SERVICE PERFORMANCE

The Postal Service is committed to providing timely, reliable, accurate and secure universal delivery of mail and packages. It has developed and continues to enhance a comprehensive reporting system to measure the performance of all mail categories.

The Postal Service has used single-piece First-Class Mail service performance as a model for service performance reporting and management. This category of mail is most familiar to our stakeholders. We also measure service performance for other categories of mail (Presort First-Class, Standard, Periodicals, Package Services, and Special Services). Measurement methods and quarterly service performance results are reported on the USPS website at http://about.usps.com/what-we-are-doing/service-performance/welcome.htm.

Detailed information on service performance standards and measurement systems is available in the Annual Compliance Report (ACR) to the Postal Regulatory Commission (see http://www.prc.gov/prc-pages/dockets-search/default.aspx and select ACR by year).

Organization-Wide Goals
Goal	Performance Indicator	2009 Actual	2010 Actual	2011 Plan	2011 Actual	2012 Plan
Improve Service1t	FCM Overnight	96.2%	96.36%	96.65%	96.23%	96.65%
	FCM 2-day	93.7%	93.71%	94.15%	93.34%	94.15%
	FCM 3-day	92.2%	92.44%	92.85%	91.87%	92.85%
Improve Financial Performance	Operating Income ($ billions)	NA	NA	(0.9)	(2.2)	(3.0)
Improve Financial Performance	Deliveries per Work Hour)	NA	NA	40.4)	39.9)	42.2)
Improve Safety and Employee Engagement	OSHA Injury and Illness Rate	5.62	5.49	5.39	5.67	5.57
Improve Safety and Employee Engagement	VOE Survey	64.0	62.3	64.5	64.7	TBD2
1 Note: First-Class Mail (FCM) Performance Indicator scores reported for 2010 forward are based on National Performance Assessment (NPA) calculations. 2 The VOE 2012 Plan is pending approval by the Postal Service Executive Leadership Team.

The last decade has seen a steady improvement in service performance and customer satisfaction results. This performance has remained consistent as volume has declined and substantial reductions have been made in the workforce since 2008. These results are due to:

The dedication and hard work of postal employees at all levels of the organization.
The availability of improved data and analytical techniques on performance that enable employees and mailers to take informed action.
Close collaboration with partners and suppliers, including the use of competitors such as FedEx and UPS, to move the mail on the most efficient transportation network available.
Continuing improvements to automation equipment and software, including the use of Intelligent Mail barcodes.
The use of tools and techniques such as standardization, optimization and Lean Six Sigma to identify root causes of problems and relevant solutions at program and system-wide levels.
Prompt action at the local level through customer support programs such as the Business Service Network and the Customer Experience Measurement program.
Collaborative approaches to problem resolution with customers and the mailing industry through the Mailer’s Technical Advisory Committee and other forums.

More than 55 percent of single-piece First-Class Mail receives overnight service. About 44 percent of this category currently receives two-to-three day service. Most single-piece First-Class Mail with a three-, four- or five-day service standard is actually delivered within three days. Only 0.27 percent of single-piece First-Class Mail volume has a four- or five-day service standard, and usually requires additional contract transportation outside the contiguous 48 states, such as mail to or from Hawaii, Alaska and Puerto Rico. This performance profile will be adjusted as service standards change.
Natural disasters in different parts of the U.S. affected the ability of the Postal Service to move the mail as reflected in 2011 service scores that were slightly below Plan. The Postal Service has also been undergoing organizational realignment, which although nonquantifiable, did divert some attention from service performance.

Since the 1990s, single-piece First-Class Mail has been measured by an independent third-party using a sampling system that records transit times between deposit and delivery of mailpieces. The sampling process has expanded and become more rigorous over time to include almost all originating and destinating ZIP Codes. Test pieces include both standard-size letters and large envelopes. In 2009, First-Class Mail parcels were included in measurement through the use of tracking parcels having Delivery Confirmation. First-Class Mail International mail is not included in the national goal, but is measured and reported separately.
Delivery service is a major component of our customers’ experience. However, other factors are also important to customers. USPS maintains one of the nation’s largest customer experience measurement programs, using surveys for consumers, small businesses and commercial customers. These surveys are supplemented by independent mystery shopper reports, and analysis of complaints and telephone calls to our customer contact centers and to our Business Service Network. We are also included in independent national customer satisfaction surveys, such as those conducted by the American Customer Satisfaction Center (www.theacsi.org). Results have been very favorable and showed our continuous improvement.