Yoda Speaks

Roger Mays

Written by somebody who thinks that he is being clever using Company phrases, but doesn't really know them

The chocolate brown (That's Pullman Brown Roger) delivery vans of United Parcel Service (UPS) have become a common feature of everyday life in the UK. National advertising campaigns featuring customer friendly delivery staff in their smart brown uniforms have raised the profile of a relatively obscure and distinctly unglamorous industry.Gone is the traditional ‘man with a van’ image, replaced by the promise of efficiency and smiling professionalism. Overseeing the company’s recruitment in the UK, as well as in Ireland and the Nordics, is Roger Mays, the company’s HR manager. Every bit the loyal companyman, (another euphemism for pleb) Mays joined UPS back in 1992 after it acquired his previous company Carryfast.Wearing his gold 25 years’ service badge prominently on his lapel, Mays is clearly proud to be the company’s second-longest serving member of staff in the UK. In that time, UPS has developed to become a $45bn (£28.21bn) international giant,delivering 3.8bn packages in 2009 and employing 408,000 staff worldwide. From UPS’s un-presupposing office in Feltham, Middlesex, Mays tells the story of how UPS’s unique culture has contributed to its growth and success. Attention to detail is all, he explains,with the company’s  drivers (but not Managers) expected to follow the same practices, standards and procedure wherever in the world they are based. This even includes drivers carrying the keys to their vehicle on their little finger. This reduces unproductive time as they fumble through their pockets at the end of each drop, Mays explains.“We know exactly how long a driver’s run should take (but ignore the figures and overdespatch) , and how long it took yesterday,” he adds. Similarly, UPS’s selection process is all about the little details, including a pre-employment road test. While driving ability and the right driving licence are clearly important, Mays says the main thing UPS looks for is “trainability”.For example, the company uses a mnemonic aide-memoire ‘All good kids love milk’, (Roger, we were banned from using that) where the first letter of each word encapsulates a important principle of good driving. A stands for ‘Aiming high with the steering wheel’, (it's aim high in steering Roger) and so on. To test their trainability, applicants are often asked to recite this and explainwhat each of the first letters stands for, says Mays. (No,no no, Roger. Parrots don't need mnemonics) While standardisation is clearly an important aspect of the operational side of UPS’s business, Mays says he himself has “quite a lot of leverage” (oooh, Roger, is that a euphemism for bent?) to run the show as he sees fit.And he has certainly made use of this freedom to undertake a number of recruitment initiatives. Among these is a programme for undergraduates that gives young people the opportunity to study,while getting work experience and a salary at the same time. (Roger, I think you'll find that in operations they don't get time to study, isn't that the usual complaint?) The first programme, run in conjunction with Anglia Ruskin University, began three years ago and was “very much a toe in the water for us”, says Mays. However, the combination of work and study, with students expected in their second and third years to study for 12 hours a week on top of their job, has proved so successful that in September UPS took on all six graduates.The successful individuals have since taken up jobs in marketing, business development, and other junior management roles in other corporate disciplines. (But Not Ops?) Indeed, so impressed has the company been with the results that it has decided to take on six more this year. One major change is that the students will work for UPS in year one. This was at the behest of the university, that recognises the benefits of work experience and studying at a young age, Mays explains. Mays himself is a clear enthusiast of the programme. “If this had been around when I was doing my degree, I would have signed up for it like a shot,” he says. Indeed, he predicts that other employers will soon follow UPS’s example. “It is a greatway of getting qualified people right at the very beginning.” Earning while you learn will become increasingly attractive to young people too, adds Mays. Not only will it help them to cope with forthcoming rises in tuition fees, it also give them an edge in the jobs market. “In some ways, they are already two years ahead of a graduate,” he says. A programme running on similar lines for the company’s existing managers is also proving successful, with 132 staff signed up. This builds on UPS’s tradition of developing staff and promoting them from within. (As long as they remain plebs) However,Mays says it also has the potential to make UPS more attractive to potential recruits. As he explains, “our drivers and sorters are our future managers”. Mays says he intends to build on this through recruitment advertising. This will focus on getting the message out that while staff may start as drivers, they can have an education while they are working. This, he believes,will attract people who are looking for a career in logistics.“This will become a more powerful part of our recruiting,” addsMays. Supplementing its undergraduate programme in conjunction with Anglia Ruskin University, UPS also runs a more traditional graduate scheme, taking on roughly 10 graduates a year. Mays admits that a career in logistics doesn’t always sit high in any hit list of graduates’ favourite careers.However, he believes this is becoming less of an issue. “We have almost daily improvements in our brand awareness. People know what we are and who we are. They will do some research, and say ‘wow’,” he says.“We are one of the biggest companies in the world, let alone in logistics,” he adds. Similarly,Mays dismisses the idea that graduates (with the occasional (?) exception) are put off by having to spend their first six (only 6 months Roger? Where do you get your info?) months delivering parcels.“It’s important they understand what goes on there, so that when they are in supervisor roles, they understand that the engine of our company is our drivers.They need to understand what it is like to be doing it [driving] every day, and the importance of keeping a smiley face for customers.” Mays’ own career is again testament to the UPS way of doing things.“The way things work here is you don’t apply for jobs, (it's who you know) the district manager or the managing director will ask you to come and see him, and say ‘I have got the job for you’.”However,Mays insists the process is robust,with other managers allowed to say “their two pennyworth at twice yearly review”. Staff are able to exercise their job preferences, he says, though“only up to a point”,he admits and“provided your manager doesn’t disagreewith it”.Perhaps luckily,his own preference also happened to be amove into HR. In an age in which many organisations bend over backwards to,at the very least,convey the impression that there is open competition for vacancies, somemight see this as bit of an anachronism. However, Mays defends it declaring it “more robust”. “With the traditional approach, you get inundated with people who are not 100%qualified or not ready.This can create a lot of disappointment and a lot of unrest,”he says, adding that this is what happened to him at Unilever. Mays is convinced that coming up through the ranks has stood him in good stead. “I know the mind of the internal customer,” he explains. “I know what it is like if HR is not delivering the service.More than anything else that is what I bring to the role.” Mays says the biggest challenge for him as a recruiter is that all its sorters jobs are part-time.As he explains after their earlymorning 4.30-7.30 am shift, there is no need for sorting staff until the vans come back in the early evening. And as with many part-time jobs,UPS has a high turnover. In contrast, he says turnover of drivers is much lower. The company uses a variety of different avenues to attract staff, including local papers and occasionally Jobcentre Plus. There are also increasing moves towards using the internet and social networks. UPS recently signed a dealwith job board CareerBuilder.“What we are trying to do is to recruit part time sorters, who will eventually become drivers,” he explains. UPS also works with ForceSelect, a specialist recruiter, to help those leaving the armed forces who are looking for a career in logistics. “The core values of our brand and the army are broadly similar; (Wrong Roger, you are plebs, the Army, Navy and Air Force aren't) service people are used to working with process.”UPS has successfully recruited 40 staff though the link-up, adds Mays. (40 Roger? How many have left the Company? Dewsbury had 2, both have gone, couldn't stand the bullying) Despite the focus on process, Mays’ approach to measuring the performance of the recruitment function, comprised of 14 recruiters and seven admin staff, is disarmingly simple.“That’s easy. It is ensuring that we have already got the pot full,” he says, clearly unimpressed by complicated metrics that some recruiters swearby.“So on a weekly basis,” he continues,“I look at how many people I should have and how many I actually have, and if I haven’t, what the hell are we doing about it. (Why the hell are so many supervisors out on road delivering then Roger? Not doing your job?) This is achieved by staying ahead of the game by having a permanent bunch of people ready and able to fill the gaps.” While this might sound a mite too simplistic for some, Mays clearly expects that sticking to these basic recruitment principles will continue to deliver the goods. (Mays and simple, Roger, that works for me)

Mays’ philosophy
Anticipate your needs.The way I keep the pot full is to be ahead of the game,by having a permanent bunch of people ready.
Secret of my success
The way UPS manages its people’s careers has given me the opportunity to gain the necessary experience to move into those roles