Carrier Recruitment A How-to Guide for:

Carrier Recruitment A How-to Guide for: Overview… The goal of this guide is to introduce resources to the employees that work in home delivery. By following Lee’s best practices on carrier recruitment and retention, district managers will be able to find and develop better carriers and retain them longer so they can provide excellent customer service consistently.

5 Stages: Stage 1 Recruitment Stage 2 Select Stage 3 Contract Stage 4 Relationship Building Stage 5 Retention Ads Word of Mouth Flyers Suspect: anyone interested Prospect: meets most criteria Contract Relationship Retention + On-deck list Carrier Alternates

Stage 1: Recruitment Classified ads (all products) Display ads (all products) FSI (all products) Door-to-door Word of mouth – referrals from current carriers Poly bags Sticky notes Website Community events There are many ways to recruitment, but having an ongoing, consistent plan is the most effective. Ads should be updated often and changed frequently to assure that they stay fresh. Similar to developing a sales plan, having a strong emphasis on carrier recruitment will provide you with more prospects, which will lead to better service and better service will enable you to grow home delivery. For ad ideas visit ftp://lee circ: lee and look in the carrier recruitment and retention folder.

These ads and many more are available at ftp://lee circ: lee Look in the carrier recruitment and retention folder.

Stage 2: Selection Once you are successful in Stage 1, you will be more successful in Stage 2. Selection is key to Stage 5, retention. What does it cost to replace a carrier? District manager’s time –Training –Down route delivery –Mileage –Recruitment Advertising costs… –ROP –Flyers –Recruitment Paperwork for office Computer time/costs Poor service – customers credit or loss of customer

Stage 2: Selection Characteristics of successful carriers: Entrepreneurial Customer focused Dependable Organized Demonstrates intelligence Friendly, outgoing personality Someone who asks questions during a contracting session Youth – parent/family involvement Motor route – reliable car and has a back up plan Carrier’s needs: Be their own boss Extra income to achieve something else (buy a boat, pay for college, etc) Clear communication Ability to provide good service to their customers Fair treatment, especially on adjustments on their bills Predictable use of their time

Stage 2: Selection Interviewing suggested questions: Relationship Building Skills Friendly, well-meaning behavior. The ability to focus beyond immediate personal needs: work cooperatively with other. What else do you do other than work or school? What does customer service mean to you? Can you tell me a time you solved a problem for a customer? Dependability The ability to do what is expected, meet commitments or achieve an outcome, in a timely and quality way. What would your boss/friend say about you? Can you tell me a time you worked independently on a project or job? What time do you typically get up in the morning? Learning Skills The ability and willingness to learn new skills and concepts. Have you ever had to teach or train someone to do a job? How do you respond when given an assignment? What is the most difficult thing you had to learn? How did you tackle it?

Stage 2: Selection Interviewing suggested questions (continued): Organization Organize and structure time and behavior to minimize errors, confusion and time spent completing work. What do you do to keep yourself organized at home or school? When you have several things to remember at the same time, how do you manage it? Initiative Behavior which sets on influential direction or acts as a model for others. Describe a problem you had at home, work or school. How did you try to solve it? Do you usually see problems (possibilities) before others do, or do others see them first? Would you rather do work where your income depended on your own skills and abilities, or would you rather do work for a steady income? Communication Conveying relevant information in a clear and responsive manner. This characteristic should be rated based on personal observation. How did the candidate handle themselves during the interview?

This is available at ftp://lee circ: lee Look in the carrier recruitment and retention folder.

Stage 3: Contract Once you have chosen the right candidate from your interview process, you move into Stage 3 or contracting. Ideally, the contracting session will be the second meeting. Goals of contracting session: To clearly communicate key standards of performance, explain the contract and give an overview of the bonding. To assure that the individual meets most of the carrier criteria. To emphasize benefits of route work. To give the carrier an idea what they can expect once they get started. To learn about their back up plan or if they have a sub. To start to build a relationship with the carriers. Be prepared for the contracting session: First impressions are lasting so be on time and ready to go once the prospective carrier arrives. Have a map of the route area. Give the carrier a route list to look over or take home if they need time to think about the route. Know what the profit is. Remember to promote the benefits (insurance, be your own boss, grow route = higher profit, etc).

Stage 4: Relationship Building Remember, this is a partnership and we are striving for complete customer satisfaction. Be patient through the learning process. Listen well and communicate clearly. Follow up with requests and return phone calls promptly. Give positive feedback often and celebrate achievement. Questions that you can ask to gain critical information with a less direct style: Are you getting enough support from me? What can I do to help you be as successful as possible? How will your current approach help you to achieve your goals? What are some of the risks with your current approach? What will you do if that doesn’t work? Is there anything you can anticipate that might get in your way or interfere down the road?

This is available at ftp://lee circ: lee Look in the carrier recruitment and retention folder.

Stage 5: Retention It takes effort to foster teamwork, development of individuals goals, and service that is perfect. Build strong relationships. Involve carriers in finding solutions on delivery problems. Market their success and the team. This will help interest new carriers. Newsletters. Service rewards. Events, such as picnics, open houses, etc. Follow up with requests and return phone calls promptly. Give positive feedback often and celebrate achievement.

This is available at ftp://lee circ: lee Look in the carrier recruitment and retention folder.