| Ever walk into your local post office, see 30+ | | | | Wal-Mart did $312 billion in revenue last year, $242 |
| people waiting in line to mail their packages, and | | | | billion more than the USPS. I will bet that the |
| three postal workers are working as fast as they | | | | USPS would like to net almost $11.2 billion like |
| can to move people through? Sometimes it takes | | | | Wal-Mart did last year. |
| me more than 30 minutes to hand off a Priority | | | | Given these facts, I ask myself: Would Sam |
| Mail package for delivery to a client. It reminds | | | | Walton (the founder of Wal-Mart) tolerate a slow, |
| me of the song Johnny Mathis made famous, The | | | | inefficient software system like the USPS uses? |
| Twelfth of Never, or the famous U. S. Army line | | | | Absolutely not. He would find and buy a much |
| "Hurry Up and Wait." | | | | faster, much more efficient system to increase |
| Usually I grab my ticket first, go get my mail | | | | productivity, and then pass on the savings to his |
| from my postal box, go next door to buy a copy | | | | customers. |
| of USA Today from John's Mountain Home | | | | After talking to a local manager about the current |
| Bakery, think about buying a couple of bismarks | | | | postal software used in processing mail at the |
| and a chocolate milk, and then return to the post | | | | front counter, I found out that this is the United |
| office and read my paper until my number is | | | | States Postal Services' new system, purchased |
| called. | | | | and implemented within the past year. Is this |
| I am a pretty good sport about this because it | | | | good management? |
| has been my 30-plus-year experience in business | | | | With 37,000 postal stations and 700,000+ |
| that the United States Postal Service (USPS) does | | | | employees (not all working the front counter, |
| an outstanding job of moving our mail and | | | | mind you), with perhaps 3 per office working the |
| packages around on time. | | | | front counter (that is 111,000 employees), how |
| Yesterday there was a long wait and people were | | | | much time is wasted waiting for some slow |
| talking quietly to one another, saying things like, | | | | software to calculate a transaction? I mean, it |
| "Geez, can't they get some more help," or "I | | | | was ridiculous the amount of time it took a postal |
| have never seen workers move so slowly," or "I | | | | worker to stand there and wait to enter and |
| hate having to wait so long, I have things to do." | | | | complete another transaction. |
| After getting up to the counter, I became acutely | | | | I can swipe a credit card at Wal-Mart and get a |
| aware of something I have noticed before but | | | | transaction approval in a fraction of the time that |
| had not registered in my mind. The worker would | | | | it takes me to stand waiting at a post office |
| tap the monitor of their new computer software | | | | counter with a slow, inefficient software system |
| system, and then wait, I mean literally wait two | | | | that crawls through a transaction as if it was |
| or three seconds, and then tap it again. I realized | | | | going to make a career out of it. |
| the postal worker who looked slow or inefficient | | | | I have no idea what kind of great decisions top |
| was actually waiting on a new computer system | | | | management at the USPS makes, but identifying, |
| that was slow and inefficient. | | | | purchasing and implementing an efficient software |
| Imagine yourself running a huge company (in this | | | | system (especially when upgrading) is not one of |
| case a government-owned corporation that is a | | | | them. |
| statutory monopoly) that delivers 212 billion pieces | | | | All of this reminds me of what Thomas Fuller said: |
| of mail to 144 million homes, businesses and | | | | Cheat me in the price, but not in the goods. I |
| postal boxes (23 million pieces daily in New York | | | | wonder if the maker of the software the USPS |
| City alone), ends up handling more than 44% of | | | | bought sold it to them with a huge discount |
| the world's card and letter mail volume, and | | | | because it could not find a major, successful |
| serves more than 7.5 million customers daily in | | | | business that would touch it with a 20-foot pole. |
| 37,000 post offices. This is all accomplished with | | | | Usually in the battle between men and machines, |
| 700,000+ employees and 260,000 vehicles. | | | | it is the man that slows down the machine; in the |
| Your USPS is the third largest employer in the | | | | case of the USPS front counter processing |
| country after the United States Department of | | | | software, it is the machine that is slowing down |
| Defense and Wal-Mart. Talk about a big business. | | | | the man, not to mention annoying customers and |
| The USPS has annual revenue of $70 billion. | | | | aggravating postal employees. |
| Now focus on Wal-Mart, a publicly held business | | | | Where is that ergonomics guy when you need |
| with 1,800,000 employees worldwide and nearly | | | | him? |
| 6,500 stores and wholesale clubs in 15 countries. | | | | |