USPS W-I-P APPEAL

by Ronald Williams, Jr

The diagram below embodies intelligent postal employees represented by distinct dots on a huge white canvas. The other thing the dots could symbolize is individuals doing their own thing, caught up in the value of individualism. There is no influence in that! A group of employees could all stand around at the time clock waiting to clock in, then, they disperse to different operations. There’s nothing wrong with dispersion, and it doesn’t mean employees have to be disconnected. The USPS team is helpless in disconnection. Focusing on connecting the dots at all levels of direct reports is where the real power is! Whether expressed by a dot at the bottom, the top, the middle, or on the side. When folks connect with like minds, good communication, and best practices, we prevent competitors from disrupting everything we are trying to build for an incredible United States Postal Service. Instead of a few employees doing a lot, we need all souls doing a little.

My thoughts about employee rules of engagement travel like Tomahawk Missiles, but surely don’t garner the respect of a big bang theory. They are simple observations reflecting current situations, work conditions, and dreams of positive interaction with a workforce culture of engagement.

Employee Surveys

You don’t see what I see, and you don’t hear what I hear. Goal of surveys is not to get a good report card. Surveys get insight, and break the code of silence to communicate the needs in the workplace. Sooner or later USPS surveys will ask about the metrics associated with injury compensation, bullying, stress in the workplace, and absenteeism. What about engagement after surveys? Where’s the follow up? No follow up, no shared accountability, then no need to do a survey in the first place. Many employees already tout honorary degrees in workroom floor psychology, matriculated by low participation USPS Voice of the Employee probes that don’t support, respect, or appreciate open-ended feedback. Where are the questions about how to put more quality, affordability, and accessibility into the products and services by the people doing the work?

Performance Management

Recognizes that one bad apple can spoil the whole bunch. It’s the work system, and setting in which people are enabled to perform to the best of their abilities. It involves sound communication, and important people relationship issues inside USPS. Managers are under the influence if they believe they would be successful without the contribution of the people supervised, and processes properly handled. Regular evaluations for employee feedback will help bosses understand the values, beliefs, and ability levels of each employee. Disengaged employees unwillingly follow their only source of light (paycheck) and do just enough to get by. They are less likely to leave the company, and continue to poison the environment. Unless everyone is held accountable, negative engagement is likely to fester throughout the ranks.

Employee involvement is a method lacking sincere management participation. Quality of Working Life (QWL) circles, and teams involve people who work in the different process areas sharing ideas to solve problems and discuss opportunities to achieve solid business results. Lean Six Sigma might be described as a journey for businesses committed to improving productivity and profitability, but, at USPS, it is mostly planned by the ranks of management leaving out the frontline employee, a critical component of the karate tactics. In that case, might as well define the LSS acronym as Lean Sick Sigma. Implementing Lean concepts in mail processing without continuous preventative maintenance support, and good communication among bosses to reduce cycle times will not increase efficiency, or reduce waste. Without buy in from a majority of employees these business principles will never become institutionalized to stand the test of time.

Strategy talk from the bored-room with a hodgepodge of terms referencing service up, cost down, develop our people, process improvement, lead time, value added, benchmarks, and best practices are empty buzzwords, and phrases not backed up by togetherness on the workroom floor. All new management fads must put priorities and goals at the center of the program, and then decide the best method for inspiring people to focus on beneficial achievements.

The Work-In-Process (W-I-P)

Signifies the work not yet completed, including phone calls, emails, letters to congress, rallies, postal investigations, inspector general inquiries, grievances, equal employment opportunity complaints, outside assistance, and mounds of other unshared facts about the health of the organization. We need a champion who will pick the right projects, engage those who want to be involved in improvement, and training. Performance management is about finding ways to challenge the interests of all employees. The designated big kahuna from the C-suite could roundtable a task force assembled from craft, managers, inspector general, postal inspector, employee assistance program, unions, and management associations, then get to work on process action.

USPS will find talent in unlikely places through employee engagement. When the personnel are afforded two-way communication to complete the feedback loop, craft and management, will better understand the impacts on the job, and connect it to profitability, and morale. Time to fix whatever needs fixing deep inside liteblue, then spin, and construct the perfect spider web resilient enough to take down the biggest competitor.

Ronald Williams, Jr.

Check out another article about changing the USPS workplace.