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E Hunter Harrison and CN...

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Posted by gabe on Monday, July 6, 2009 11:52 AM

Ulrich

The article has one person stating that we're afraid of Hunter...why? Does he breathe fire? Good grief...the worst he can do is send you packing...

Speaking on behalf of those with mouths to feed, student loans to pay off, and a mortgage to pay, in a recession no less, HUH?!?  "The worst he can do is send you packing" as a reason for not being afraid of him?

I would be FAR less scared of someone who breathes fire.

Gabe

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Posted by enr2099 on Monday, July 6, 2009 11:31 AM

Ulrich

A shipper says CN is impossible to work with... that's a damning statement..

It's the truth. Customer satisfaction is a term rarely heard on the CNR. And if you don't believe me I will put you in touch with some of the local customers. Any customer that is not shipping more than 20 cars a day, CN will refuse to switch them. The Ainsworth mill in Lillooet is scrambling to find alternative transportation because CN has told them "either give us 20 cars a day, or we won't switch you."

 

and if whoever said it believes it to be true then he/she should reveal himself/herself and be prepared to defend that statement. Moreover, hiding behind  a cloak of anonymity detracts from the statement. Same with Glassdoor.com...or whatever it is called...have something negative to say then show who you are and be prepared to defend what you say...calling someone a thief without provding any kind of details is assinine and cowardly.  

 

A co-worker of mine recently came forward to talk about how badly CN treats its employees on one of these websites. Someone from CN saw his posting and for the next 3 months supervisors were constantly tailing this person, who was an excellent railroader, trying to find something, anything to fire him for.

Managers at CN are hired from McDonalds and Starbucks and don't have a clue how to run a railroad. They have no clue as to the operating rules and employees have been fired for insubordination because they will not break an operating rule. In formal company investigations after an accident or for any reason that management has pulled you in for a hearing, any evidence that can incriminate you is front and centre, in the evidence package that is given to you. However any evidence that could exhonorate you is surprisingly missing. It's to the point now that many employees have a personal recording device to record any conversation with a supervisor.

 

Tyler W. CN hog
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Posted by enr2099 on Monday, July 6, 2009 10:55 AM

 Customer satisfaction is down, morale is the worst it has ever been. Oh yes, Hunter is a "great" man.

 His cost cutting killed more than a few employees. Remember the bridge collapse in McBride, BC? What about the runaway at Lillooet? Caused by he and his minions trying to squeeze every penny out of the assets.

The infrastructure is falling apart, CN will not maintain anything until it breaks, often in the case of track and bridges, catastrophically. Locomotives and rolling stock aren't much better. Crews turn in locomotives for safety or mechanical defects and are threatened with disciplinary action for delaying the assignment because CN doesn't make any money if the locomotives are in for repairs.  
 
I can understand sweating the assets, but he's pushed them to the breaking point.


He has instilled a culture of fear and intimidation, his management teams consist of psychopaths, nitwits, and yesmen. Running trade employees are being fired for sneezing the wrong way yet the Boom Boom Boychuck(responsible for the Lillooet runaway and the disaster at Prince George) gets a promotion. 


I have absolutely zero respect for the man and I know many who would not brake if they saw him crossing the street. 

 

Tyler W. CN hog
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Posted by Ulrich on Monday, July 6, 2009 10:24 AM

That's true...but "the customers is always right" is one of those bromides that gets passed down through the generations without anyone really thinking about it much. Customers are people after all...and people are never always right. But it does have alot to do with the presentation...CN probably CAN improve the entire shipping process via intense asset utilization however they do need to get the buy in from their customers and they do need to sell their customers on the advantages of change over the status quo.. Just using the carrot and stick approach to smooth out the ebb and flow of the shipping cycle does not come across the right way. CN and their larger accounts need to sit down and go over the potential pros and cons of going to a seven day shipping cycle...a big plus for CN may not be a big plus for the shipper when all is said and done. At the end of the day one size does not fit all..they will find that their seven day cycle works well for some but not at all for others. And instead of penalizing the ones who don't fit the mold...maybe look at alternatives. I view any account to pays me a fair rate and who pays me on time as a GOOD account. Everything else is up to me..if the shipper doesn't like my way of doing things or if he needs something that I can't provide then that's my problem to fix...but not by trying to force a square peg into a round hole.

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Posted by henry6 on Monday, July 6, 2009 9:35 AM

Railroads are steeped in tradition: this is the way we've always done it syndrome.  Hard to change 175 year old procedures and thinking.  But when it does happen, it usually works for the better.  What really has me concerned is the arrogance that "this is my product and here is how I will deliver it to you" ignores American business custom of "the customer is always right".  Yes, you've got to orgainze yourself to delever the best product at the best price, but you also have to bend somewhat to customer needs and demands.  Likewise, customers have had a field day demanding and getting what they want rarely having to pay the consequences of higher prices or whatever.  Hunter is right, "this is how my product works for you and this is what it costs".  The message has to be absorbed by the industry that that is who they have to be to succeed in the future...and the customers have to see and accept the way it best serves thier interests.  If there is no meeting of the minds, then there is no business and the guy in the next business gets the business!

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Posted by zardoz on Monday, July 6, 2009 9:01 AM

I couldn't help but notice that there was no mention of how the "operating efficiencies" led to some of the derailments and other "accidents" the CN has had in the last few years.

Not that I expected Hunter to admit to that problem, but the author of the article could hardly be ignorant of the above-mentioned incidents.

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E Hunter Harrison and CN...
Posted by Ulrich on Monday, July 6, 2009 8:47 AM

I enjoyed the Trains article on Mr Harrison and the changes he has made at CN. All in all a very balanced article although I wish people who have negative things to say would be brave enough to go on the record. A shipper says CN is impossible to work with... that's a damning statement..and if whoever said it believes it to be true then he/she should reveal himself/herself and be prepared to defend that statement. Moreover, hiding behind  a cloak of anonymity detracts from the statement. Same with Glassdoor.com...or whatever it is called...have something negative to say then show who you are and be prepared to defend what you say...calling someone a thief without provding any kind of details is assinine and cowardly.  

The article has one person stating that we're afraid of Hunter...why? Does he breathe fire? Good grief...the worst he can do is send you packing...

Overall I believe that Hunter and his team have done a fine job and that Hunter has a legacy he can be proud of. However, CN does need to step back from its fixation with the OR and look at other more important benchmarks. For example...customer satisfaction. Customer satisfaction is the truest indicator of any business's success, and everything flows from that...especially ongoing profitability. OR on the other hand.. is just a number which may, in the worst case, be pointing out how much should be but is NOT being put back in plant upkeep.

 

 

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