Mail Services Manager Job Description

Salary Range

$86,460 - $157,420

Experience

Mid-career, some management experience

Work Environment

Campus or corporate mail center

What Does a Mail Services Manager Do?

For students, faculty, and business offices, the speed and security of campus mail rest on the mail services manager. The job covers the mail center's staff, budget, carrier contracts and postage accounts, along with the systems that track each package from the loading dock to its owner.

Also known as: Campus Mail Manager, Assistant Campus Mail Manager, Mail Services Assistant Manager

Other Job Titles for This Work

Workers in this occupation report titles such as Administrative Coordinator, Administrative Director, Administrative Manager, Administrative Officer, Administrator, Business Administrator, Business Manager.

Mail Services Manager Duties and Responsibilities

The primary responsibilities of a mail services manager include:

• Plan staffing, routes and hours for the mail center, including peak weeks at the start of term.
• Manage the mail services budget, postage accounts and charge-backs to departments.
• Negotiate and review contracts with carriers such as UPS and FedEx and with equipment vendors.
• Keep the operation compliant with USPS mailing standards, permits and presort requirements.
• Choose and run package-tracking and smart-locker systems, and report delivery times.
• Hire, train and evaluate supervisors, clerks and student workers.
• Set security procedures for suspicious mail and train staff to follow them.
• Advise departments on bulk mailing design and address quality to cut postage costs.
• Handle escalated complaints about lost, late or damaged items and fix the process behind them.
• Track volume trends and plan for changes in space, vehicles and equipment.

Required Skills and Qualifications

To succeed as a mail services manager, you will need the following skills and qualifications:

• Budgeting and cost recovery for a service unit
• USPS Domestic Mail Manual and permit rules
• Carrier and vendor contract management
• Package-tracking and locker software
• Leading a mixed team of staff and student workers
• Security awareness for suspicious mail
• Customer-service judgement with faculty and departments
• Bachelor's degree in business or a related field, or equivalent experience

Education and Training

Entry without a degree might be possible for long-serving supervisors, but applicants with a bachelor's in business or operations will have the advantage over other candidates. With experience, you could progress from mail supervisor to assistant manager and then manager. For administrative services managers in general, BLS lists a bachelor's degree and less than five years of related work as typical.

Salary and Job Outlook

BLS projects employment of administrative services managers, the wider group that also covers records and office services managers, to grow about 5 percent from 2025 to 2035. Mail is a small part of it. BLS expects roughly 22,000 openings a year across the group, and managers who can run package lockers, tracking systems and tight budgets will have the strongest claim on them.

Outlook source: U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, Employment Projections, 2025 to 2035, Administrative services managers.

Mail Services Manager Pay Range

Highest-Paying States for Mail Services Managers

The states with the highest median pay for this occupation are Colorado ($157,000), New Jersey ($144,460), New York ($142,280), Delaware ($139,910), Minnesota ($137,290). Pay is lowest in Idaho ($92,880), West Virginia ($84,820), Arkansas ($84,480).

What the Work Is Like

O*NET surveys people who work as administrative services managers about their daily conditions. Of those surveyed:

• 96% use email every day
• 96% say teamwork is very or extremely important in their job
• 82% say being exact and accurate is very or extremely important
• 80% are on the phone every day
• 74% work indoors in a climate-controlled space every day
• 64% spend more than half the workday sitting
• 54% have a lot of freedom to make decisions

Education Workers Say the Job Needs

Tools and Software Mail Services Managers Use

Tools and equipment

• 10-key calculators
• Desktop computers
• Laptop computers
• Laser facsimile machines
• Mobile phones
• Multi-line telephone systems
• Notebook computers
• Personal computers
• Personal digital assistants PDA
• Photocopying equipment

Software

• Microsoft Excel
• Microsoft Office software
• Microsoft Outlook
• Microsoft PowerPoint
• Microsoft Word
• Adobe Acrobat
• Atlassian JIRA
• Autodesk AutoCAD
• Google Docs
• IBM SPSS Statistics
• Intuit QuickBooks
• Microsoft Access

Is This Job a Good Fit for You?

People who do well in this job tend to enjoy leading, persuading and making business decisions as well as organized work with data, records and clear procedures.

Skills O*NET rates most important: Reading Comprehension, Active Listening, Time Management, Speaking, Writing, Critical Thinking.

Knowledge areas used most: Customer and Personal Service, Administration and Management, English Language, Administrative, Personnel and Human Resources.

Preparation: O*NET places this occupation in Job Zone 3 of 5, which means medium preparation.

Related Careers

These jobs use similar skills, according to O*NET's related-occupation data:

• Center Coordinator job description
• Office Manager job description
• Records Manager job description
• Administrative Services Manager job description
• Auxiliary Services Director job description
• Business Manager job description
• Surplus Property Manager job description
• Payroll Supervisor job description

Applying for a Mail Services Manager Job

• Job application letter sample
• How to write the skills section of a resume
• How to describe your work experience
• Job interview tips
• Interview thank-you note

The Job Explorer never charges candidates any money. If someone asks you to pay to apply for a mail services manager job or to get hired, treat it as a warning sign.