Recruitment
“I wholeheartedly believe that we have one of the best teams of people in the industry. Many have been with Hull Trains since the beginning in 2000 and we have received unprecedented scores for employee engagement according to an independent Towers Watson survey.
The team has succeeded on so many levels. Our fleet performance is the best ever with a continual trend of improving performance in MAA and MTIN as well as zero cancellations in the last reporting period. (Period 4)
Customer service is excellent and we have received the highest score for passenger satisfaction for the second consecutive year in the National Rail Passenger Survey at 96% – 16% higher than the average score. We also topped the league for satisfaction, service and punctuality in the 2015 Which? survey.
Our commercial team is consistently driving up revenue and passenger numbers. Last year, more than 860,000 passengers travelled with First Hull Trains which saw year-on-year growth of almost 12%.
And they all achieve this every day with a smile on their faces!
A specific example of how the team works together in the best interests of passengers was Christmas 2014. Hull Trains discovered an innovative way around the festive period’s hectic engineering schedule, keeping our passengers moving by diverting our trains into London St Pancras. Instead of cancelling services we were one of the few operators on the East Coast Main Line that kept people on the move without needing to transfer onto road transport. We revised and implemented a new Customer Service During Disruption Contingency Plan and we were also one of the only train companies whose executive team and Managing Director were at the station to ensure passengers were fully informed and aware of where to go.
In spite of the Kings Cross station ‘chaos’ over Christmas, we received very positive feedback from passengers congratulating us on the way the disruption was managed.
Passenger feedback was exceptional. A sample is included below:
“I was unfortunate enough to find my train from Kings Cross to Hull cancelled last night (Saturday 27 December) due to track maintenance & had a harrowing journey across London to catch it at Finchley Park. However, you managed to get me home from there in super fast time & your staff (especially Charlotte - the stewardess in 1st Class) calmed me down & made the remainder of my journey very special. So a very BIG THANK YOU to 1st Hull Trains & your wonderful staff.â€
“I travelled to and from London last Saturday, but rather than throw brickbats, please may I offer praise? I travelled on the 0745 out of Howden, terminated at Finsbury Park. The guard was excellent in his passing on of information, and gave us the full range of options for onward travel, which meant that, instead of becoming snarled up in the mess that was the concourse at Finsbury Park, I simply waited on the platform I arrived at for the next service, to Moorgate.
“Full marks to him for pointing this out! Full marks to you all for getting me back home, as I travelled on the 1843 ex St Pancras, with the added comfort of First Class, where I was very well attended as usual. In amongst the chaos, Hull Trains were for me exemplary in how to a) deal with a shortage of paths known about long in advance, and b) inform people how to travel onward when things went wrong. Please take a gold star - and make sure one is awarded to the guard of the southbound train as well! Thanks, Revd Canon Stephen Cope (who has been caught in various 'inconveniences' with various operators over the years...)â€
The team also takes care of one another. This is a comment recently from Lord Prescott:
“All the staff are superb and I noticed in your company magazine all your passengers say the same thing… As a man who has constantly made points of criticism over time, I think this is an occasion to congratulate you! With best wishes, Lord Prescott–
“I would like to thank you for a amazing night. The theme of the night was great, we all entered into the spirit and dressed to impress. On arrival we where amazed with the greeting, the Rail Seventeen Cups were a lovely touch, as were the bouncers on the door. The food was fabulous and the show by the stunt men and dancers was a real treat. The awards were a pleasure to watch, my favorite being the Life Time achievement, which brought a tear to everyone’s eyes. Then we danced the night away to the band, who where great and had a gamble with our fun money. Overall the atmosphere was electric. I enjoyed every minute of the evening.”
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