eligible full-time employees with 832 Free Shares will receive an interim dividend payment of over £58*. Read more on page 4.

*Eligible part-time employees received a pro-rata allocation of Free Shares. Based on interim dividend payment of 7.0 pence per share, to be paid on 13 January 2016.

We WANT youR SToRIeS! Just let us know the basic details of the story and a contact name and number. Freephone: 0800 083 9155. email: samantha.payne@beetroot.co.uk Write: PFW News, beetroot, 68 Leonard Street, London, eC2A 4QX

GeT IN TouCH Contact Moya through Just Say It. email: justsayit@royalmail.com or write to Just Say It, Freepost

CONTiNUiNG TO GROw

05PFW News December 2015

Interim dividend payment

Being well protected and easy to see at all times on site is vital to keeping everyone safe at work.

And to make sure colleagues’ personal protective equipment (PPE) is up to scratch, Royal Mail Group has launched a revised set of PPE standards.

These include the mandatory requirement for Parcelforce colleagues to wear high-vis waistcoats and safety footwear in identified work areas or for specific tasks.

Nicholas Burns, health and environment engagement manager, said: “It is vitally

important to wear PPE where required. If you don’t, you leave yourself vulnerable to the hazards which cannot be eliminated or reduced in any other way.”

You can check the rules and regulations on PPE requirements by visiting the PPE Standard section on the intranet or they can be viewed on the HSE notice board on display in every unit.

As well as keeping its own people safe, Royal Mail Group has also been helping local communities become more aware of dangers on the road.

Teams from Royal Mail took part in Road Safety Week during November, visiting local primary schools and handing out high-vis wrist bands to children.

We’ve all heard that points make prizes but they really do in the case of Annette Laing, who is excelling in Leads to Success.

The Deeside depot customer advisor has submitted a whopping 588 leads since she joined the scheme last year – 109 of which have generated more than £30,000 in revenue for Royal Mail Group.

With the points she has accumulated she has managed to make-over her kitchen, renovate her son’s garden and buy all her Christmas presents – not to mention pay for holiday flights in the new year.

She said: “I don’t understand why more people don’t do it!”

one of her successful leads came while she was at a garage and noticed a competitor going in and out of local business, Wrexham Sports. When she went back to work she submitted the lead online at parcelforce.com/lead after Googling the address and telephone number of the business. Soon after the referral was received she was

informed she had won 1,000 points.Then, when the company had

traded over £12,000 with Royal Mail Group, she earned an extra 15,000 points.

“Since my first lead in 2014, I’ve already spent £2,000 worth of vouchers in DIy stores and I’ve got about another £60 not yet paid out.”

Annette has just been nominated depot champion for Leads to Success, and is hoping more colleagues will join the scheme.

one incentive which seems to be working in Deeside and other depots, has been running a football league. each time colleagues submit a lead their name is put against their football team of choice. When the card is filled up in Deeside, Mark Wetherall, the area customer service manager, picks a winner.

“one of our drivers has already earned £50 in points. More lads have engaged with this and as a result leads have gone up hugely,” said Annette.

Stay seen

The Royal Mail Group Board has declared an interim dividend of 7.0 pence per share.

This means eligible full-time employees who have received 832 Free Shares will be paid a dividend of over £58 on 13 January 2016. In total, these employees will have received more than £306 in dividend payments since privatisation*.

eligible part-time employees will receive a dividend based on their pro-rata allocation of Free Shares.

Follow her lead

PFW News December 201504

Are you our iPAd winner?

* eligible full-time employees received around £96 on 31 July 2014; around £48 on 14 January 2015; around £104 on 31 July 2015, and will receive around £58 on 13 January 2016. eligible part-time employees will also have received dividend payments on these dates, and are due to receive the interim dividend payment on 13 January 2016.

for more information on free Shares, visit myroyalmail.com/employee-share-offers

Terms and conditions apply: senditnow.com/prizedraw

Calling all animal lovers! While putting up your decorations this year don’t forget to take a snap of your pet enjoying the festive fun to give yourself a chance at winning an amazing iPad mini.

Whether it’s tinselly tortoises, pugs in pyjamas or cats climbing Christmas trees, colleagues can post their festive pet photographs on facebook.com/senditnow as part of a competition aimed at raising awareness of the SenditNow brand.

SenditNow – Parcelforce’s low-cost courier service – recently relaunched with a range of new features including eBay integration, international services and additional payment options via PayPal. The brand is fronted by a series of animated animals including Obi the dog, and two cats, Rusty and Mimi.

So, don’t pause (or should that be paws?) for a minute! The competition opens on 7 December and closes one minute before midnight on 18 December.

If your photo is chosen as the best entry you’ll win a super-slim, ultra-powerful Apple 16GB Wi-Fi iPad 4 mini.

We’ll be announcing the winner the week before Christmas on Facebook.

A new marketing campaign is being launched on 4 January to promote Parcelforce Select.

It aims to target 75,000 known parcel senders, (a mix of etailers and exporters) with both direct mail and email. In addition, there will be a range of online activity, such as Facebook ads, and display advertising. If companies respond they will be entered into a prize draw where they will have the chance to win a £1,000 credit for sending parcels.

Parcelforce Select has been enormously successful throughout 2015 in providing customers with a tailor-made delivery service. This includes diverse delivery options for parcels to be

dropped off either at work, home, with neighbours or at a local Post Office branch; as well as providing interactive text and email messages that provide information about customers’ deliveries, including a one-hour delivery notification.

GReaT BRiTish DeliveRY

for more information visit parcelforceselect.com

Customer spendNew spotter initial bonusQualified lead £100 International spend £500£1,000 £5,000 £10,000 £25,000 £50,000 Total

LeADS To SuCCeSS – HoW IT WoRkS…

your reward1,000 pts (worth £10)

1,000 pts (worth £10)10,000 pts (worth £100)10,000 pts (worth £100)

10,000 pts (worth £100)10,000 pts (worth £100)15,000 pts (worth £15025,000 pts (worth £250)35,000 pts (worth £350)£1,170

Hi-vis jackets must be wornat all times on site

Lee Willett, collection and delivery manager,

with Annette Laing

07PFW News December 2015PFW News December 201506

DeliveRiNG The GOODs FOR CUsTOMeRs

Wherever you’re sending parcels this Christmas don’t forget that Parcelforce employees can save 15 per cent on all parcels they send when they quote code XM4 when booking online, by phone or at a Parcelforce depot. The code applies to all services apart from globalvalue and globaleconomy.

What’s more you can save even more when you choose to book online and drop off your parcels at a Post office or Parcelforce depot.

save your pennies

Some recent examples of praise for colleagues

A customer praised Deeside depot’s Sian Tipping for her good customer service. When she telephoned the depot with her query, the customer described Sian as “so helpful and polite”.

A customer in Poole was impressed after having his parcel re-delivered following a visit to the depot. He said: “I am most grateful for the professionalism that they displayed and would like you to pass on my thanks.”

A customer was delighted that a Parcelforce delivery meant he didn’t miss out on work. Steve Cooper said: “People are very quick to complain about bad service, but I want to praise you. I bought a ladder on eBay and Parcelforce delivered it within 22 hours – very handy as, as a house painter, it meant I could carry on working. Thank you for excellent service.”

Parcelforce has upgraded its customer experience office in Wakefield with an improved meeting room and amenities.

“The builders have been excellent and completely changed the look and feel of the office, making the space look bigger. It’s amazing what paint can do to improve things,” said Lawrence Palk, head of customer service and customer experience.

Wendy Gill, customer experience delivery manager, added: “The refurbishment is great for the team that works here and for all teams across Parcelforce to take advantage of the

meeting room.“It has been completely redecorated –

fully branded as a Parcelforce site with a reception area, and somewhere customers can now come to discuss any queries. We can show the professional face of Parcelforce customer service and provide a great customer experience.

“The building also has its own entrance, so we are no longer reliant on when Royal Mail’s office is open.”

Helen Wylde, director of sales and marketing, officially opened the office on 1 December.

wakefield gets a revamp

£

£ Coventry depot has been given a Golden Welcome award after being recognised as the most improved depot for customer service in 2015.

It jumped 28 places in the depot league table, from 36th position in April, to eighth at the end of September, after encouraging new customers to the business – just beating Bristol and Newport.

Commercial development manager David Ellison presented a special silver trophy to Lewis Wilson, collection and delivery manager, and Peter Hughes, operations manager, on behalf of the team at Coventry.

Lewis said: “We are really happy to have been recognised in this way.”

David said the competition between the depots was “hotting up” as there were now 12 depots in with a great chance of winning the Depot of the Year award in April next year.

He said: “Some of the depots like Leeds, Ipswich, Newport and Coventry, which last year were not in contention, have jumped up from around mid-table and are behind North Essex at the half-way point for this award. North Essex is the current leader. The period between November and February was crucial in determining the winner of last year’s award. It could be the same this year as well.”

Since the launch of the Golden Welcome scheme in October 2013, it has helped improve and develop relationships between more than 6,500 businesses and Parcelforce.

The award encourages depot colleagues to contact new customers, set up an initial meeting with their driver, and help customers better understand how Parcelforce can help their business.

GoinG For Gold

MoST IMPRoveD DePoT FRoM APRIL To SePTeMBeR IN TeRMS oF GoLDeN WeLCoMe

Most Improved Depot Award Area Depot Change Position

1st Midlands Coventry up 28 places

2nd South West Bristol up 25 places

3rd South West Newport up 24 places

4th North east Leeds up 19 places

5th Scotland Perth up 18 places

Lewis Wilson (left) with Peter Hughes

Terms and conditions apply, visit parcelforce.com/rmg for more information

Lawrence Palk, Helen Wylde and Wendy Gill celebrate with Wakefield colleagues

£

09PFW News December 201508 PFW News December 2015

TALENT SPOTTERDelivery manager David Wales has been with the business for 20 years. After arriving as a Christmas temp driver, he has worked his way up.

“one of the great things we do is produce managers. We have trained them up and they have gone on to other depots.

“We do about 6,000 deliveries and collections a day, which goes up to 9-10,000 at peak, which is the most challenging part of the year.

“We have changed from being a satellite depot doing 1,000 parcels a day to now doing thousands of deliveries a day. The fact the drivers and support staff can adapt to these sorts of changes is testament to the people that we have to make this happen.”

HEAD FOR BUSINESSAdministrator Rocio Caballero has just joined the business and wears many hats in the department, from dealing with customer queries and sending reports, to handling petty cash.

“I like dealing with customers face-to-face over the counter. It can be challenging when we have our busy periods like now, in December.

“I also appreciate that Parcelforce gives its employees opportunities to move around the company when they arise.

“I have just started in the business, so it will be nice to get different roles and learn different things as I progress.”

ALL ROUNDERoperations manager Chris Barber has been at the depot for 12 years after starting as an agency driver. Since then, he has done almost every job at the depot, from working in the administration department to doing deliveries and collections. He became operations manager after completing the Parcelforce operational development programme in 2012. The depot runs 37 routes covering Reading and Slough.

“What I most enjoy about the job is the variety and the people. everyone has a sense of pride in their work.

“Reading depot was placed in Royal Mail Group’s Hall of Fame following the employee Survey results last year. We were nominated by HR for driving engagement across the team.

“The most challenging aspect of the job is peak planning and we have taken on 15 fixed-term and 10 agency drivers to cover Christmas.”

LEADING THE WAyDelivery and collections driver/depot trainer Rhys Williams said he has never looked back since he started as a temp eight years ago.

Now he is training new starters on the one-day induction programme.

“It’s very useful for new guys to learn about the business and get to know the journey of a parcel, from pick-up to delivery, rather than just getting something to a customer.

“We cover health and safety – making sure that drivers are responsible for themselves, pedestrians, and vehicles.

“up to 10 people attend the induction course. When I’m not training I do deliveries and look after two postcodes, RG10 and RG9.”

TEAM WORkERDebriefer/supervisor victor Thomas has been at Parcelforce for eight years. He started as a delivery and collection driver before moving into customer services where he received the area employee of the year Award.

He now supervises the drivers to ensure they do a good job.

“Having worked on the road before, I know what customers’ expectations are and can tell the drivers where they need to improve if necessary,” he said.

“In the lead up to Christmas, it will be more challenging as we have agency drivers and new starters who will need to learn the ropes fast. But it is an exciting time of year.

“It’s like a family here.”

IN NuMBeRS

51 Members of staff

31 Number of vehicles

6,000 Average daily deliveries at peak

1,800 Average daily collections at peak

SUPPORT MASTERDelivery and collections driver/acting supervisor Daniel kulcsar has been here for two years. He covers the team manager when he is off and assists the drivers if there are any problems.

“I like it when we work out a good plan with the drivers and everything falls into place.

“When I’m not at the depot I do what’s called a ‘sweeper’ role – picking up any remaining parcels and occasionally covering the bulk drivers. I do like the variety of my job.”

DePoT FoCuS

Reading is a small friendly depot with a reputation for producing

managers. PFW News finds out more

readinG

10 PFW News December 2015 PFW News December 2015 11

Peak days of Christmas

Parcelforce is making its mark at peak –

delivering over half a million parcels per day before Christmas

30 November

435,000 deliveries on Cyber Monday

1 December

497,000 deliveries, mirroring previous

year

15 December

Anticipated biggest night for

processing

16 December

508,000 deliveries expected

24 December

to New year

Continued spike in parcel traffic

Peak season is in full swing with

a high volume of parcels being

transported up and down the

country thanks to the efficient

service of Parcelforce.

Online shopping habits mean,

once again, that the operation will

be working at full capacity in the run

up to Christmas.

Three satellite depots at

Birmingham, Motherwell and

Gatwick have been set up to help

deal with the demand in parcel

traffic.

The site at Thurrock is once again

being used as a satellite to relieve

volume in North Essex, and will also

operate as the Southern Cull as in

previous years. The site will be open

six days a week while the Northern

Cull, based at Rotherham, will be

used when demand is high.

Fran Baker, head of operational

development and support, said:

“We are always striving for greater

success and we have been able

to achieve this through effective

network planning. This year, we have

added 250 extra trailers every night

at the National Hub in Coventry

along with an additional 10 people

on shunt duties. We have planned

deliveries over the weekends, such

as ahead of Black Friday, to clear

the ground and make delivery more

successful.”

Gatwick is operating one of

the biggest satellite depots in the

country to help assist its parent site

located three miles away. The site

was chosen because of its proximity

to the M23.

Around £80,000 has been

invested in the depot. Seventy-two

cages, a flexi roller conveyor and

a mobile boom conveyor system

have all been installed, designed

to handle 7,000 items per day until

Christmas Eve, and more than 35

drivers are collecting and delivering

parcels.

“At the moment we are

undertaking 4,000 collections

and deliveries a day and at peak

it is likely to increase to between

6,000 and 7,000 per day,” said

Trevor Grain, operations manager at

Gatwick.

“Thanks to the satellite depot, we

will be able to deliver 15,000 items

a day out of both sites and keep our

customers happy.

“I have been impressed with the

way everyone has pitched in and

helped out; the managers, sorters

and drivers have ensured that

everything runs as smoothly as

possible.”

Driver Paul Goulding

Operations managerTrevor Grain

Stuart Moore delivery manager and (below) with delivery manager Chris Weller

to our customers. But we managed

to recover from that and are now in

great shape as we approach peak.

In a market where our volumes are

generally dictated by online consumer

behaviour, it’s very hard to determine

the macro-effects of certain events.

More often than not, it depends on

the surge in retail sales, or even the

weather – if it’s miserable outside,

people are more likely to shop online

instead of going to the high street.

"As always, we’ve had a continuous

focus on reducing accidents. Thanks

to everyone’s hard work, we’ve done

well and that’s really encouraging. Of

course, there’s always more to do but

we’re moving in the right direction.

Now we’re in our busiest period, it’s

important to continue to follow all our

safe practices, such as driving safely.

"And finally we need to keep our

costs under control. We’re in a very

competitive market and we need to

make sure every penny we spend is

spent wisely."

What’s the plan for the future?

"We want to focus on the high value

business that we can attract. This

means getting more international

business, more B2B business and

more business through our digital

channels. We’re at capacity so we

can’t increase volumes, but we can try

and win more profitable business.

"2016 will see new PDAs coming

into the operation. I know people

have been waiting for them for a long

time but we needed to make sure that

when they are deployed, they work

as they should. We’re also going to

be looking at new innovations and

revenue streams and see if we can

grow the business that way."

What has impressed you the most

about Parcelforce colleagues over

the last year?

"Over the last year, I’ve visited many

Parcelforce sites and every time I

do, I come away prouder than ever

of the people in the business. I

know it’s been a tough time for our

people. But when I talk to them, I

can really see the passion everyone

has for the business. The questions

I’m asked are all about how we can

make Parcelforce even better for our

customers and how we can improve

our services. It shows our resilience

and our dedication.

"This business is not about doing

everything perfectly first time. It’s

unrealistic to expect that. But what

ensures we keep our customers is how

we deal with things when they do go

wrong. Being as customer focused as

possible. And that is where we shine."

12 PFW News December 2015 PFW News December 2015 13

reSIlIeNCe aND DeDICaTIONPFW News caught up with managing director Gary Simpson when he visited colleagues at Milton Keynes depot

How have the last two years gone for

Parcelforce?

"It’s been a very busy two years.

We have gone through several

major changes as a business with

the relocation of 10 depots and the

opening of two new ones. It was a

tremendous effort affecting over

50 per cent of our depots. We also

opened the NWPC in Chorley, which

has given us the opportunity to

increase our volumes. As part of that,

there’s been a lot of disruption.

"But everyone rose to the challenge

and has carried out a fantastic job.

So I want to say a huge thank you

to everyone in the business. Our

operational people kept the highest

quality even during all the changes.

Our sales people brought in new

business during very testing times. I

thank them.

"We’ve had other changes as

well. Last year, we launched Sunday

deliveries – we were one of the first in

the industry to do so. And earlier this

year, we launched Parcelforce Select,

increasing the delivery options for our

customers."

Now the expansion has been

completed, where should our

focus lie?

"Our focus should always be on

delivering the best service for our

customers. Especially now – we have

to make sure we get it right during

peak.

"We also need to make sure that we

attract the right kind of customers.

We’ve reached capacity in the

operation, so we are in the fortunate

position of being able to manage our

customer base. We want to get the

right mix, more B2B business, volumes

that aren’t affected by peak."

What have been the biggest

challenges this year?

"One of the challenges this year arose

when we received a surprising amount

of volume at Easter and on August

Bank Holiday. It was much more than

forecast and put a strain on services

“Over the last year, I’ve visited many Parcelforce sites and every time I do, I come away prouder than ever of the people in the business”

Jason Dennis, sorter (left) with Gary and

Lee Cluer operations manager (below)

Bryan Ward, GX driver and Global Express champion, talks to Gary about the global service offered to customers

Gary addresses colleagues about the business andfuture plans

Ben Jackson (left) collections and delivery driver

Prize Sudoku Congratulations to Stuart Poole from the London South East depot who won last issue’s Sudoku competition.Love2shop vouchers worth £50 are again up for grabs, so to be in with a chance of winning, send your completed puzzle to: PFW News Sudoku, beetroot, 68 Leonard Street, London, EC2A 4QX. The closing date for entries is 22 January 2016, with the winner decided by a draw.

Name:

Work location:

Address:

Tel no:

Email:

1 75 9

8

961 4

53

18 2

62 6

7 9

1 689

43 12

29 47 3PFW News December 15

Stroke Association Christmas cards can now be bought online.

Sales of the cards will support the Stroke Association, Royal Mail Group’s Charity of the year.

Stroke survivor Philip James designed one of this year’s cards – the Christmas Sparkle – after attending art classes as part of his recovery.

All profits from each pack will go to the Stroke Association and for every pack sold, Royal Mail will donate an extra £1.

Royal Mail’s head of corporate responsibility and community investment, Lily Heinemann, said: “This year’s Christmas cards are a fun and easy way to support our Charity of the year as well as celebrating the festive season.”

LONG SERvERS

PFW News December 201514

30 yEARSPeRRY MOle, london south eastPaUl PaRkeR, ManchesterMaRTiN sMiTh, wakefield

20 yEARSshaRON MChale, aldershotMiChael Neill, international hubRiChaRD BaRNes, PrestonRaYMOND CaMPBell, londonderryJaYNe wilsON, CoventryROY JOhNsON, aldershot

10 yEARSali JiBRil, london south westROCkOMaRaN JaMis, london west

washiNGTON JesURaJah, london westMaRTiN heNDeRsON, YorksCOTT DOYle, GlasgowkeviN lewiNs, london CentralsTePheN MOwBRaY, YorkROBeRT FeRRaRi, london CentralJaMes haRRisON, london south westMaRk BakeR, NewportJOhN waTTON, solentNeDelJka JelaCa, london south westClive ellis, london eastsTewaRT hOwell, GatwickDaNNY easOM, TonbridgeReBeCCa GOwiN, TonbridgeDave kNOwles, CambridgeNiGel kellMaN, National hub

sTeve BURke, National hublUke BaTes, National hubROBeRT MeeTeN, CarlisleMaTThew hONeYMaN, wakefieldMaTThew JeNNiNGs, National hubChRis TaYlOR, MedwayNiCk MaiN, ClevelandJOhN MCleOD, edinburghalexaNDeR MCGReGOR, GlasgowDaviD hiNChliFFe, Milton keynes hQBOB FeRGUsON, GlasgowPeTeR MaRshall, GlasgoweMMa MaCDONalD, GlasgowweNDY Gill, wakefieldlaURa NiChOlsON, international hub

Congratulations to everyone who recently achieved a long service milestone

Parcelforce HQ employees

didn’t mind getting their

hands dirty to help the Royal

Society for the Protection

of Birds (RSPB) preserve an

important nesting heathland

for rare birds.

The team of 16 volunteers

cleared around half a

hectare of land at the

RSPB headquarters in

Bedfordshire to provide the

right habitat for skylarks,

waxwings and redwings as

part of the charity’s land

management programme.

They also removed a

stretch of poisonous

mushrooms and other

unusual plants.

A Parcelforce team also

volunteered at the reserve

in 2014.

Dave Ellison, commercial

development manager, said:

“We were more than happy

to help the RSPB again this

year. One of the highlights

was viewing a poisonous fly

agaric mushroom up close,

something you tend to only

see in woodlands. It was a

great day out in the name of

volunteering.”

Christmas cards sale supports Stroke charity

Skylarking around

oCToBeRSoLuTIoN

OctoberSOLUTION

1 2 78 3 4

9 7 84 6 5

8 6 35 9 2

5 9 47 1 6

4 5 13 2 9

2 6 31 8 7

6 5 14 7 2

7 3 89 1 5

2 4 96 8 3

3 1 26 8 79 4 5

5 9 61 7 43 2 8

7 5 12 4 68 3 9

Christmas Sparkle designed by Philip James

Left to right: Jo

Rennick, Wendy Bell

and Andy Heath

Skylarks are one of the many varieties of birds that will benefit from the clear-up

John Selby, an administration and conformance manager at North

essex depot, on the importance of team work, sport and his biggest

career influence

oN THe SPoT

Powerranger I’ve always liked

sport… I am into my running, doing half-marathons and 10k runs, as well as playing the odd football game now and again.I also like to do regular tabartaworkouts.

I am a playermanager for Thaxtedrangers… And I enjoy it! We are currently second in division two of the Cambridgeshire league and are doing really well. I run two teams with six-a-sides on Mondays and training on Wednesdays. It’s almost like a second job, attending meetings and games. But it’s great getting out in the fresh air, having camaraderie with the players before and after the matches.

I started work with the business in 1983… I worked my way up at Royal Mail and eventually I became head of learning and development at Parcelforce until I left five years ago. I then started running my own sport coaching business for schools around essex. But ultimately, I wasn’t enjoying it and I missed working in a team at Parcelforce. So, I returned two years ago and I haven’tlooked back since.

I enjoy working as part of a team… I manage a team of 16 people working in administration andoperations. I like seeing them move forward and achieve targets. I am also responsible for identifying how we can improve our performance and work with drivers to ensure they adhere to our processes and procedures.

Christmas is a very busy time of year… I started planning for this period in September, looking at recruiting people in time and equipping them with the necessary skills. The role is not something you can pick up overnight. you need to train new recruits as they won’t have time to learn it on the job. There are a lot of IT systems that they need to understand. It’s important to phase peoplein at the right times.

The biggest influence on my career was... Don Dunham, my first manager. He took me under his wing. He shaped who I am in terms of mycareer.