I think the expectation is misplaced. Many people are very good at their job and take a lot of pride in it. When it starts to stray outside of their job then things are different. The railway is an industry where a lot of small bubbles juxtapose against each other. Platform staff vs Driver is a prime example. Whilst we work together closely and parts of our duties overlap; neither of us know each others roles. Why should we ? The railway also covers a vast distance. I work in Kent but only work on a tiny portion of the network. I don't think it is reasonable for me to know the workings of a station that I never go to, work near or is 50 miles away. I think that is unreasonable.
My expectation is for people to do their job, and hopefully to the best of their abilities. I have zero expectations for a member of Platform Staff to know the intricate working of a train. I did, but that illusion was shattered years ago.
Same with any industry really. I used to be a Manager. I worked my way up from the bottom so I experienced each role. However, it isn't a pre requisite for the role and there are many Managers who are very good at their jobs and put their trust in those underneath them to do theirs. In some respect, that is what makes them good Managers.
I agree. My point really I guess, was that staff , such as platform staff, don’t necessarily take the time to know things they really should. I’d not expect a member of platform staff to know what I do, and I don’t know the nuts and bolts about what they do. An example is, I was at Clapham Junction for a couple of years, and my job entails travelling the network, visiting different locations. I knew in a matter of months what went where and at what time etc at Clapham, yet some station staff didn’t, nor did colleagues of mine at the same station. That seemed like they didn’t take pride in their work because the things they should have known, they didn’t? I appreciate not everybody knows about what stock we use etc, but again, it’s something that I would think people would normally pick up naturally.
And I understand not every body, or not many people understand the technical terms and what not on the railway. I certainly didn’t have a clue what you were on about when you have some examples, but as you say, not everybody would be expected to know.