E. TRAINING AND TECHNOLOGY

The Postal Service continues to provide eLearning to improve employee access to courses. Today, access to more than 300 courses is available to employees nationwide. The Postal Service contracts for off-the-shelf business programming to give training to all employees at their offices through the use of the Postal Satellite Training Network. Approximately 200 courses cover leadership, diversity, safety, customer service, and general business content. In 2005 enrollment for classes exceeded 450 thousand.

F. INTERN PROGRAMS

Approximately 2,600 Postal Service and non-Postal Service candidates applied to the management intern recruitment program in 2005. Currently, there are 63 active management interns in various stages of the program. Twenty-seven completed the 24-month program in May 2005, and in October an additional ten were outplaced into mid-level field operations positions, including several into the new Manager of Distribution Operations Trainee (EAS-21) position.

The Postal Service continued recruiting for additional professional specialist intern (PSI) positions in 2005. During this period three new professional specialist trainees (PSTs) were hired. There are currently seven PSIs in various stages of development. The Professional Specialist Trainee/Industrial Engineer (PSTIE) training program outplaced a total of 25 industrial engineer trainees to field industrial engineer (EAS-19) positions in July 2005. There are currently 49 active PSTIEs in various stages of development. This program exposes engineers to every facet of postal operations, preparing them to maximize the efficiency of the processing, distribution, and delivery of mail.

G. WILLIAM F. BOLGER CENTER FOR LEADERSHIP DEVELOPMENT

The William F. Bolger Center for Leadership Development serves as a principal postal training facility. Approximately 96,387 persons used the center in 2005, including 55,310 Postal Service employees who attended one or more management and leadership courses or meetings. The center continues to expand its postal training programs to promote quality and performance excellence. The facility also now serves as an annex to the National Postal Museum, part of the Smithsonian Institution.

The Bolger Center Media Unit produced programming for postal managers in Human Resources, Diversity Development, Engineering, Statistical Design, Finance, Inspection Service, Marketing, and Law. The Media Unit continued to partner with Public Affairs and Communications' USPS-TV to broadcast COO Update, a bi-monthly program with the Deputy Postmaster General and Chief Operating Officer, and MarketPlace, a program with the Chief Marketing Officer that focuses on products, services, and revenue generation efforts. The Media Unit also created 32 video productions, 13 of which won prestigious Videographer, Telly, and Communicator awards for production excellence.

H. CORPORATE SUCCESSION PLANNING

Corporate Succession Planning is an automated process to identify, develop, and maintain a pool of well-prepared successors to executive assignments. It operates on a 2-year cycle, during which employees identified as potential successors develop and pursue targeted individual development plans to strengthen their capabilities and better prepare them to assume executive level assignments. In 2005 the Postal Service launched the second open season for employees to apply for succession tools. For this cycle enhancements were made to help applicants make more informed decisions to target desired pools. The Postal Service also launched a comprehensive communications and training campaign to promote interest in the process.

I. POSTAL CAREER EXECUTIVE SERVICE

There were approximately 790 managers in the Postal Career Executive Service (PCES) at the close of 2005, including 39 officers. During 2005 approximately 60 newly-appointed executives participated in an Executive Orientation, which started in 2004. The orientation training program allows participants to hear from numerous officers, including the Postmaster General, about the various roles, responsibilities, and strategic alignment of each of the major functional groups at Headquarters. The focus is for new executives to understand what is expected of them and how their own functional areas integrate with others into the overall strategic vision of the Postal Service.

2. Diversity

A. GENERAL

The Postal Service is committed to the creation of a customer-focused, performance-based culture and acknowledges the essential role diversity has in achieving this goal. The Postal Service integrates diversity into all business practices to create and maintain an environment where employees have the opportunity to contribute ideas, seek challenges, and assume leadership roles. To accomplish this, the Postal Service is focusing on four areas:

• Supporting initiatives that provide development opportunities, recruit needed skills, retain the existing talent base, and prepare for the succession of leadership.
• Promoting performance by enhancing the ability of all employees to achieve their maximum potential.
• Strengthening customer and community relations.
• Fostering an environment that values an inclusive workplace and encourages diversity.