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gel Deacon, managing director of driver agency Westbourne Services explains
Page 48
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how ni can manage your agency to get the best from them...
To sound off about a road 'transport issue write to Patric Cunnane (patric.cunnane(e) ) or fax your views (up to 600 words) to kicky Clarke on 020 8662 8912.
6 I have been in the agency business for 14 years: five
and-a-half as an occasional agency driver between other jobs; two as a driving consultant for two different agencies; and six-and-a-half years running my own agency. Believe me, I have come across stories and incidents that would make your hair curl—but not every one has been the fault of the agency driver.
Agencies are much maligned entities in the world of road haulage, but if used effectively and managed properly, the agency and the agency driver are an invaluable resource to any 21st century road haulage operation. The demands of the modern 2477 society mean that the industry has to manage a workforce able to deliver the goods at the time dictated by the customer, regardless of manpower availability—and in many cases nowadays there are hefty penalties for delivery failure or lateness.
This places great pressure on operators and stretches the demands on their own resources to breaking point and beyond (a situation set to worsen with the impending introduction of the Working Time Directive). This is where the first opportunity for something to go wrong occurs. The transport manager, faced with an impending failed delivery and accompanying penalty, with his back to the wall, will grab the YeYow Pages, ring the first agency in the book and keep going till he finds one with a driver.
Bearing in mind he's under pressure, all he wants to know is, does the agency have a driver? if the agency does not have a specialist driving consultant, there is an immediate margin for error. The agency might not have all the facts about the company or the job; the transport manager doesn't have time to explain it all; and the wrong driver with the wrong skills gets assigned to the job. This is compounded by the fact that when he gets to the company he's running late so he gets the paperwork stuffed into his hand and is told to get on his way with no further instructions or induction—a recipe for disaster from the start. But of course if anything does go wrong, where does the blame inevitably lie?
I am not for one minute suggesting that every agency supplies excellent drivers for every assignment. But think of your own staff: do you have some drivers who are better suited to some work than others? Do they know your paperwork systems? Do they know your regular delivery destinations? What length of initial training did they undertake with you?
A responsible agency will take the time to match the driver to the job by taking a detailed job description from you, asking for as much information as possible about your procedures, and visiting your premises to be able to physicafly describe what the driver will encounter when he or she arrives for work.
Many people fail to realise that today's agency driver has to be more multi-skilled and trained than the majority of employed drivers. Could you ask your drivers to drive five different types of vehicle a week? A fridge one day, a skip truck the next, multi-drop the next and so on?
So how do you manage the agency? Try to have a working relationship with at least one reputable agency. Give the agency the maximum possible advance notice of requirements regarding holiday cover and periods of peak demand. This gives them more time to give you drivers you have used before, or to get drivers trained in your specific requirements. Make sure that the agency has copies of all of your paperwork and any special requirements, and ensure that the agency driver gets at least a basic induction on arrival to cover job requirements.
Lastly, I recommend that you make sure that the agency you are using is a member of the Recruitment 8/, Employment Confederation Drivers Section.
• The MODS can be contacted on 020 7462 3250.