FedEx yesterday celebrated its 40th birthday with a promise to keep working hard for customersin the years to come but also dedicated more time for social and community activities.
On April 17, 1973, Federal Express began operations at Memphis International Airport with thedelivery of 186 packages to 25 US cities using 14 small French Dassault Falcon planes. Today, FedExand its four operating companies handle more than 9 million packages each day via a high-technetwork designed to connect customers by air, land and sea in more than 220 countries andterritories worldwide. It is estimated that FedEx has shipped more than 31 billion packages since1973.
“For 40 years, the men and women of FedEx have dedicated themselves to helping our customersconnect to the world,” said founder Frederick W. Smith, the company’s chairman, president and CEO. “ Today, our more than 300,000 team members mark this milestone with a spirit of service anddedication that ensures 40 years is only the beginning.”
To commemorate these decades of success, FedEx announced it will observe a Global Month ofService in April, honouring team members and communities with volunteer projects around the world.Staff will select various volunteer activities and FedEx will distribute $40,000 in non-profitgrants.
In addition, more than 600 US-based workers will roll up their sleeves for urban environmentalsustainability projects in 15 cities as part of the company’s annual EarthSmart Outreach programwith the National Fish & Wildlife Foundation (NFWF) this month. Team members will be workingalongside local nonprofits that have received grants from FedEx and the NFWF foundation, to carryout urban conservation projects in the community. The FedEx and foundation grants, totaling morethan $550,000 in 2013, will be matched with grants from local municipalities and agencies to yieldmore than $1 million in support for these critical environmental projects.
Looking back, FedEx said that over the past four decades it has adapted from being an overnightdelivery company to meet the changing needs of its customers. Today, the company’s businesses covera full range of logistics and business solutions, including ground, air and ocean freighttransport, designed for the needs of today’s global and local commerce.
Moreover, IT has been a key element of its business model with a series of systems, softwareprogrammes and hardware to gather and use shipment information. Today, FedEx is investing in thetransformation of its IT system networks into a single, hybrid-cloud platform that supports all ofthe company’s IT functions.
FedEx also highlighted the importance of its business in Europe where it now has 175 stationsand nearly 20,000 workers. Gerald P. Leary, president, FedEx Express Europe, Middle East, IndianSubcontinent and Africa (EMEA), who started his career 38 years ago as a courier, commented: “FedExhas a long and proud history of almost thirty years in Europe. Over the last 18 months we’ve addedmore than 70 new stations across Europe, made major investments in India, the Middle East andAfrica, and continued to expand our operations.”
