5. EMPLOYEE DEVELOPMENT
Employee Development has two main areas of responsibility: Product Development and Evaluation, which designs, develops, and evaluates curricula; and Delivery, which operates at the William F. Bolger Center for Leadership Development, Potomac, MD, and at the National Center for Employee Development, Norman, OK. Both centers are self-contained campuses with classrooms, conference facilities, housing, dining and related services. There are 85 postal employee development centers (PEDCs) throughout the nation that support operational needs by providing local training assistance to employees.

While traditional classrooms, on-the-job instruction, and correspondence courses are still prevalent, delivery platforms increasingly include satellite networks, videotape, computer-based interactive programs, web-based instruction, or combinations of these channels.


a. Management Training

With the continuation of the Associate Supervisor Program (ASP), Career Management Program (CMP), and Advanced Leadership Program (ALP), the training and development needs of supervisors and managers at all levels of the organization are being met.

The 16-week ASP for first-line supervisors continues to be a national success. All 85 districts have participated in the program, which has graduated 11,962 enrollees. In 2002, 1,572 employees graduated from the program.

Introduced in the spring of 1999, CMP addresses the needs of supervisors and managers in the EAS Level 15–22 range. In 2002, more than 25 offerings were completed for 555 EAS employees. There are three entry points or tracks representing initial and advanced supervisory skills and management development. Participants complete an assessment based on the leadership competency model to determine their appropriate entry point into the program. Currently the program consists of one week of classroom instruction for each track. In addition, functional/technical training is available for delivery and mail processing supervisors. Several other functions have functional/technical curricula already in place for supervisors.

The Processing and Distribution Management program focuses on the core operational aspects of the plant manager position. The course has been structured to touch all functional areas, and to provide reference materials and tools to the plant manager candidate. The course is a combination of classroom lecture, real world examples, and the application of learning through projects and on-the-job instruction (OJI). The course material provides an overview of basic mail processing operations, performance expectations, and support functions that directly support plant performance. The participant receives a macro view of facility operations and planning, expands knowledge of support functions, and develops a strategic plan for change. The week of OJI involves visiting a designated trainer plant manager. It allows the participant to visit a processing and distribution center, a bulk mail center, and an airport mail center. Individuals identified on performance cluster succession plans for the positions of manager, Processing and Distribution Facility, EAS-23; manager, Processing and Distribution Center, EAS-25; and manager, Processing and Distribution Center PCES-1 (small) are eligible to attend. Two classes were held in 2002, with 56 participants. A total of 175 individuals have completed the program since it started in 2001.

The ALP began in 1998 and has served as the Postal Service's premiere leadership development initiative since its inception. The program is targeted at successful mid-level managers, typically EAS-22 and above, who demonstrate high potential to take on roles of greater responsibility within the organization. ALP's curriculum is aligned with the Postal Service's Executive Competency Model, which identifies 31 critical competencies needed by senior managers and executives to ensure high on-the-job performance. ALP is comprised of both a four-week, classroom-based curriculum, as well as a mandatory requirement of 15 college credits.

To date, over 2,000 participants have begun the program and 741 have completed all requirements for program graduation. ALP was featured in Training Magazine (January 2002) and was recognized as a W. Edward Deming award finalist by the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) Graduate School. ALP has also been accredited by the American Council on Education and qualifies participants completing the classroom portion of the program to 12 undergraduate college credit hours.


b. Technical and Craft Education

The National Center for Employee Development (NCED) exceeded the goal of having program revenues exceed expenses. Controlled seat management, revenue-building efforts, and a curriculum expanded beyond traditional technical courses supported this success in the Center's mandate to become more self-sufficient.

The Center continued to charge postal clients by journal voucher, and increased efforts to attract non-Postal Service conference and training clients. Through stringent cost control, NCED held administrative costs to nearly $1 million below budget. Intensive revenue efforts generated $2 million from non-Postal Service customers, marking significant progress toward the goal of increased financial self-sufficiency.

The NCED provided critical support to the Postal Service’s core business and employee development. The Center delivered automation and motor vehicle maintenance and operations courses on major Postal Service systems and equipment, plus environmental compliance and automation management programs. Offerings continued for technical and administrative courses for postal supervisors, and programs such as elevator maintenance and natural-gas vehicles for non-Postal Service clients. Staff conducted 250 courses, in 2,665 class offerings, for 47,965 people, a 25 percent increase over 2001 students.

The Oklahoma Center transmitted over 3,570 hours of Postal Satellite Training Network (PSTN) programming in 2002. NCED originated over 1,730 broadcast hours of course and technical information; and transmitted an additional 1,830 broadcast hours that originated elsewhere, including the Business and Management Channel, the Center for Leadership Development, USPS-TV, and Southeast Area programs. Using both PSTN and the Postal Audio Training Network (PATN), NCED delivered 22 distance-learning courses to 13,485 employees in their home offices.

NCED enhanced the web-based Automated Enrollment System (AES), which may be accessed through Employee Development's Knowledge Learning Center, to allow Postal Service employees nationwide to view course information without a logon ID. This increased the AES user base from about 3,000 employees, to all employees with access to the Postal Service Intranet. The AES learning modules not only collect postal training requests and provide extensive reports, but electronically manage seat allocations, enrollment, student records, and e-learning courses. Administrative modules support NCED budget tracking, revenue collection, housing occupancy, and conference space management.

FY 2002 Major NCED Accomplishments: Postal Education and Expanding NCED's Client Base

NCED continued its major mission of supporting the Postal Service’s core business through technical education and employee development. A secondary mission is to grow the Center's training client base outside of the Postal Service. Examples of 2002 accomplishments include:

• Developed and delivered new foundational courses. Examples include 10 total offerings of Fundamental Maintenance Skills and Hydraulics and Pneumatics. Foundational courses will help the Postal Service grow skilled labor from within the organization, and increase NCED's potential to attract external training customers.
• Developed a new Sort Program System course and delivered nine offerings, further expanding NCED's Postal Service audience beyond maintenance to operations and in-plant support.
• Developed the new Flats Interim Remote Encoding System course for the automated flat sorting machine (AFSM) 100, and delivered 10 offerings. The course provides another interim phase for the future Universal Coding System.
• Supported national Breakthrough Performance Initiatives (BPI) by providing field courses for Advanced Facer Canceller System (AFCS), delivery barcode sorter feeder alignments, and system optimization. Several courses on managing automation contributed to improved field automation operations, efficiency, cross-functional teamwork, and unit productivity.
• Renovated an entire training wing and installed two more AFSM 100s late in 2002 to incorporate electronics technician courses from the vendor.
• Delivered simultaneous classes on two shifts to educate 612 mechanics and 72 electronics technicians in just three months.
• Moving AFSM 100 technical courses to NCED saved field offices about $1,000 per student in travel and lodging costs, and the Postal Service also avoided spending additional capital monies to fund the vendor-delivered course.
• NCED also developed an update training video for previously trained technicians, saving offices even more travel and training costs.
• Renovated leased training space and assumed courses for the modified flat sorting machine 1000, now called the universal flat sorting machine (UFSM) 1000 with automated flats feeder and optical character reader (OCR).
• Delivered PSTN courses to prepare field sites to accept the machine modifications. Also delivered train-the-trainer programs for operations personnel. NCED altered maintenance program schedules to conduct operations courses on Friday afternoons and Saturday, which made for more efficient scheduling of the equipment and space.
• Produced a PSTN segment on the updated small parcel and bundle sorter (SPBS) with the PC-104 operating system modification. The broadcast was taped and copies were offered to new employees at field sites.
• Delivered several courses to field offices for national projects including Signode and Mosca Banders, Automated Airline Assignment, Automatic Tray Sleever, and Semi-Automated Scan Where You Band.
• Developed and delivered the Energy Auditing and Conservation course for facility managers. Program instructs facility managers how to conduct energy audits, maximize energy conservation and reduce operating costs. This course has potential to attract external clients.
• Developed and delivered 11 offerings of Vehicle Maintenance Office Skills course for 100 vehicle maintenance employees. This course will enhance the computer skills for vehicle maintenance personnel, to insure accurate reporting of operations information.
• Assumed responsibility for the Performance Maintenance Management 2000 program from the Maintenance Technical Support Center. This ongoing program will increase NCED revenue and aid in training materials development.
• Trained 56 new supervisors in ASP offerings at NCED, which provides management skills for newly appointed supervisors.
• Revised and delivered the Postmaster 18 course to 30 new postmasters on day-to-day operations and responsibilities.
• Developed and delivered a training program on On-Board Diagnostics II to support new mail delivery vehicles. This program will also be marketed to nonpostal automotive clients.
• Developed and delivered a training program on the National Electrical Code (NEC) for postal electricians. Pilot sessions were successful, and the program will be offered to outside organizations requiring NEC update training.
• Conducted 30 Environmental Safety and Health programs referencing federal, state, and postal regulatory compliance. Courses included hazard communications; hazard waste operations and emergency response; Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) general industry overview and a seven-module core safety curriculum leading to the Occupational Safety and Health Technician (OSHT) certification; asbestos management; pollution prevention; clean water and indoor air quality; hazardous waste management and release reporting.
• Participated in the Integrated Logistic Support Plan (ILSP) process, contributing to the efficient and cost-effective support of over 20 new and evolving national equipment systems. Efforts will continue into 2003.
• New ILSP projects included the AFCS—Video Facer Modification, AFCS Ink Jet Cancellation, three AFSM 100 modifications (secondary address reader, automated tray handling system, and feeder enhancement), Ventilation Filtration System, Biohazard Detection System, and the AFCS—Doubles Detector.
• Continued support to evolving ILSP systems including: Delivery Bar Code Sorter (DBCS)—Expanded Capability, Postal Automated Redirection System (PARS), Flat Bundle Collator, Automated Parcel Processing System (APPS), Enhanced Plant Wiring, Information-Based Indicia (IBI) Program, wide field of view, multiline optical character reader (MLOCR)/Mail Processing Bar Code Sorter Replacement, UFSM 1000, and Singulate Scan and Induction Unit.

Expanding Information Technology Programs

NCED continued to expand its information technology (IT) curriculum and client base. Accomplishments include the following:

• Established a partnership with KnowledgeNet and offered web-based e-learning courses on office productivity and electronics technician/information technology to the entire Postal Service.
• Established a partnership with Microsoft and became a certified CompTIA and CTECH training facility. Staff completed high-end Cisco Systems security certifications and set up a security classroom. These partnerships and certifications give NCED status within the IT community as a provider of industry standard courses.
• Developed and delivered Microsoft engineering-level courses, including Maintaining Cisco Routed Networks (MCRN), CompTIA NET+, and Building Industry Consulting Service International (BICSI) telecommunication cabling courses.
• Developed and delivered Microsoft Outlook software courses and other programs supporting the Postal Service's migration to the Advanced Computing Environment (ACE). This is a major initiative for the computer and networking infrastructure of the Postal Service. Courses will continue into 2003.
• Provided IT training to customers from the University of Oklahoma, Oklahoma Department of Human Services, Oklahoma Gas and Electric, and Lucent Technologies. Also developed and delivered a Cisco “capstone” program for Oklahoma vocational technology centers.

NCED Revenue Generation

In 2002, the Center booked 205,250 total housing room nights, of which 17,800 were conferees. NCED training and conference business remained strong despite cancellations after the terrorist attacks on September 11, 2001.

• Training efforts for Postal Service clients included technical and computer courses, plus offerings on business mail, safety, OSHA, and management. Non-Postal Service clients paid $157,300 for courses in information technology, elevator maintenance, natural gas vehicles, and building systems.
• Conference services were provided for Postal Service and external clients. Events ranged from small banquets, to meetings and retreats, to large conferences for 600 attendees. Postal Service conference topics included delivery/retail standardization, achieving service excellence, and engineering training. Major non-Postal Service clients included AFLAC, ConocoPhillips, North American Retail Dealers Association, Oklahoma University, Hitachi, Sonic Corporation, ABC Sports, and the National Severe Weather Service. The University of Oklahoma football team returned to hold planning retreats the night before each home football game.

c. W.F. Bolger Center for Leadership Development

The events of September 11, 2001, and the subsequent anthrax attacks resulted in an initial decline in business, the Bolger Center managed to stay ahead of last year’s goals. Working with the contract marketing and sales staff, the William F. Bolger Center for Leadership Development set aggressive goals to capture new business from the external market. Rates to external customers were repositioned to maximize revenue and increase profitability while continuing to show customers value for accommodations and services.

The Center generated $7 million in revenue from non-Postal Service customers, an increase of $3 million over 2001. Approximately 35,000 people passed through the Center resulting in a total of 61,546 room nights. Some of the Center’s largest repeat customers included Lockheed Martin, SAIC (Science Applications International Corporation), WESTED, Department of Veterans Affairs, George Washington University, Head Start, and the U.S. Navy and U.S. Marine Corps.

Since Bolger Center serves as the Continuity of Operations Plan (COOP) site for Postal Service Headquarters, several initiatives were begun to update facilities and improve emergency preparedness. Communications and computer networks were upgraded and specific work spaces were designated for the Postmaster General and other key officers in the event of a national emergency.

Fifty-three ALP groups have completed the first phase of the program. Forty-eight of these groups have completed Phase II. Also, 291 ALP participants submitted certificate of completion forms with official transcripts, signaling their completion of all program requirements for the November 14, 2002 graduation.

The Processing and Distribution Management course, introduced in 2001 to focus on the core aspects of the plant manager position, continued with fewer offerings. Only two classes were held in 2002, with 57 participants completing the course.

Two new courses were introduced at the Center during the past year. Both courses are titled Principles of Project Management. Each course presents proven techniques in the context of the project manager’s responsibilities for definition, planning control, and leadership. The four-day course requires that each participant bring a project to class for practical application. The three-day class does not. The last day of each course consists of training for Microsoft Project 98 software. The courses were introduced in July. There were two offerings of the 3-day course and one offering of the 4-day course for a total of 58 participants.

The Media Unit produced 45 PSTN broadcasts, or more than 90 hours of airtime. These PSTN broadcasts were produced for several Headquarters clients, including Pricing and Classification, Address Management, Sales, and Operations. Among these were a series of informational PSTN broadcasts dealing with rate change impacts on operations, retail, and mailpiece design. Twenty videos were produced for the following internal clients: Environmental Management, Inspection Service, and Employee Resource Management. The Media Unit also produced the first in a series of 30-second promotional spots for the Employee Assistance Program. They will be played over USPS-TV to raise employee awareness and participation in the services provided through EAP.