Loretta Vaughn believes in the power of professional development.
Vaughn, who joined USPS more than three decades ago, achieved a longtime goal last year when she became a Detroit District maintenance operations supervisor.
“I love my new job,” she says. “It was a long road to get here, but worth all the effort to have a career in the Postal Service.”
Vaughn started as a letter carrier, then became a custodian. She has worked in maintenance since then, taking advantage of training and networking opportunities as they became available.
It wasn’t always easy.
“There were challenges finding resources to help my career when I first started,” she says.
Today, the situation is much different: The organization offers career conferences, training and other development initiatives, part of a broader strategy to engage, equip and empower employees.
Vaughn recently completed the New Supervisor Program, a 16-week training initiative that helps participants become effective managers.
She also credits her success to finding mentors through African-American Postal Leaders United for Success (A-PLUS), an outside group.
“Every opportunity to network and learn more about the Postal Service helped me build confidence,” Vaughn says.
“Best practices,” a series on employees who demonstrate on-the-job excellence, appears regularly in Link.