Post Office 'working hard' to boost credibility and profitability
Image: SINO MAJANGAZA
The SA Post Office (Sapo) said on Thursday it was working hard to revive its public image, improve its credibility locally and globally and help drive profitability.
Sapo's new chairperson, Colleen Makhubele, said after the board’s appointment in October 2019 it found an organisation that had been losing money for a decade. A qualified audit report was also not being adequately addressed.
She said there had been lapses of governance, wasteful expenditure and there was low staff morale.
“Our job is to strategically position Sapo and use its distribution network, warehouses and retail infrastructure as a service platform to be leveraged for profitability, innovation, service delivery and of course to enhance its universal service obligations,” Makhubele said at a media briefing to introduce new board members.
Makhubele said the enterprise would leverage its infrastructure network and distribution and logistics platform for profitability. There would also be revenue generating collaborations.
She said Sapo would engage in strategic public-private partnerships to build a technology-centred provider of postal services, e-commerce and financial services.
Makhubele said the Post Office would also position itself as a payment platform and distribution platform of choice for government.
“Our platforms access the entire SA and rest of Africa and we understand our customer base and their buying and delivery patterns.
“Every month, more than 11m South Africans receive grant payments on time.”
Makhubele said since the Post Office took over payment of SA Social Security Agency (Sassa) grants, there was no month that beneficiaries had not been paid.
“We wish to assure all South Africans that this social obligation will never change,” Makhubele said.
Makhubele said the Post Office had other cost-saving and revenue generating innovations.
These included a unique track and trace system allowing customers to follow the processing of their items.
The board had instructed management to review all major and strategic contracts to make sure that every one of them continued to offer value for money.