I think this will be the first in an occasional series on the HR dilemmas presented by characters on children's TV. It was inspired by Postman Pat so we will consider him first.
Having recently watched more episodes of Postman Pat than I care to admit, it struck me that there is a theme. Each day, Pat attempts to deliver one thing, generally messes up / loses it, but eventually manages to get the item there in the nick of time.
This raised, for me, a number of people management questions.
Is Pat deeply incompetent, and getting away with it, or succeeding against all the odds?
How could his productivity be improved so that he can make more than one special delivery per day?
Could resources be better deployed: he has a van, a helicopter, and a jeep (at least) assigned to his sole use?
What happens to all the parcels we see coming through the mail centre if he is only delivering one per day? Is there actually an army of less photogenic (a frightening thought) of mail delivery professionals handling the rest, leaving the tricky ones to Pat?
If Pat's performance is an issue, how should it be managed - is it capability or conduct?
Firstly, we should have a look at the expectations which have been set. Has Pat been asked to focus on the careful delivery of a limited number of special items, or would it be reasonable to expect him to deliver more? Has a precedent been set so that he believes he is achieving what is required?
Secondly, we should investigate the circumstances around the bodged deliveries. What were the commercial and reputational impacts of Pat's inability to deliver a parcel without some form of mishap? Has he actually lost or seriously damaged anything, or are they all near-misses? If all near-misses, what is the potential impact, and is this serious enough in itself to require some sort of disciplinary or performance management action?
Thirdly, why is it happening? Does Pat need more training? Is he aware that it is a criminal offence to open someone else's mail? Does he know how to adequately secure the van so that items don't fall out? Has he been trained on securing parcels within the van so that items don't break? Or is he just too busy trying to control the domestic animal that he carries around with him to concentrate on what he should be doing?
Armed with the answers to these questions, I would recommend an informal conversation to begin with, between Pat and his line manager (invisible - regular one to ones clearly aren't in place). Clear expectations should be set. If no improvement is seen, a formal process should begin. This could either be a disciplinary process (if we believe that Pat has been adequately trained and instructed, and is not following procedure - i.e. conduct), or make use of a performance management process.
Following each step of the procedure, objectives and a review date should be set, and regularly reviewed. If things improve, and Pat achieves the objectives, excellent news: the people of Greendale will benefit from an improved postal service. If he doesn't pick up the pace, improve the quality of the delivery, and gain better control of his cat...well, once the appropriate steps of the procedure had been followed, I would dismiss him.
Yes, that's right.
I would sack Postman Pat. What would you do?
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