The U.S. Postal Service is Officially in a Panic

In the lead sentence of his article on the Postal Service's proposed changes, Federal Times reporter Gregg Carstrom summarized the tenor of the Postal Service's presentation.   "The U.S. Postal Service is officially in a panic."

Having the core of the postal industry in a panic about how they are going to survive should unnerve every stakeholder regardless of whether they are a customer, supplier, or employee of the Postal Service. 

Customers with a panicky supplier have real incentive to seek alternatives.  Uncertainty about the future makes effort to seek alternatives to Postal Service delivered mail more attractive.  Even digital and mobile alternative appear less risky as a predictable future for the "known" delivery mode becomes less certain.

Suppliers with a panicky customer may choose to the cease being suppliers.  Working with a panicked customer is expensive as purchasing decisions become less certain and predictable.  Suppliers will shift their sales efforts to postal operators with a more clear vision of the future, a future that allows them to plan their sales and marketing efforts more easily than it would be if they tried to sell to the Postal Service.

Employees with a panicky employer may choose to seek employment in calmer environments.  A panicked employer finds it more difficult to have employees that are satisfied with their current job and career prospects.   The Postal Service will find it increasingly difficult to hold on to its best employees and find the most qualified people to replace them.

As the above brief paragraphs show, a panic has significant consequences.   The question now is who will calm the panic?