Careers at Deutsche Post

Mission

Deutsche Post aims to provide fast and efficient package delivery services, as well as effective supply chain solutions, to an international client base of consumers, commercial enterprises, and industrial companies.

Business segments

Deutsche Post’s operations are organised into four separate reportable segments:

  • Post – eCommerce – Parcel, which provides delivery services to private and business customers, including the delivery of physical, hybrid and electronic letters and merchandise, and special services such as cash on delivery, registered mail and insured items;
  • Express, which provides door-to-door, on-time transport of urgent documents and goods to customers across 220 countries and territories worldwide;
  • Global Forwarding and Freight, which provides air, ocean and overland freight transport services; and
  • Supply Chain, which provides supply chain services and customised logistics solutions.

History

Deutsche Post was established in 1995, following the privatisation of Deutsche Bundespost under the second postal reform. The Company’s predecessor was officially founded in 1950, but as the national postal service traced its history as far back as 1490, when Franz von Taxis established the modern postal system in Germany.

Deutsche Post has expanded significantly since its creation, in part through a series of acquisitions, including those of Dutch distribution company Van Gend and Loos and of Swiss distribution company Danzas. The Company’s most significant acquisition, however, was its acquisition of US logistics provider DHL. In 2003 Deutsche Post merged the operations of Danzas, Gend and Loss, and Airborne Express and its own EuroExpress into DHL, forming DHL Express, which continues to be a key unit of the Company.

Deutsche Post is today reported to operate the largest package delivery and logistics business in the world, reaching customers across 220 countries worldwide. It is ranked 228th in the Forbes Global 2000 list. The Company’s shares are traded on the Börse Frankfurt. It has a current market capitalisation of €33.61 billion.

Business model of Deutsche Post

Customer Segments

Deutsche Post provides a range of services to private and commercial customers. It serves general consumers with various delivery and distribution services. The Company also serves small, medium, and large business customers across the following sectors with delivery and supply chain services:

  • Retail, which accounted in 2015 for around 25% of the Company’s supply chain revenue;
  • Consumer, which accounted in 2015 for around 21% of the Company’s supply chain revenue;
  • Life Sciences and Healthcare, which accounted in 2015 for around 18% of the Company’s supply chain revenue;
  • Automotive, which accounted in 2015 for around 12% of the Company’s supply chain revenue;
  • Technology, which accounted in 2015 for around 10% of the Company’s supply chain revenue;
  • Engineering and Manufacturing, which accounted in 2015 for around 4% of the Company’s supply chain revenue;
  • Financial Services, Others, which accounted in 2015 for around 3% of the Company’s supply chain revenue;

Deutsche Post provides services primarily to customers in its native Germany, as well as to international customers across the world.

Value Propositions

Deutsche Post provides value to its customers in the following ways:

  • Its reputation as a reliable and efficient provider of delivery services, with the Company an established and well-regarded name within its industry, having a track record for providing on-time deliveries and effective supply chain solutions;
  • Its global reach, with the Company able to reach customers in more than 220 countries and territories worldwide, as well as providing extensive domestic services;
  • Its accessibility and ease of use, with the Company providing a range of services and functionality that can be accessed online or via mobile devices;
  • Its broad portfolio of services, with the Company providing a wide spectrum of services designed for general consumers, and commercial customers across multiple business sectors; and
  • Its customer-focused business practices, with the Company working closely with customers to ensure their needs are met.

Channels

Deutsche post operates a website at www.dpdhl.com through which it provides information on its products, services, rates, and structure. The Company also operates an online channel at www.deutschepost.de, which enables customers to purchase various products, manage accounts and track orders. Deutsche Post offers similar functionality through its mobile app, which is available on iOS, Android, and Windows Phone systems.

Deutsche operates a broad domestic network of physical outlets and service centres, through which its workforce of couriers, package handlers and customer service staff provide services directly. This includes numerous paketshops, packstations, retail outlets, parcel centres, mail centres and sales points.

Deutsche Post also provides more complex commercial services to customers directly through staff located in its offices across around the world. The Company additionally utilises a network of third-party service providers, which provide services on the Company’s behalf jurisdictions. This includes partner-operated retail outlets and independent agents.

Customer Relationships

Deutsche Post provides a range of services to its customers on a self-service basis through its online and mobile channels. These channels allow customers to make purchase, track deliveries, and manage their customer accounts without interacting directly with the members of the Company’s staff.

Much of Deutsche Post’s services are provided in-person through its physical outlets, where company representatives can provide a more tailored, personal service. More complex commercial services are also provided through the Company’s direct sales and relationship management staff, who work closely with customers, with a view to establishing lasting relationships.

Deutsche Post provides ongoing support services to its customers, offering a range of resources – including guides, FAQs, and shipping information – through its website. The Company also has customer support staff on-hand to respond personally to enquiries and complaints, who can be contacted over the phone. Additionally, Deutsche Post operates social media accounts with Facebook, Twitter, and YouTube, through which it can interact directly with customers.

Key Activities

Deutsche is a Germany-based logistics and package delivery services provider. The Company’s activities are organised into four principal operating divisions: Post – eCommerce – Parcel, which comprises the transport and delivery of letters and packages, and the operation of the Company’s online services; Express, which offers international and domestic courier and express services to business and private customers; Global Forwarding and Freight, which provides rail, road, air and sea transportation of commercial goods; and Supply Chain, which provides contract logistics, warehousing and transport services, as well as services along the entire supply chain.

Key Partners

Deutsche Post collaborates with numerous partners throughout the process of delivering its logistics and supply chains solutions. These partners include:

  • Vendor and Supplier Partners, comprising various suppliers of services, technology and tools that help to support the Company’s own suite of services, and vendors to which certain functions can be outsourced;
  • Distribution and Delivery Partners, comprising partner outlets and independent agents that provide services on the Company’s behalf in jurisdictions where it is not itself well-represented; and
  • Strategic and Alliance Partners, comprising a range of companies with which the Company collaborates on various joint projects, and shares certain resources.

Deutsche Post also has a number of corporate social responsibility and community partners. This includes recent partnerships with SOS Children’s Villages, with which it collaborates on the Go Teach program, and with Teach For All, with which it works on projects seeking to improve education and expanding educational opportunities worldwide.

Key Resources

Deutsche Post’s key resources are its physical distribution and sales infrastructure, its fleet of ground, air, and sea vehicles; its communications and technology infrastructure, its partnerships, and its personnel.

Deutsche Post operates a significant network of service and packaging centres, on which its operations are dependent. This includes 11,000 paketshops, 13,000 retail outlets, 110,000 post boxes, 2,750 packstations, 3,400 sales points, 82 mail centres, 33 parcel centres, and around 1,000 paketboxes across Germany.

Cost Structure

Deutsche Post incurs costs in relation to the operation and maintenance of its physical infrastructure, the management and maintenance of its transport fleet, the purchase of fuel, the maintenance of its technology and communications infrastructure, the management of its partnerships, and the retention of its personnel.

In 2015 Deutsche Post accrued materials costs, including the purchase of supplies such as fuel, in the amount of €33.17 billion, the Company’s most substantial expense. The Company also accrued significant personnel costs, including the payment of salaries and benefits to its workforce of 497,745 employees, totalling €19.64 billion. The Company’s procurement costs, which relate to its procurement of various services and products, amounted to €10.70 billion for the year.

Revenue Streams

Deutsche Post generates revenue through the provision of various logistics, package delivery, and supply chain services to consumers, commercial entities, and industrial companies. The Company derives its revenue from the sale of its services, as well as the collection associated fees.

In 2015 Deutsche Post generated €59.23 billion in annual revenue, up on the €56.63 billion recorded by the Company in 2014. The Company attributed this increase to positive currency effects, growth in its Post – eCommerce – Parcel and Express divisions. The Company’s revenue is distributed relatively evenly across its four operating segments. Its Post – eCommerce – Parcel segment, however, was the Company’s largest revenue generator in 2015, recording €15.69 billion for the year. This was followed by the Global Forwarding and Freight segment, and then the Supply Chain segment, with the Express segment generating the lowest portion of revenue, with €12.49 billion.

Our team

Frank Appel,
Chief Executive Officer

info: Frank (“Appel”) has served as Chief Executive Officer at Deutsche post since 2008. He first joined the Company in 2000 as Managing Director of Corporate Development, going on to be appointed to the Company’s Management Board in 2002. Prior to joining Deutsche Post, Appel was employed for around seven years by McKinsey and Company. He first joined McKinsey and Company in 1993 as a consultant and project manager, but was elected as partner of the firm in 1999. Appel holds a master’s degree in Chemistry from the University of Munich, as well as a PhD in Neurology from the Swiss Federal Institute of Technology.

Lawrence Rosen,
Board Member and Chief Financial Officer

info: Lawrence (“Rosen”) has served as Chief Financial Officer at Deutsche Post since 2009, when he joined the Company as a member of its Management Board. Rosen began his career in 1981 at Republic Steel Corporation. After three years he moved to American Hoechst/Hoechst Celanese Inc (predecessor companies of what is now Aventis), where he served in a variety of roles. He continued to work for the company following its transformation into Aventis, but in 2003 joined Fresenius Medical Care, where he worked until joining Deutsche Post. Rosen holds a master’s degree in Business Administration from the University of Michigan, and a bachelor’s degree in Business Administration from the University of New York.

Ken Allen,
Board Member and Chief Executive Officer of Deutsche Express

info: Ken (“Allen”) has served as Chief Executive Officer of Deutsche Express since 2009, when he also joined the Company’s Management Board. Allen first joined Deutsche Post in 2004, following a spell at DHL Express. He held several roles, including President of Deutsche Post DHL Express Canada and Chief Executive Officer of Deutsche Post DHL Express USA, before assuming his current role. Allen began his career in 1972, holding a variety of positions in several UK-based manufacturing companies. He joined International Catering and Hotel Company in 1982, where h stayed for three years before joining DHL Express in 1985, for a number of years taking responsibility for the operations of DHL Express Middle East.