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Today 's Competitive Postal Service

Decent Essays

Running Head: Today’s Competitive Postal Service 2 The United States Postal Service began operations in 1971 following the passing of the Postal Reorganization Act of 1970. In the decades that have followed, the Postal Service has tried to remain relevant in a competitive business environment. In order to be successful at this, a revamping of the agency was necessary in order to keep up with advances in technology used by business and individuals, and to address an overall change in the public attitude regarding “old-fashioned” mail services. This transformation of the Postal Service has been successful because of progressive management and effective leadership. Management and leadership are not the same thing, however they are interrelated and complementary. Shafritz, Russell and Borick (2010, pp. 361-362) state, “Leadership is the exercise of authority, whether formal or informal in directing and coordinating the work of others. Management involves power (usually formal authority) …with the power of management comes responsibility and accountability for the use of organizational resources.” In order be transformed, the Postal Service needed to implement new management ideas combined with the pioneering concepts of new leadership. The power and authority to implement new ideas and provide innovative leadership is held by the 11-member Board of Governors of the Postal Service. According to The United States Postal Service website, “As

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