Tea leaves, crystal balls, palm readings: There are lots of ways to try to predict the future . . . and most of them are useless. Still, careful examination of measurable indicators — and a little imagination — can yield some clues as to what may lie ahead. That’s good news for the U.S. Postal Service, because if there’s anything that faces an uncertain future right now, it’s the nearly 240-year-old institution that delivers your mail every day.
You can’t cut your way to prosperity. That seems to be the message coming out of many of the comments we received on our recent blog about the next phase of network consolidation. So, if cutting alone isn’t the answer, what are your ideas for revenue growth?
Say you’re about to drive off for vacation in less than 48 hours, but you suddenly realize your license has expired. The nearest DMV office is 15 miles away, the waiting line probably just as long, and there’s just too much else to do to get ready. But imagine now that you can go to your local Post Office, which can handle the renewal right there and then.
Who doesn’t like finding a package they ordered online on their doorstep at an unexpected time, like, say, late in the evening just before you turn out the porch light for the night?
Consumers have come to expect quick delivery of parcels, often at odd hours of the day. This new paradigm...
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You’ve probably heard that the U.S. Postal Service has the nation’s biggest retail network, with more than 30,000 post offices — about as many nationwide locations as McDonald’s, Starbucks, and Walmart combined. Just what does that mean in terms of customer visits, though?
We were curious...
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Imagine if Hollywood decided to remake the 1978 cult classic Convoy. Instead of a hunky actor behind the wheel of the lead truck, you’d have a driverless vehicle rolling this trucking convoy across the U.S.A.
That’s the future of delivery and transportation, as many see it....
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In fiscal year 2017, we estimate the U.S. Postal Service will spend about $5.0 billion on surface transportation. The Postal Service’s Scanning Visibility (SV) program is used to track mail within the surface transportation network. Postal Service personnel scan the mail about 6 times; while...
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The objective of this project is to determine if using automation tools would improve the efficiency and accuracy of checklist data collection, completion tracking, and issue resolution in the Capital Metro Area.
Automated control activities tend to be more reliable because they are less...
The Postal Service generates thousands of tons of solid waste every month. Contractors are paid to pick up and haul the waste to landfills, where the facility operators impose additional charges. Recycling is aimed at diverting a substantial portion of the solid waste stream from the landfills...
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