Carol B. Tomé, CEO of UPS, was the guest speaker at the Tech Talks Business session held on May 8 at UPS World Headquarters in Atlanta, Georgia.
Dean Anuj Mehrotra kicked off the discussion by asking Tomé about her journey to becoming the CEO of UPS. Raised in Wyoming, Tomé expressed an interest in banking early on and was in the industry for 11 years before her career took a different turn when she relocated to Atlanta.
In 2020, Tomé transitioned to UPS following a prosperous 24-year tenure at The Home Depot, where she was executive vice president and chief financial officer for 18 years. After her career with The Home Depot, she retired to her farm in northwest Georgia when she was asked to consider joining UPS as their CEO. When Arthur Blank, one of the company's co-founders, told her he'd give her every opportunity to reach her highest potential, she took the job.
In the first month of her new role, Covid-19 hit. Tomé faced the daunting challenge of keeping UPS running and protecting the company's 500,000 employees. Then, she faced the enormous challenge of delivering packages to those sheltering in place worldwide.
"In the second quarter of 2022, we hired 45,000 people just to keep the business running," she said.
Tomé discussed the importance of focusing on the purpose of a company and recounted how UPS came up with its purpose statement "Moving our world forward by delivering what matters." "I love this because it's not just about moving goods; it's about doing good," she said.
She acknowledges that the company is dedicated to creating sustainable business practices and said that it decreased its greenhouse gas emission by 8 percent in just one year, with the goal of becoming carbon neutral by 2050.
Dean Mehrotra asked how UPS utilizes AI, and Tomé said the company has been using AI and machine learning for years. "Technology is just part of who we are," she said.
When asked to describe what traits students should adopt to succeed in the business world, she said bringing your genuine self to work is essential.
"Be you, but be really good at what you do."