Commentary

Postal Service to test lockers, following Amazon’s lead

by dldamore

Fascinating article.

 

Postal Service to test lockers, following Amazon’s lead:

 

Credit: Courier Express & Postal Observer

The U.S. Postal Service plans to start testing its own locker system for packages, similar to the lockers that Amazon.com has been rolling out on a trial basis, according to a report this week by the Courier Express & Postal Observer news site.

USPS will test the system at a variety of locations in Northern Virginia under the name “gopost,” according to the site.

 

(Via GeekWire)

Questions:

What if the USPS placed these lockers in high density areas, areas that had access to a warehouse nearby?

Could the USPS do same day delivery of items from a warehouse a few miles away to a locker close to where you live or work?

What kind of premium could be charged for such speedy service?

Would people value it enough for the USPS to make money?

Other thoughts

Time will tell if something like a more centralized delivery system could work. For a while I’ve thought that the USPS would put some sort of locker-box (Like the ones apartments have) up the street for the 50 or so house on this block. Mail could probably be delivered in less than 15 minutes for the whole block rather than what is probably an hour now. Certainly there would be much less walking for carriers. The USPS delivery vehicle could probably be parked less than 25 feet from the locker-box and perhaps as close as 5 feet.

Fine-Tuning the Perfect Employee – WSJ.com

by dldamore

Training and development for employees might be one of the best investments a company or organization can make. People feel valued when they get training that will enable them to do and become more, in their job and in life.  Even if the employee leaves in a few years, the investment could still payoff if the employee has a good feeling about the firm. In that case, they might find and refer a proper candidate to replace themselves after they depart.

Fine-Tuning the Perfect Employee – WSJ.com:

“Companies have long devoted resources to training and development, either internally or through partnerships with universities and community colleges.

But many companies cut back on programs or cancelled them altogether to save money during the downturn.

That appears to be changing: According to the American Society for Training and Development, U.S. employers spent 36% more on learning and development in 2010 than in 2009. Direct expenditures for learning, as a percentage of payroll, rose to 2.7% in 2010 from 2.3% in 2006.”

 

(Via .)

T-Mobile: iPhone-related defections ‘an area of concern’

by dldamore

T-Mobile: iPhone-related defections ‘an area of concern’:

 

Bellevue-based T-Mobile USA boosted its profits and added to its customer base in the third quarter, but the company this morning warned of future repercussions from its status as the only major U.S. wireless carrier not offering Apple’s iPhone.

 

(Via GeekWire)

 

I was one of those defections. My contract expired the same day the iPhone 4S was first available for customers (Friday October 14, 2011). On the next Tuesday (Late late Monday night) I ordered a 4S via the Apple website and Friday morning about 10 AM FedEx delivered it. There were claims that devices would be shipping in 1 to 2 weeks. The one I ordered was built, packed, shipped and delivered halfway around the world in something like eighty hours give or take three.

If T-Mobile was in the running to get the iPhone I might have waited a few more months. There was a report that a high up at T-Mobile said that the iPhone would not be coming to T-Mobile anytime soon. That statement was essentially the nail in the coffin for staying with them.

Kevin Fox’s Offer to Google Reader

by dldamore

Kevin Fox’s Offer to Google Reader:

Is there anyone, anywhere, who thinks the new Google Reader is an improvement?

(Via Daring Fireball)

 

The guy behind the Reeder app is probably very happy with it.

See: http://reederapp.com/

iPhone, iPad and Mac versions.

I bought the Mac version for $9.99 about 24 hours ago. So far I am very happy with it. Am considering the iPhone version for $2.99.

Power to the public

by dldamore

Power to the public:

So now companies don’t just need to hire people to watch Twitter and blogs and put out fires. Now they have to fear that their abusive policies will become the subject of large-scale, instant protests.

(Via BuzzMachine)

 

What company or organization will be destroyed by customers who mass cancel their accounts? This will happen someday, probably in the next ten years. Some firms live on the cash flows monthly subscribers pay them.

You have a real problem If your customers loath your organization. New options are becoming available. Some customers will do without, rather that do business with you. A good example of this is people canceling home cable TV service and not replacing it with satellite TV. These people are likely choosing video programming from the Internet. It’s also possible that they are watching over the air HD broadcasts. The power to disrupt that is broadband Internet is hard to over estimate. Many new services will come about as more people have broadband at home. Faster speeds will also enable new businesses. Old ones will decline and some will be eliminated. Online data backup might disrupt the external hard drive industry in the not to distant future.

Urban bike riding as training for tree-skiing season

by dldamore

Urban bike riding as training for tree-skiing season:

Riding (er, snowboarding) through trees / down chutes requires you to make pretty quick decisions at decent speeds.

(Via teendrama :: hello my name is dennis.)

 

Bicycle riding has a lot of inputs. Curbs, people, dogs, oncoming cars, driveways, other cyclists, waters, leaves, etc.

This rapid flow of incoming stimuli requires the mind to analyze a lot of data and to make rapid decisions to prevent bad outcomes. Falls, slops, slides, flips and other injuries to people and property.

The ability to make correct decisions quickly is important in life and in business.