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MONDAY
Starts with the normal weekly review—a summary of our performance last week from our computer together with all our fuel statistics. Return a phone call on our insurance renewal which is due this week. Review daily post including all invoices, orders, correspondence, work sheets etc. Go through diary with my secretary to synchronise dates to ensure were not at crosspurposes. Leave mid-morning to take a customer to see additional warehousing which they have asked us to find for them. They like what they see and ask me to put a package together for them. Mid-afternoon I attend the Labour party conference for a meeting and dinner with key Labour MPs. En route I meet John Chapman, acting director-general of the Road Haulage Association, at Southampton to check arrangements and meet guests for 7pm.
TUESDAY
Working breakfast with John Chapman to outline RHA Budget submission to the Chancellor of the Exchequer. Back to the office to sign invoices and meet my financial supervisor for month-end review and cheque payments. In the afternoon I attend the A14 Corridor (Huntingdon to Cambridge) Heavy Commercial Vehicle Working Group meeting, which is now renamed Cambridgeshire Partnership for Freight. This deals with key issues involving the
large proportion of freight on the strategic route. Back at the office later I'm asked for more information regarding the warehouse development. Arrange a Further visit for tomorrow. More phone calls on insurance renewal.
WEDNESDAY
Review insurance figures again. All very late due to existing insurer's late advice on claims history. Tonight I am speaking at the RE-IA Lincoln sub-region meeting and need to spend time planning my speech. Also review my speeches for the RHA Annual Conference in Cyprus. Visit warehouse site with customer. All their queries are cleared to their satisfaction. Considering lack of time agree to extend with existing insurer for seven days in order that outstanding issues can be deaf with. Need to review fuel usage situation for month-end and plan and order fuel for early next week. Good attendance at Lincoln meeting.
THURSDAY
Start the day looking at finalised figures and invoices for the previous week and compare with budgets and last year. Prepare weekly management package for major customer on costs and performance. Mid-morning we have our three-monthly management review of our quality procedures and operation in accordance with our BSI 1509002 registration. As it was one of our major customer's period-end last week I must now prepare their period management pack including spreadsheets and graphs on all key parameters with comparisons with budget and last year. Leave on train for London at teatime to meet the Federation of Small Businesses with whom the RHA has signed a formal co-operation agreement. There are many common members and on the key issue of fuel we all have the same problems.
FRIDAY
Good news for a change—get a call from a customer who wants warehousing and we need to provide and finalise all documentation for completion next week. Meeting to review our computer system with Roadtech Computer Systems to discuss if we are totally Y2K compliant. Information technology is key for the future and we must all ensure we can meet these challenges. Meeting in the afternoon with a major customer on their period review to discuss all aspects and ways of improvement. At last final insurance information arrives—gives me something to do over the weekend!