Collaboration nation

The Chancellor’s done it. In his Budget, he pledged support for small to medium-sized businesses (SMEs) by reducing employers’ NI contributions.

But, guess what? SMEs are doing a lot for themselves anyway. This week we’re publishing our Collaborate UK report. It brings encouraging news about how SMEs – the backbone of the UK economy - are adapting the way they work to make themselves stronger in the face of economic decline.

The headline is that these businesses are increasingly working together. The report surveyed 700 SMEs of which nearly a quarter said they were more open to collaboration now than they were before the downturn. And one in eight said they’d consider working with a competitor if there were a business benefit. 

The findings - and there a lots of them – reveal a new breed of “size zero” businesses up and down the country which are embracing outsourcing, exchanging services and sharing experience so they can focus on their strengths and reduce costs. More businesses, it seems, are becoming leaner and smarter.

We hear these stories on a daily basis when we’re travelling the length and breadth of the UK to deliver our services, and the report gives these anecdotes credence.

I think the messages in the report are very encouraging and I hope they can help other businesses understand the benefit of the ‘together we’re stronger’ approach.

I’ll certainly be taking some lessons away from the report in terms of how CitySprint can do things differently. And I look forward to seeing how businesses continue to build these relationships and expand their networks over the coming months.

Patrick Gallagher

Chief Executive of CitySprint (UK) Limited

Delivery from your pocket makes sense

The rapid progress and adoption of smart technology into everyday lives never ceases to amaze me - not even a decade ago, we were playing snake on our Nokia’s and now we can transfer money, book flights, shop and network all from the palm of our hands.

And no longer is this smart technology the privilege of ‘techies’ or the well off as having a smartphone or tablet is increasingly becoming the new norm (according to Ofcom’s latest figures, 58% of the UK population own a smartphone and 19% own a tablet device).

Today your smartphone or tablet becomes even more powerful as we launch the first ever same day courier booking and tracking app, MyCourier. 

The new app, available to download from Apple’s App Store today, is the first to allow both our account and non-account holders to access all of CitySprint’s services including quotes, booking and live tracking of deliveries, all from the palm of their hand.

As we all look to technology to make our lives even easier, at home and in the office, creating an app which allows people to access the UK’s largest same day courier network, was a no brainer for CitySprint. It’s a really exciting industry development and we look forward to delivering our first app jobs today!

Patrick Gallagher
Chief Executive of CitySprint (UK) Limited

Delivering the vision of modern pathology

On 14th January 2013, we hosted our first pathology debate with a panel of key industry experts. It seemed timely to be discussing how we can make end-to-end automation in pathology a reality. With the Department of Health calling for a paperless NHS and the pathology reconfiguration in the East of England, we’re likely to see dramatic changes in laboratory services over the coming years. 

As a logistics company specialising in transport across a number of sectors, we’ve been able to look at the challenges facing NHS pathology from a different perspective. We’ve always understood that healthcare is different. But we’ve been able to look at reconfiguration from a practical quality and efficiency point of view.    

The starting point for much of our work with the NHS is mapping routes and workflow. This means being a little dispassionate about the bricks and mortar that have traditionally housed parts of the NHS. We understand and respect the deep-felt feelings people have for their local services. But we have to look at what will create the safest and most efficient pathology logistics to support patient and service needs now, and into the future.

Once the workflow is understood, technology applied in the appropriate way can transform pathology services. Laboratories that are able to prioritise deliveries and specific testing requirements can process more samples. GPs can offer patients greater flexibility in phlebotomy services. Samples can be tracked en route and everybody in the system – from the phlebotomist to the laboratory – has the reassurance provided by an electronic audit trail that bleed-to-test times are being met.

This is an example of where automation, and removing the paper systems such as those highlighted by the Secretary of State for Health, can make genuine improvements to delivery of the services patients receive.

We understand that logistics are only one piece of the pathology jigsaw. But we also know that we can offer more than trained, accredited drivers and specialised vehicles. By applying proven technology and approaches from other sectors where we transport important goods, we can help the NHS move forward in this critical part of the service.

And perhaps we can play our small part in helping to deliver the vision of modern pathology as outlined by Lord Carter of Coles.

Andrew Turner

CitySprint Healthcare Director 

07989 857 816