The Bolger Center Media Unit produced 28 Postal Service Television Network (PSTN) broadcasts, airing more than 40 hours of programming aimed at postal managers in Address Management, Sales, Marketing, Business Mail Acceptance, and Employee Resource Management. The Media Unit also partnered with USPS-TV to broadcast a bi-monthly COO Update. This series provides a corporate perspective for postal managers by presenting up-to-the-minute service, financial, and business information as well as interviews with customers and postal executives. The Media Unit expanded this partnership with USPS-TV to produce the Chief Marketing Officer's program, titled MarketPlace. The unit also produced 35 video productions, six of which won prestigious Videographer, Telly and Communicator awards for production excellence.

i. Succession Planning

Corporate Succession Planning is an automated process to identify, develop, and maintain a pool of well-prepared potential successors.

2004 marks the first time that succession planning has been automated, from application submissions to successor selection, to monitoring Individual Development Plan activities. In total 1,417 employees were identified as potential successors to the approximately 800 executive positions. More than 29 percent of successors are minorities, an increase of nearly 16 percent above the former program.

j. Postal Career Executive Service

There were approximately 800 individuals in the Postal Career Executive Service (PCES) ranks at the close of 2004. There were 41 PCES-II officers in the Postal Service at the end of the year. During 2004 the New Executive Orientation training program was launched for all new PCES. This program trained 65 new PCES to incorporate the Postal Service's strategic direction, to integrate cross-functional information, and to establish a support network.

2. Diversity

a. General

Diversity Development plays a major role in helping the Postal Service face the challenge of continuing to grow the business and of developing new technology while rapid changes in demographics, attitudes, and economics reshape society. In 2004 Fortune magazine ranked the Postal Service number 6 in their annual analysis of the "50 Best Companies for Minorities."

The Postal Service will continue to focus on three principal strategies: investing in the workforce, strengthening succession planning, and building the business through the following initiatives:

• Ensure that there is representation of all groups at all levels.

• Achieve a harassment and discrimination free environment.

• Enhance workforce management.

• Strengthen customer and community relations.

b. National Diversity Recognition Program

Since 1996, the Postal Service National Awards Program for Diversity Achievement has recognized the outstanding achievements of individuals and teams that have encouraged and promoted diversity within the organization. Awards are given across five categories: Individual, Leadership, Team, Altruism, and the Dot Sharpe Lifetime Achievement Award. The newest award introduced in 2004, the Altruism award, provides an opportunity to honor and recognize the diversity achievements of employees outside the work environment. The 2004 program presented 25 awards, selected from among 512 nominations covering more than 900 employees.

c. Employment of Individuals with Disabilities

Individuals with targeted severe disabilities receive noncompetitive employment consideration through referrals from individual state departments of vocational rehabilitation or the Department of Veterans Affairs. In 2004 the Postal Service employed 43,223 career employees having disabilities, of which 6,379 had targeted severe disabilities.

In 2004 Equal Opportunity Publications Inc. ranked the Postal Service as one of the top 20 government agencies for individuals with disabilities, and the Postal Service received the outstanding employer award from Careers and the Disabled magazine.

Video Relay Service (VRS) and Video Remote Interpreting Service (VRIS) are in pilot testing. These initiatives will improve communications between deaf and hard-of-hearing employees and their supervisors and coworkers. National launch is planned for 2005.