Tips for Business

My job at the moment is a multi-faceted role.  However it is predominately a customer service role with a little bit of everything else on the side.  Because of this, I’ve started thinking about and looking at customer service in a more critical way and the news isn’t good.  Most businesses have mediocre customer service with some bordering on atrocious - but yesterday has to take the cake for being the worst customer service experience ever.

The mission was simple; get a generic BSB code from Bendigo Bank to correct the mistake of my customer to allow them to be paid.  For international readers a BSB number is simply a routing number for our banking system which identifies the Bank, State and Branch.  There is nothing personal about these numbers, in fact they are widely published and publically available.

In an effort to save time and hassle I thought to myself “I will call Bendigo Bank and ask them what their generic BSB number is.  That way they can confirm I have the correct details and I will save having to hassle the client for information they may not know or have readily accessible.”  Of course I realised that any bank will not divulge private or personal details about their client however since the BSB I was asking for doesn’t even link to a branch local to my client there should be no problems.  How wrong I was!

Firstly, the man on the phone sounded either half asleep or stoned, greeting me in a bored, monotonous manner unacceptable for even a Friday afternoon.  Then he asked for an account number and I freely quoted him my clients number in the hope that it may expedite the process of getting information out of them.  I explained that I needed to confirm the generic BSB for the bank so that money could be sent to the account I had quoted him.  His response was to ask for further details, like the account name and address and other personal information I didn’t know or care to share.  I again explained that those personal details were irrelevant and that all I needed was a generic number used by all clients.  He told me that the bank had two numbers which could be applicable - depending on the type of account.  I said I didn’t know what type of account it was but if he was to give me both the numbers then I could take that information back to my client for confirmation.  His response was “But then you will just try both of them!”.  Before I had a chance to explain that I had been quoted, by my client, that his BSB was 333-000 (which is incorrect, hence the confirmation of bank details) the ‘customer service representative’ had hung up on me.  WHAT?

I understand that banks have private and confidential information that they cannot just share with anyone.  I also understand that there are people out there who aim to steal private information for their own gains.  I also understand how in a situation where the assistant is suspicious of an enquiry to be evasive or difficult to deal with - but hanging up!  My instant response was to hit redial and join the queue again but I didn’t have time at this stage and I still had to get these details before the end of the day.  But honestly, would it have been that hard for him to say “I’m sorry I cannot provide that information as you haven’t sufficiently identified yourself and privacy laws prohibit me from sharing any customer details”.  Obviously.  I’ve been in plenty of situations where I am faced with a brick wall because I cannot provide ID - it’s disappointing but it is understandable.  Instead of being hung up on I am left feeling like privacy issues are a concern but customer service is still important.  Clearly Bendigo Bank don’t share this view.  Much better just to hang up!

The most amusing part to this whole drama is that on Bendigo Bank’s own ‘Contact Us’ page the BSB number I was looking for is freely available under their contact number.  I doubt there are two numbers (I have dealt with enough banking details to know that much) so I suspect he was just trying to throw me off the scent.

Ultimately, here’s the tip for business.  Customer service is the most important aspect of operations.  If customer’s don’t feel satisfied or feel like they are important to the business, then the business won’t retain customers for long.  Personally, I’m not likely to ever be a Bendigo Bank customer after this experience and I doubt I will ever recommend the bank to others either.  Customers never forget!

A Whole New Job

At the beginning of the year I started in a new job moving from being simply an admin monkey to a Salary Packaging Consultant.  Whilst there are still admin type moments (particularly now whilst I learn the ropes) the focus of the job is more on customer service and my broader career outlook is now bright.

My job requires a thorough understanding of particular tax laws and so I have primarily been working on learning the laws inside out.  I have also been producing spreadsheets and reference materials which should help me out further on down the track.  On a side note, it’s interesting how the attitude of my employer is completely different to my old employer.  My new employer helped me in producing a reference guide, gave me time to do a good job and afterwards rewarded me with having it laminated and distributed throughout the office.  My old employer shunned the creation of reference guides and there was no time or reward for creating one.  I am definitely glad that I moved.

As an accounting student I had already been exposed to the tax law, fringe benefits tax (FBT) and salary packaging but I know that not everyone else really understands it.  In fact, based on articles I have read, even so called ‘industry experts’ have little understanding of salary packaging or the tax law.  The principles of FBT and salary packaging are simple but the application is not.  There are subtle intricacies that many don’t understand and as such many falsehoods exist about salary packaging.

So what is salary packaging?
The concept of salary packaging goes back a long way.  Some wise employer worked out that if an employee was paid in things (cars, clothes, houses, etc) then the employee would not incur any income tax because income tax is only collected on cash salary or wages.  Salary packaging still exists today; although the government has taken measures to stop blatant tax evasion.

What is Fringe Benefits Tax?
FBT is the tax imposed on the other things an employer provides it’s employees.  Unlike income tax, the tax rate is set at the highest marginal tax rate to discourage employers paying employees with things.  FBT closes the loophole and stops employees from evading income tax.  It is also somewhat preventative because very few have to pay the highest rate of tax and even when they do, they still save comparatively because of the marginal tax system.

A Happy Medium
Because of FBT the perception that salary packaging is ineffective (and in some people’s mind illegal) prevailed and the people packaging stopped.  Well.  It’s not that simple.  The government did understand the benefits of salary packaging to both the employer and employee however they didn’t want those with the knowledge and ability to avoid paying tax whilst others (who didn’t know or couldn’t do) had to pay.  As such, some concessions were built into the law to allow for certain benefits to be packaged and for certain organisations to be exempt or treated concessionally by the tax.  This meant they could stop exploitation of the tax system but still encourage particular employers by providing tax incentives.  For example, charity workers provide a public good and so have the ability to salary package and pay no FBT in certain circumstances.

As you can see, the principles are relatively simple.  The law is complicated, confusing and constantly changing but the principles remain the same.  However, people’s perceptions of salary packaging need to change.  If things are too difficult for you to understand, ask someone who does!  Almost every employee in Australia could benefit from salary packaging if only they talked to people who knew.  There are some limitations and restrictions but salary packaging is not just for the ‘rich’ and anyone who thinks or says so doesn’t understand the intent of the law.  The whole point of FBT is for equity in the tax system - stopping the rich from having an advantage.

The best thing about my employer is that they are honest and transparent in their dealings with customers.  Many other salary packaging companies are not and as such the industry is tarnished and people again think of salary packaging as dirty and illegal.  In some circumstances other companies do fall foul of the law and their clients (those liable to pay the tax) have no idea whilst I sit back and hope they are audited.  Let’s face it; the industry standard can’t be that high if after working for three weeks I already know more than people who have been in the industry for years.  That is not implying that I am a genius but that others don’t know, or care to know, what the law says.

If you can’t tell, I like my new job.

I live and work in Australia and am talking about the Australian taxation system.  This may or may not be relevant in other countries.  This is not financial advice either.  If you are considering salary packaging talk to a qualified financial planner or accountant.

Traditional Idea, Techno Twist

More and more secondary schools in Australia are adopting a Learning Management System to allow students to access vital information online but also providing functionality for testing and reporting and alike.  Delivering content online, as supplementary to traditional teacher-student contact, is a fantastic use of technology and screams of benefits for both teachers and students.

While thinking about this I wondered why school canteens didn’t provide an online shopping portal for making lunch orders.  This again would be an ideal usage of technology.  A student and/or parent logs on and shops, as they would any other online shop, for lunch the following day (or perhaps a few days into the future) and then they pay online through PayPal or credit card etc.  Each day then, the orders relevant for that day are delivered to the canteen operator who can prepare the lunches and deliver them to the student at the appropriate time.

The benefits to the parent are obvious.  Firstly, no need to scrounge for change on lunch order day.  Secondly, credit card payment is secure and the parent knows exactly how much is being spent on lunches.  Thirdly, the order is locked in and so the parent knows exactly what their child will have for lunch; no more changing ’salad sandwich’ for ‘pie and chips’.  Finally, the system could be established to give children access to a particular amount of credit so that students wouldn’t have to carry money with them and the parents would be billed monthly.

The benefits for the canteen operator are a little less obvious but still well worth the cost of the system.  Firstly, all orders are delivered to the operator at the same time daily in the same format.  No more deciphering handwriting on envelopes or brown paper bags.  Secondly, payment is received in a secure manner so only a smaller float is needed on site.  Thirdly, and most profoundly, the operator doesn’t need to be on site in the morning the order is placed allowing for a greater degree of outsourcing, less commuting for operators running multiple canteens and reduced overheads in terms of staffing.  Finally, costs of implementation would be low because there is already free e-commerce software available which would only need minor modification to suit this application and hosting could be handled by the school for a reduced or no fee.

With everyone relying more heavily on technology I think this idea will be implemented at some point, but it’s just a question of when.  What do they say about the simplest ideas?

Virtual Shirt

Our artists have been creating digital impressions of our newest prints. See them below.

More T-Shirt Madness

On the weekend Mel and I continued work in our sweatshop (photo below) to produce some more high quality garments. This time the design inspiration came from me and my; filthy tongue, almost constant inuendo and sexual references, love for the big man upstairs. Here you can also see the boy’s logo which I am quite fond of and the girl’s logo in white which turned out looking great - despite my initial reservations.  The two M-shirts are blue (as can be seen in the logo photo) but came out black-ish in the photos of the design.  The god design is on a black shirt.

Despite the existance of our little sweatshop I’m as yet to embark on a profiteering venture. There’s just so many things that I want on t-shirts for me!

Clothing Mule-style

For a while now ideas for cool things to put on t-shirts have come to mind and I have always put my dreaming aside and assured myself that I will never get what I want on a t-shirt. I had investigated a few places online where you can submit a design and they print it onto merchandise for you. Whilst this is an option they are either a) too expensive or b) too restrictive in what you can print or what you can print on. Then in my travels I discovered PhotoEZ.

So without ranting too much about the product or a how-to which all can be found on their website, Mel and I produced our first t-shirts. Our first images were the ‘novaman’ who is quite cool and we have a few different poses which we have put onto two t-shirts so far. Along with this we designed two logos because everyone knows clothing needs a brand name. So we have a logo for the boys and a logo for the girls.

The idea for the logo is my name, Mule. The twist is all thanks to my darling Mel who transcribed it as IPA to get mjul. Since that is cool, obscure and at the same time mule I thought it fit the concept for my clothing labels too. So keep your eyes out for mjul merchandise and if you have a cool idea or would like a shirt, let me know and you too can wear a mjul.