Daily printout: April 29

In his keynote address on April 28, Acting Postmaster General Doug Tulino spoke to more than 5,000 mailing and shipping professionals at the National Postal Forum in Nashville, TN.

He discussed the Postal Service’s progress in advancing its transformation and modernization strategies, improving service performance, the evolution of its products and services, and its 250-year legacy of supporting American commerce and communities.

“It is the mission of the Postal Service to bind the nation together and to meet America’s continually evolving mailing and shipping needs,” said Tulino. “The mission hasn’t changed, but we must continually renew and reinvent the institution to best serve that mission. That is exactly what we are doing today — and it’s exciting.”

Commenting on the Delivering for America plan, the 10-year transformation strategy begun in 2021, Tulino said: “After 44 years with the Postal Service, I can confidently say that the past four years have brought the most significant and necessary changes in our organization’s history. This transformation is about building a Postal Service that is more efficient, more capable and more competitive for the future.”

He also spoke about the Postal Service’s 250th anniversary, which is July 26.

“We have reached an important milestone this year: our 250th anniversary. The Postal Service, and this industry, plays an incredibly important role in the economy, in society and in the lives of every American. I am very optimistic about the prospects of this great institution,” he said.

The keynote address highlighted the Postal Service’s sweeping operational overhaul, including efforts to modernize its network, infrastructure and technology, and to launch new, market-driven products, such as USPS Ground Advantage.

Other major topics included:

• The efforts to improve on-time service performance;

• How the Postal Service is increasing efficiency of its middle-mile processing and logistics network;

• The business strategies driving the Postal Service’s market share gains in the package delivery business;

• Sales initiatives resulting in rapid expansion of negotiated service agreements with shippers; and

• The mail growth incentives and promotions that are spurring mail volume and delivering greater value for participants.

Other USPS executives who spoke during the keynote session included Dr. Joshua Colin, chief performance officer; Greg White, operations integration and performance excellence executive director; Steve Monteith, chief customer and marketing officer; Juan Nadal, strategic sales vice president; and Margaret Pepe, product solutions executive director.

The National Postal Forum — taking place April 27-30 — is an annual gathering of professionals from the mailing and shipping industry. Attendees are able to hear from USPS executives, attend classes and network.

The Postal Service dedicated its Powwows: Celebrating Native American Culture stamps at the Gathering of Nations in Albuquerque, NM, on April 25.

“The Postal Service takes great pride in our stamps and the unique opportunity they offer to tell the story of America. That’s why we’re thrilled to be a part of this celebration of Native American music, dance and culture,” said Steven Monteith, the Postal Service’s chief customer and marketing officer.

“We hope they inspire a deeper appreciation of Native American culture and influence for all who see them,” he said.

The four stamps feature paintings of dancers in traditional regalia at powwows, where Indigenous people gather to celebrate.

Monteith was joined by Antonio Alcalá, an art director for USPS who designed the stamps, and Mateo Romero, a Southern Keres Cochiti Pueblo tribal member who created the images used on the stamps.

“It’s a huge honor to be able to show the face of powwow culture to the world and take an art form like painting, with such historic ideas embedded in it, and transform it into a stamp,” Romero said.

Additional participants at the ceremony were Royale Dá, master of ceremonies and a KOAT-TV news anchor; the Native American Women Warriors honor guard; and Kansas Begaye, a Native American recording artist.

The stamps are available in panes of 20 at Post Offices and on usps.com.

Email us your feedback. Your comments could be included in our “Mail” column.