UPS is thinking outside the box - Louisville Business First
There seem to be two primary drivers at UPS these days. The Covid-19 pandemic. And a new CEO. Both came on the scene at about the same time last year. In March, the World Health Organization declared the novel coronavirus a global pandemic. That same month the United Parcel Service Inc. board of directors announced Carol Tomé would be the company’s next CEO effective June 1. The announcement marked a departure from UPS’ typical practice. Its three previous CEOs were promoted from within the company.
Despite having spent 24 years at the Home Depot, most recently as its CFO, Tomé is no stranger to Big Brown. Having served on the Atlanta-based logistic giant’s board of directors since 2003, Tomé is somewhat of a hybrid or “someone that is a bit of an inside outsider,” said Jane Stevenson, vice chair of board and CEO services at Korn Ferry. “In a situation where you have a defined culture, [a hybrid] might bridge the risk of bringing in a complete outsider while at the same time inserting some change,” she said. Tomé’s one-year tenure has brought several changes to a company that has traditionally been as low-key as its trademark color. “You definitely have a different tone coming out of the C-suite at UPS,” said Jack Atkins, a long-time transportation and logistics analyst and managing director at Stephens Research. “They’re clearly very focused on being, to borrow a line from [Tomé], ‘better not bigger,’” Atkins said. “You’ve seen them take actions on the revenue side and they decided to sell UPS Freight.”
There seem to be two primary drivers at UPS these days. The Covid-19 pandemic. And a new CEO. Both came on the scene at about the same time last year. In March, the World Health Organization declared the novel coronavirus a global pandemic. That same month the United Parcel Service Inc. board of directors announced Carol Tomé would be the company’s next CEO effective June 1. The announcement marked a departure from UPS’ typical practice. Its three previous CEOs were promoted from within the company.
Despite having spent 24 years at the Home Depot, most recently as its CFO, Tomé is no stranger to Big Brown. Having served on the Atlanta-based logistic giant’s board of directors since 2003, Tomé is somewhat of a hybrid or “someone that is a bit of an inside outsider,” said Jane Stevenson, vice chair of board and CEO services at Korn Ferry. “In a situation where you have a defined culture, [a hybrid] might bridge the risk of bringing in a complete outsider while at the same time inserting some change,” she said. Tomé’s one-year tenure has brought several changes to a company that has traditionally been as low-key as its trademark color. “You definitely have a different tone coming out of the C-suite at UPS,” said Jack Atkins, a long-time transportation and logistics analyst and managing director at Stephens Research. “They’re clearly very focused on being, to borrow a line from [Tomé], ‘better not bigger,’” Atkins said. “You’ve seen them take actions on the revenue side and they decided to sell UPS Freight.”
