Driver Of The Month: November
We’re delighted to announce our Driver of the Month for November is Mike, who put in an amazing shift across the month during these unprecedented times. Mike’s passion for the role has been evident throughout the year, displaying consistent results for the company. We’re very glad you’re on our network, and we look forward to working with you even more, Mike!
We got in touch with Mike to find out more about himself and his time with Engineius so far.
What do you love most about the job?
I really love the ability to plan ahead with a variety of different vehicles to varying locations. I just love a challenge. I have a passion for the logistical side borne from previous employment in which I travelled, mainly in the USA & Middle East. I am an advanced driver and it’s such a challenge working out how to efficiently move the car from A to B, taking Into account knowledge of previous travel experiences. I really like the freedom to pick and choose my work and, as Gemma used to say to me when I first started: “Mike you really love that challenge!”. Thanks, Gemma, you’re spot on.
How do you ensure you deliver vehicles on time?
It’s quite amazing how you really try and plan, but no matter how many times you think you have all the angles covered, it’s always the unexpected that you’re waiting for. It’s not always easy to place time buffers within movements relating to deliveries, but I always try and get to my first job just prior to the correct pick-up time. As we all know, we can’t take into account traffic accidents and congestion, but if this becomes an issue then I always keep the customer and Ops Team updated. Most customers understand traffic issues, after all, they’re all drivers.
What has been your best experience with Engineius so far?
Professionalism! Placing yourself on the other end of that phone when it rings and understanding issues that the Ops Team is trying to solve. It’s no good not understanding the logistical issues faced by both drivers and Ops, but I have experiences that have taught me a simple mantra. There is no such word as ‘problem’, These ‘problems’ are solution opportunities and I view them as such. The efforts are joint efforts with the same goal and both the Ops Team and drivers should jointly mirror the ethos of Engineius.
How many miles do you do on average a week?
It can vary really. I started taking small jobs around my local area just to get into the swing of things and I still take those smaller jobs but, as Gemma says, I love a challenge. In a past life, it wasn’t unusual to have to work with a dedicated professional team and drive wherever our work took us. Last week I drove about 1100 miles which is my average.
What do you think are the secrets behind getting to where you’ve got to?
I’m Libran, slightly unbalanced but also very disciplined. It comes from a past life. It may sound boring, but I’m taught to respect the organisation I work for. We all joke about some of the vehicles we are asked to collect, but I always think that I must reflect both Engineius and the likes of Buyacar and Arval, and other large companies and the brand of car. You reflect all these when delivering.
What drives you to succeed in this job?
I hate letting people down. The private individual especially, as they have chosen a car. They have either paid for it or financially purchased it via HP or the likes, so for them, it’s a special time when a stranger turns up at your door to handover this vehicle. It needs to be professionally dealt with. I love it when a customer says: “Thanks Mike, you made this look easy”. It’s the same with the vans. I love delivering the vans to the utilities. They are down to earth guys who work hard. They’re the salt of the earth even though the older vans look as though they have vegetables growing in them! They tick all my boxes.
Do you reconcile your jobs and expenses on a regular basis?
Yes, daily. I keep accurate records via an Excel spreadsheet. This is a great reference to visually examine the evening before the day’s work. There’s no difference to my past training with this, which was far more complicated as I and my team had to “shift the goalposts” to accommodate the unexpected, so this aspect of the logistics comes naturally. Like most of us, frustration sets in sometimes trying to reconcile but as I mentioned, it’s not a “problem”, I’m looking for that “solution opportunity” that exists sometimes with the help of the Ops Team.
What are you most excited for this year?
That’s perhaps a personal question, but last year my family suffered the loss of my 35-year-old daughter in law with bowel and liver cancer, leaving one of my sons with 2 boys under 10 years of age. My wife lost her mum the same week with vascular dementia and coupled with the Covid issue I ask, can it possibly get any worse? We must never look backward. We can’t alter events, but we can try and plan for the future and be grateful for what we, as individuals, have with friends and family.
What makes Engineius a special place to work?
Professionalism (in answer to one of my previous answers). I have a deep technical background as my friend, Dave from Wigan, knows. When I researched companies that logistically move vehicles, I liked Engineius’ front-facing website. I looked them up on Linkedin. I like the app - it’s not perfect but, what app is? I hope both Steve and Monty understand that during my interview, I actually interviewed them to explain to me what they could do for me to prove this professional outlook. I’m grateful I was accepted.
What is the best advice you can give other drivers?
This is the job of a logistics driver; every day, every person, every move is different. Approach it that way, be positive, reflect your own personal standards and when all else fails, go to the Ops Team. I’ll say again, the help given to me by Gemma and Sam was invaluable. We are all in this together.
By winning Driver of the Month, you not only have the opportunity to feature on the company website, but you will also win £20 in One4all vouchers. Keep up the great work and who knows, you may be our December Driver of the Month!
Interested in becoming an Engineius driver? Find out more here.