More than 65 hours of airtime was utilized to produce 39 Postal Service Television Network broadcasts, aired for the first time during the year related to Address Management, Sales, Law, Delivery and Retail, Business Mail Acceptance, and Employee Resource Management (ERM). The Media Unit also partnered with USPS-TV to broadcast a bi-monthly COO (chief operating officer) Update. This series features up-to-the-minute financial information along with interviews with postal managers and customers. The unit also produced 29 video productions, several of which won prestigious Videographer and Telly awards for production excellence. The media unit also partnered with Headquarters Marketing to produce a pilot video for the Postal Lobby Network.

Corporate Succession Planning (CSP) is a process for identifying and developing a pool of qualified EAS and Postal Career Executive Service (PCES) employees for future leadership positions. It is a process that is open, fair, inclusive, transparent, and standardized, yet highly competitive and performance-based. The CSP process addresses one of the Postal Service's key transformation challenges to develop and maintain a pool of well-prepared potential successors at all levels of the organization. In 2003, the Postal Service unveiled a new CSP process that is designed to effectively respond to future vacancies. Some of the new features include: self-nomination; automated Individual Development Plans; and a state-of-the-art leadership assessment and development tool.

There were 884 individuals in the PCES ranks at the close of 2003. Of this total, 753 individuals held PCES-I positions. The remainder (other than officers) served in EAS positions. There were 39 PCES-II officers in the Postal Service at the end of the year.

2. Diversity

a. General

The Postal Service must continue to grow the business and develop new technology while rapid changes in demographics, attitudes, and economics continue to reshape American society. The Postal Service adjusts to these changes so that it can continue to be a high-performing service provider that fully develops and capitalizes on its diverse human potential.

     The Postal Service is committed to ensuring that all employees, customers, and suppliers are respected, understood, and included. The Postal Service must be a learning organization, where diversity serves as a catalyst for greater innovation and exceptional levels of customer service and operational efficiency.

     The Postal Service will continue to focus on three principal strategies: investing in its workforce, strengthening succession planning, and building the business. In an effort to align its strategies with operations and effectively respond to the challenges posed by transformation imperatives, the Postal Service is focusing on the following initiatives:

• Ensure that there is representation of all groups at all levels. Ensure an inclusive workforce in leadership positions by building employee awareness of the availability of programs and incentives. Educate and motivate postal management to identify management candidates and encourage them to support their development.
• Achieve a harassment- and discrimination- free environment. Ensure the administration of a work climate that is fair and free from unlawful and inappropriate behavior.
• Enhance workforce management. Provide guidance in managing change and implementing organizational changes in the workforce.