monopoly singpost sucks

i hardly write negative blog about sg
about today i hv to do it
hoping to help improve the level of competence in this tiny island

Dear CEO BT Lau


Subject: Lost mail/time to train your staff

What: Item posted 6 Nov 11:45am at Newton Post Office


When: Postage was also bought at the outlet at around 11:40am. On that day, I requested the counter staff to take the item as it was slightly thicker than a normal mail and worried about breaking if I dropped into the letter box.


However, I was told that singpost no longer accept mail through counter.


To date, item was not received by recipent.



As I am operating a business that required posting of items to customers, this incident has created a very bad reputation for me. It affected my business operation.



I wrote in on 13 Nov via the internet feedback.


On 16 Nov, I called singpost hotline to register my concern for any recourse.


To my horror, the officer Ms Jen Hua was totally unhelpful. Her immediate reaction was there is no way to help. This is without even asking about the situation. I have evidence that the postage was purchased and posted on the spot. I would at least expect the Ms Jen to advise me on what i need to do if she cannot help me. However, she can even tell me that if it is not registered, nothing can be done.


Even if the item is lost during postal service, the minimum I would expect will be Singpost acknowledgement to the item being lost under their care. But why did I get the feeling that they are trying to push away the responsibilities. Only upon my unhappy tone that they should at least investigate the case, did the officer asked me to submit a feedback via internet, only then is it possible for them to investigate. Tell me, what is the purpose of having a call-in hotline?



As a customer with a lost mail, how will you feel if you are in my shoes to be given such response? In today environment, who is going to compensate for my losses? Who is going to answer for bring the bread to the table?


Of course I am anxious.

I have a photo of the item taken just before it was dropped into the letter box. I am not posting her to protect my customer's privacy.


I am also shocked to find so many complaints online.


And there is nothing we can do because SingPost is a monopoly.


Not only that, they always suggest registered post, meaning adding more cost to the customers, does it make sense?


Are you saying that the basic business model of posting cannot be trusted?


Have you forgotten your pledge of service?

http://forums.keeptouch.net/showthread.php?t=72951

Monopoly Singpost sucks

I hardly write negative blog about sg
but today i hv to do it
hoping to help improve the level of competence in this tiny island

Dear CEO BT Lau


Subject: Lost mail/time to train your staff

What: Item posted 6 Nov 11:45am at Newton Post Office


When: Postage was also bought at the outlet at around 11:40am. On that day, I requested the counter staff to take the item as it was slightly thicker than a normal mail and worried about breaking if I dropped into the letter box.

However, I was told that singpost no longer accept mail through counter.

To date, item was not received by receipent.



As I am operating a business that required posting of items to customers, this incident has created a very bad reputation for me. It affected my business operation.



I wrote in on 13 Nov via the internet feedback.

On 16 Nov, I called singpost hotline to register my concern for any recourse.

To my horror, the officer Ms Jen Hua was totally unhelpful. Her immediate reaction was there is no way to help. This is without even asking about the situation. I have evidence that the postage was purchased and posted on the spot. I would at least expect the Ms Jen to advise me on what i need to do if she cannot help me. However, she can even tell me that if it is not registered, nothing can be done.

Even if the item is lost during postal service, the minimum I would expect will be Singpost aknowledgement to the item being lost under their care. But why did I get the feeling that they are trying to push away the responsibilites. Only upon my unhappy tone that they should at least investigate the case, did the officer asked me to submit a feedback via internet, only then is it possible for them to investigate. Tell me, what is the purpose of having a call-in hotline?


As a customer with a lost mail, how will you feel if you are in my shoes to be given such response? In today environment, who is going to compensate for my losses? Who is going to answer for bring the bread to the table?

Of course I am anxious.

I have a photo of the item taken just before it was dropped into the letter box. I am not posting her to protect my customer's privacy.

I am also shocked to find so many complaints online.

And there is nothing we can do because SingPost is a monopoly.

Not only that, they always suggest registered post, meaning adding more cost to the customers, does it make sense?

Are you saying that the basic business model of posting cannot be trusted?

Have you forgotten your pledge of service?

http://forums.keeptouch.net/showthread.php?t=72951

Possible GEP questions

i rem i used to solve such problem sums in P6....
however, the kids are now exposed and expected to solve them even earlier....

Cat and Mouse: Direct and inverse proportion

is such logic required to be taught? or it comes naturally...
i do rem to me...it came very naturally....without any extra tuition....

Thoughts on GEP

There are 2 schools of thots on the good & bad points of GEP.
Today i would like to discuss one of these thots, that it is better not to be in. Generally pple who speak out loud that not getting into GEP is good, others may said they are sour grapes (吃不到葡萄说葡萄酸). Of course I don't deny there are bound to be detractors. However, if we take the stand of positive view, there are valid points to this thot that not getting into GEP is good.

In reality, there is only 1% chance that a child is gifted. Hence it is 可遇不可求! The gifted trait is natural and not nurture. So considered it lucky if your child belong to 1% of the cohort. Isnt it better than striking toto? So in a school with 30% of the students considered gifted and getting into GEP, arent the 29% all forced? Forcing a child unduly may backfire. There is also the worry that they become anti-social like a lot of stories going round that students from GEP classes are nerd, cant socialize, cant solve real life problems.



Although gifted in in-born, this is not saying nurture is useless. Nurture can improve weakness or strengthen a strength.


Perhaps the term GEP is inappropriate. Since GEP measures the linguistic, mathematical & general knowledge ability. The term to use maybe more appropriate with academic gifted program (AGP).

Alternatively,  we hear a lot of stories about gifted people not sociable. Maybe a way to measure gifted is thru social ability?

we will cover thot 2 in next article....

Happy Children Day!

Wishing all children in the world happy, healthy and free-from-worry childhood

I must blog about the drop in service of ikea

2 weeks ago...i was at the tampines outlet trying to get a high stool
i searched around but couldnt find it
so i managed to stop a staff to ask for help.
i was told to try check-out counter...diligently i went
which i was earlier but didnt see it...
at the check-out counter, searching the whole row of check-out and still didn't see it, i stopped another staff to ask
he told me to try the bathroom section, which is a long walk back since i need to pass 20+ racks
at the bathroom section, i couldnt find anyone to help me
finally i managed to find a lady staff at fabric....she didn't allow me to finish my question and told me to go children section....
which is one level up.....i was desperate by then....i came all the way and walked so much....i must find it.....
off i went to climbing up the stair....
at the children section, i stopped a really young looking staff
he told me....we only have this $3.90 stool (which is not what i was looking for)
by then, i was about to give up....i went back down.....
about to go home and thought i gave a final try to this lady staff doing some deco on ladder
low and behold....she was able to tell me "if i m not wrong, it is out of stock"
gosh.....it took so many staff to tell me such a simply thing?
i am very disappointed.....

fast forward to today
i was there making some purchases
i have written my requirement on the paper provided in-house
this particular item need sale assistant help according to the tag
so i spent 15 mins locating one....
she looked at the paper i had and made some calls
and finally printed the payment slip for me to bring check-out for 2 items
i made a total of almost $700 worth of about 10 items....another delivery charge payment
and imagine my surprise when i took out the receipt during dinner to have a look
the item keyed in by the  staff is wrong.....

so i quickly went home to call ikea
and mine mine.....the customer service line is busy i was put on hold for at least 10mins with no response
i hung up and call again....this time....the lady told me to leave my number as they were experiencing high call levels......and will return my call
one hour later....no sound no picture of ikea!!!
although i can choose to return after the item is delivered
but imagine the additional effort required to do that?
and mind you....i paid for delivery....

what a lousy experience....

Cant believe my LUCK

another portable HDD is gone again
with my previous experience, i now have a portable HDD that i carry around and another that I permanently fixed on my workdesk
but can you believe my luck
this permanent that store all my previous 10000+ photos memories went bonk
and i couldn't do anything about it
i regret not putting all the pic up on the blog

and to think that this year is a good year for me....
can something better happen? like striking toto 1m
i'm going crazy....

Creating a Conducive Learning Environment

• show interest in your child's learning experiences and encourage him/her to share them with you
• Encourage your child to learn through meaningful games
• Read books and newspaper together, starting with attractive illustrations
• Bring your child to the library or bookshops to cultivate reading habit
• Watch quality television programmes together
• make use of objects in the environment such as road signs and advertisements to engage your child
• build up your child's confidence by not correcting his/her mistakes excessively

credit: MOE

the new happening bank

i have not done much business with ocbc until recently when my life pattern changes and i now live near a branch that operates at very convenience hours...
so i took out my almost forgotten bankbook, and to my surprise
the bank has improved tremendously....in term of customer service
the bank i m talking about is OCBC Bank....
for example, there are sitting bench provided for queuing customers....
i m really impressed....

Why I think DBS sucks

why i think dbs sucks

1) poor customer service
2) double standard treatment to customers

hurray...no spelling/diction next Tue?

due to learning journey....i hope so ^v^

Raising Happy Kids

As parents, we want our children to experience a well-balanced development and most importantly, to be happy while doing so.

Here are some useful suggestions

Connections

Children need unconditional love from one or both parents and benefit when they have close ties to their extended family, feel part of their school, and help care for pets.

Play

Open-ended play, in which children can invent scenarios and solve problems by themselves, helps them discover their talents and use their own resources.

Practice

When kids find out what they're good at, they'll want to do it again and again.

Mastery

From practice comes mastery. When children achieve a skill -- whether it's learning to tie their shoes or play the piano -- they're further motivated to tackle new challenges.

Recognition

Approval from one's parents, teachers, and peers for a job well done connects children to the wider world. When kids think what they do affects others, they're more likely to exhibit moral behavior and, ultimately, to feel good about themselves.

credit: Unilever

Lotus

very nice lotus found in angkor wat

we realised they only blossom during the day :) how interesting