INTRODUCTION

The Strategic Transformation Plan, 2006–2010 continues to be the Postal Service's roadmap for the future, even with passage of postal legislation. As long as its basic mission is in place — to provide high-quality, affordable, universal service — the Postal Service's essential challenges remain. It must continue to design and deliver products that meet customer needs. It must reduce costs to keep products affordable and competitive. Service must be consistent, reliable, and convenient. And to assure success, postal employees and mailing industry partners must be fully engaged in the process.

This document is a report on progress against key Transformation strategies during Fiscal Year 2006, the first year of the new Plan. It is organized around the four strategic goals — generate revenue, reduce cost, improve service, and achieve results. The chapter sequence has been modified from the original Plan. The goal of Achieving Results with a Customer-Focused, Performance-Based Culture is now the concluding chapter since it contains strategies to support the delivery of results against all of the other three goals.

A few initiatives described briefly in the Plan are covered more fully in this report. An example is the strategy to reduce undeliverable-as-addressed mail, which was developed in more detail during the year. Many strategies, such as plans to make mail more visible from production to delivery, are discussed in multiple places because they impact multiple goals.

A section on Corporate Responsibility has been added to the Improve Service chapter. This is not a new strategy. Sustaining its obligations to the nation is core to Postal Service values. Service is not merely getting the mail delivered on time. It also includes other dimensions such as community involvement, safety and security, energy conservation, and the adoption of environmentally-friendly practices.

The focus of this report is strategy and strategic actions. Details on specific programs and performance, including information required by the Government Performance and Results Act, may be found in the 2006 Comprehensive Statement on Postal Operations, to be published in February 2007.