ADVERTISEMENT

UPS’s David Abney on the Need for Speed

UPS’s David Abney on the Need for Speed

(Bloomberg Businessweek) -- In his more than four decades working at United Parcel Service Inc., David Abney has seen it morph from a simple package deliverer into a broader logistics house managing customers’ ever-growing need for speed.

● Started at UPS as a part-time package loader while in college
● Named chief executive officer in 2014
● On the boards of Macy’s and Catalyst, a corporate women’s advocacy program

It seems like every day there’s a story about companies trying to get packages faster to customers. Is that what the business has whittled down to—getting things there faster and cheaper?

Time is certainly key now, and this new generation has really gotten used to wanting things right away. The focus on next-day air, having things delivered the next day vs. a deferred method, that really is our focus.

Strategically, how much do you worry about Amazon? Are they a friend, an enemy, a frenemy, or a competitor? All of the above?

This world has gotten way more complicated than having someone labeled as a competitor or a customer. Oftentimes it’s a combination of both. You just have to accept that the key is making sure that we have mutually beneficial relationships. And as long as we do, then that’s the path we are following. So I would not say that we worry about Amazon—we respect them just like we respect others that maybe are competitors in certain parts of our business. But if we stay focused on doing our job and implementing our transformation, then we feel very comfortable in our position.

What’s the biggest existential threat to UPS? The one you worry about the most?

Absolutely, it’s the pace of change. We are changing this company rapidly—especially compared to the past. The real hurdle, though, is we’ve got to change ahead of our customers.

Much of UPS culture revolves around people like yourself who’ve grown up within the company. But to keep up with today’s fast-changing business world, do you also have to bring in outside views and outside individuals?

I’m a big supporter of promotion from within. It’s a real strength of our company, the way we know our business. At the same time, we do need other expertise and other perspectives and points of view. That’s why, of our 12-person management committee, I have brought three people in from the outside. I’m also promoting UPSers. But we need that mix, that hybrid view that gets us the best of both worlds.

● Listen to Bloomberg Businessweek With Carol Massar and Jason Kelly, weekdays at 2 p.m. – 5 p.m. ET on Bloomberg Radio

To contact the editor responsible for this story: James Ellis at jellis27@bloomberg.net

©2019 Bloomberg L.P.