Raj Subramaniam made history as FedEx’s second-ever CEO in June 2022, stepping into the role previously held by founder Fred Smith. This transition came at a challenging time: after the surge in online shopping driven by the pandemic, global demand had significantly decreased. In September of that year, Subramaniam's warning of a potential global recession led to a sharp drop in FedEx’s stock price. As the company and its rivals adjusted to a new reality with reduced online shopping, Subramaniam implemented a series of major changes. By 2023, he announced a $4 billion cost-saving plan that included merging the company’s ground, air, and other operations and reducing the workforce by tens of thousands. These efforts seem to have stabilized FedEx, with its stock now trading close to its pandemic-era highs and a reported improvement in quarterly revenue after six consecutive quarters of decline. In interviews with TIME in May and August, Subramaniam reflected on his early life, career journey, and the company’s future. Growing up in India, he faced a typical choice between becoming an engineer or a doctor. With his mother being a doctor and recognizing it was not his calling, Subramaniam chose the engineering route. He earned a scholarship to the United States to pursue a master’s degree in chemical engineering but soon realized that engineering was not his true passion. He shifted his focus to business, earning an MBA from the University of Texas at Austin.

Let's call it a process of elimination. Back in 1991, during the height of the recession, job prospects were bleak for those of us without a green card. Despite making it through several initial interviews, my lack of a green card consistently led to rejection. By August, months after my graduation in May, FedEx visited our campus. I vividly recall walking into the interview and stating plainly, "I don't have a green card." To my surprise, the response was, “First, let’s determine if you’re a good fit for a job at FedEx, and we’ll deal with the paperwork later.” This was the first time a company had approached my situation with such openness, and it marked the beginning of my journey with FedEx.

I started as an associate marketing analyst in the international division in Memphis, the entry-level role in marketing. What set this job apart was that it was part of FedEx’s international expansion efforts. I recall our chairman emphasizing that the network was our product and that marketing should play a key role in designing it. While most in marketing struggled with the concept of a network, my background in both engineering and business gave me a unique perspective. Despite being at the bottom of the hierarchy, I was eager and ready to contribute, saying, "Put me in, chief.

I find that my experience is more common than unusual at FedEx. People tend to stay at the company for many years, and I think it’s because FedEx has a unique way of keeping its employees engaged and satisfied. The company fosters a strong people-oriented culture and offers a variety of opportunities throughout one’s career, which means I never really felt the need to seek opportunities elsewhere. At FedEx, it always felt like someone was watching over my career development. Whenever I started feeling too comfortable, I was given new challenges or assignments. This continuous evolution and excitement were what kept me motivated.

Reflecting on my upbringing, my father was a significant influence. He worked in law enforcement and was known for his courage and decisiveness. I later discovered that his decisiveness stemmed from his extensive knowledge and broad reading. Joining FedEx at a young age, I also had the privilege of being mentored by Fred Smith. His leadership is remarkable; he has an almost intuitive ability to anticipate future trends and challenges. Smith has also promoted the concept of servant leadership within FedEx, where the organizational structure is inverted. In this model, leaders focus on removing obstacles to empower their teams, which aligns with the values I deeply respect.

What I should have highlighted at the time was that we were experiencing a downturn in the trade and freight sectors. This trend was evident across the entire industry, with a noticeable drop in revenue spanning six or seven quarters. However, if someone had slept through the pandemic and woke up now, they would see a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 5% or 6% and might question what the issue is. The real challenge was the extraordinary growth in the initial two years of the pandemic, followed by a period of decline over the next two years. We are currently in a phase of adjustment, four years after the pandemic began.

During this period, we have essentially returned to typical growth patterns over the four years. Through this journey, we have reassessed and refined our mission. Our new goal is to enhance supply chain efficiency for everyone. We now leverage daily insights from the global supply chain, supported by a robust data infrastructure we've built. When a consumer places an order online, that information is transmitted to FedEx much faster—within about 12 hours compared to before. Those 12 hours are crucial for us, allowing us to better allocate resources and plan for incoming traffic. By utilizing artificial intelligence and machine learning, we continually refine our ability to predict package arrival times, taking into account real-time factors such as weather and traffic conditions. This capability has been under development since 2020, reflecting our commitment to staying at the forefront of technological advancements in logistics.