EMS Oman’s march towards performance excellence
In 2023, Oman Post’s Asyad Express Company was the only operator in the world to achieve the high standards needed to win a Gold award for their EMS service performance. This excellence wasn’t a one-off, it was a repeat of their Gold EMS award for their performance in 2022. Oman’s customers also receive excellent customer service, as evidenced by Oman being awarded an EMS customer care award in 2022 and 2023, achieving the second-highest customer service response quality worldwide in 2023, and third highest globally in 2022.
Dazzling achievements like this are usually the result of an incremental journey to raise performance. In this case it took only four years for Oman Post’s Asyad Express Company to make huge improvements to EMS, greatly benefitting customers. Oman was ranked 125th for their EMS performance in 2019 but by 2023, they had become the highest performing EMS operator.
A rapid turnaround like this requires commitment from the whole organization. The transformation at Oman Post’s Asyad Express Company began with forensic focus on identifying and implementing changes needed to improve each leg of the supply chain. To speed up exports, Oman introduced multiple mail collection rounds at postal offices and set cut-off hours tailored for each location. A quarterly review of transportation helped identify issues, leading to the introduction of new transport options, including surface transport and contracts with multiple air carriers. Individuals were made responsible for the daily monitoring of flight events and ensure the timely follow-up on delays. On-time delivery improved from 52% in 2018 to 99% in 2023, achieved by streamlining customs procedures and activating doorstep delivery in 2021.
The Arab region, particularly the Gulf region, is a key export market. Oman conducted a thorough analysis of the EMS item journey from start to finish, using the data available in the EMS Cooperative’s reporting system, EMS SMART, Oman was one of the most active users of EMS SMART in 2023. This analysis highlighted where delays occurred, enabling Oman Post’s Asyad Express Company to work directly with stakeholders and partners to reduce these delays.
Oman Post’s Asyad Express Company launched several major initiatives to enhance its services and expand its market reach. The strategies include maximizing domestic and international networks to add value for consolidators by offering drop-off services; targeting government branches to become the official G2G service provider; and using CRM tools to build long-term partnerships with customers, delivering sustained benefits. Additionally, the company is improving customer service processes to ensure friendly and timely service and equipping employees with up-to-date knowledge of import and export regulations.
Oman Post has strategically utilized funds from the UPU’s Quality of Service Fund to invest in an automated sorting project. This investment has significantly improved the accuracy of sorting and distribution operations, as well as optimizing working hours. Moreover, a new call centre dashboard now provides real-time and historical data on key performance metrics and indicators, further enhancing call centre operations.
Oman Post’s Asyad Express Company has demonstrated that commitment and strategic planning can transform an operator within a short span of time. From ranking 125th in EMS performance in 2019 to achieving the highest performance in 2023, their journey is a testament to the power of a focus on performance improvement and customer satisfaction. Oman’s success serves as an inspiration to postal operators worldwide, showcasing what can be achieved with a clear vision and focus on EMS performance improvement.