The US Postal Service (USPS) has named senior executives to head a new division incorporating itscommercial activities and to gear it up to compete more strongly in areas such as express and
parcel services.The new Shipping and Mailing Services Division, responsible for more than $70 billion ofannual revenues, will cover product management, product development and commercial sales of allmajor shipping and mailing products. It will also have active and integrated roles in pricing,operational support, service enhancements, partnerships and investment activities, USPS announced.
Robert F. Bernstock has been appointed president of the newly-created Shipping and MailingServices Division. He has 30 years of experience in senior leadership positions with some of thebest known consumer product companies in America, USPS said. Supporting him will be a new seniorvice president for mailing services, David Shoenfeld, who formerly served as senior vice presidentof worldwide marketing for Federal Express.
The second division, Customer Relations, will focus on relationships with business customersand consumers, and also cover pricing and communications. Head of Customer Relations as a seniorvice president will be long-serving USPS executive Stephen Kearney. He was most recently vicepresident, Pricing and Classification, where he worked with the US Postal Regulatory Commission,industry groups and customers to transform pricing from primarily cost-based to market-driven.
The realignment also consolidates all Intelligent Mail Barcode activities under the chiefoperating officer to focus on execution in the year ahead up to May 2009. The Intelligent MailBarcode will become the technical foundation of mail operations, including acceptance, payment,verification, processing, diagnostics, routing transportation and delivery, USPS said.
“Today’s decisions may be viewed as a sea change for some,” said Postmaster General John E.Potter. “But these are challenging times and it’s critical that we take advantage of recent changesin federal law which give us the tools to move into the competitive environment. We are nowpositioned to do that.” Potter noted: “These changes recognize the dynamic economics of ourbusiness, will increase our effectiveness and enhance the value and attractiveness of our shippingand mailing services for existing customers and for new ones.”
A law enacted in 2006 (the Postal Accountability and Enhancement Act of 2006) streamlined theway the Postal Service sets prices and added certain flexibilities in the pricing of its shipping(package) services enabling it to become more competitive with private shipping companies.
