[kictanet] UK firm recommends fresh talent to revamp Posta

[alice at apc.org]

http://www.businessdailyafrica.com/Corporate+News/UK+firm+recommends+fresh+talent+to+revamp+Posta/-/539550/1129908/-/o1vwh5z/-/index.html

A UK consulting firm wants the Postal Corporation of Kenya to undergo a
vigorous restructuring process aimed at getting on board a “younger,
energetic talent” that can refine the agency to relevance in a competitive
market.

IBM Corporate Service Corps says in a report that PCK should also tap into
new business opportunities such as offering government and banking agency
services to boost its earnings.

The firm said PCK should take advantage of its 700 outlets and partner
with other government agencies to offer services such as motor vehicle
registration, passport and personal identification numbers (PIN).

The consulting firm was hired to find ways of making PCK competitive in
the digital era.

John Fredette of IBM said the corporation is in a position to bring
banking services to a place people know and trust – their local Post
office.

“As PCK improves existing services and adds new offerings such as
financial and government services – it will create improved access, speed
and efficiency for Kenyan citizens – which will benefit the government as
well,” Mr Fredette said.

The report noted that one of the current challenges Kenyans are facing is
accessing government services – with long processes and requirements for
in-person transactions at public offices.

PCK is facing stiff competition from Internet with statistics by
Communication Commission of Kenya (CCK) indicating that the number of
letters sent by courier services in 2009 declined by 35.7 per cent from
113,781 letters during the previous quarter to 73,162 this quarter 2010.

During the period under review the number of letters sent using postal
services were recorded at 23 million down from 25 million letters posted
the previous period.

This represented a decline of 9.7 per cent.

“This trend is indicative of the impact of increased penetration of
Internet services on postal services,” read the report from CCK.

Instant messaging, PDFs and e-mails as well as growth in Internet usage
has reduced the need for letter writing, denting PCK revenue.

Dwindling revenue

To reverse its dwindling revenue, the report recommends that PCK has to
consider establishing an executive level sales management team focused on
new offerings, and implementing stricter accountability throughout
organisation.

The parastatal has a market share estimated at between 40 and 50 per cent
yet it enjoyed monopoly status 13 years ago before the liberalisation of
the telecoms and communication market in 1998.