In an industry in which men represent 78 per cent of workers, 50 per cent of the leadership team at Couriers Please (CP) are women – including three of its five state managers. Each of the female leaders is responsible for all areas of the business in their state, from the management of parcel delivery volumes, performance and recruitment, to profit and loss, process improvement and safety.
More than ever, female leaders are proving they are a force to be reckoned with, kicking goals in a challenging and complex industry and leading companies such as CP through periods of unprecedented parcel volumes – the company has seen a 15 per cent increase in year-on-year volumes since March 2020. These female leaders have also ensured the swift delivery of millions of parcels to households across the country, while also keeping essential workers safe and COVID-free across seven national depots.
Queensland State Manager Tracey Baldwin is CP’s first female and longest-serving state manager. She directs a team of 10 operational managers and is ultimately responsible for over 220 franchisees and 75 staff across five depots.
During Tracey’s tenure, Queensland has experienced a 35 per cent year-on-year growth in parcel volumes.
Thanks to Tracey’s performance, Queensland improved its linehaul utilisation by 10 per cent year-on-year, helping the state achieve a consistent 96-97 per cent rate of on-time deliveries.
Tracey says: “Safety is an important priority for me in my role, and I regularly visit each depot across the state to ensure we’re addressing any potential safety risks. For instance, I’ve championed the introduction of exclusion zones in our five depots. These zones identify high-risk areas, often where forklifts and other machinery are in use, to help reduce incidents.”
South Australia State Manager Lisa Tedstone leads a team of 35 staff and 64 franchisees in the State. One of CP’s longest-serving operational personnel, Lisa joined the company in 2009 as a customer service representative, working her way up into operational leadership roles.
Lisa’s leadership has ensured CP’s SA business consistently maintains a 96-97 per cent rate of on-time deliveries and delivers more items per courier than any other State. Since the start of the pandemic, CP’s SA business has seen close to a 40 per cent increase in parcel volumes and increased its franchisees by 36 per cent.
Lisa also helped lead numerous national programs at CP, preparing the company to deliver for the Christmas peak period, and ensuring CP continued adapting during the pandemic while the company experienced its highest parcel volumes. Lisa onboarded the company’s new scanner devices nationally to all drivers, enabling customer delivery notifications to be sent and including route optimisation for faster parcel delivery.
West Australian State Manager Kristy Wright leads a team of 20 staff and 60 drivers, 10 of which are small-business franchisees. Kristy has 15 years experience in the logistics industry, having fallen in love with the industry after starting her career as a courier driver. During Kristy’s tenure, WA experienced unprecedented parcel volumes – including a 30 per cent increase in the Christmas peak period, the busiest Christmas she has seen in her career.
Kristy says: “I’m very proud to be part of the team at CP. It’s the first time in my management career that female leaders outnumber male leaders. I’ve achieved enormous improvements in productivity and performance – including on-time deliveries – and we now have the highest staff engagement rates since I’ve started. I anticipate that we will continue experiencing exponential growth over the next two years.”