The Conference Board of Canada, 52 pages, April 2013
Report by Vijay Gill, Crystal Hoganson, David Stewart-Patterson
Note - Door to Door postal service is slated for cancellation in Canada, and this "objective" report, is problematic as Canada Post's CEO, Deepak Chopra is a board member of the Conference Board of Canada, which tempers the analysis significantly.
Closing The Loop: the benefits of Circular Economy for developing countries a...Alexandre Fernandes
This report presents evidence to the effect that emerging economies can leapfrog development stages and implement an economic model that is better both for society and for the environment. The circular Cradle
to Cradle® paradigm* is a production model aimed at leveraging steady economic development for the future, without causing environmental damage. If implemented correctly, it is capable of promoting the maintenance of natural ecosystems while at the same time offering benefits to the poorest groups in society.
The report illustrates the tremendous window of opportunity provided for Brazil by the new Solid Waste National Policy. Policies such as this can help low- and middle-income countries to build on and formalise existing informal circular economic activities, thereby taking a development path that avoids many unsustainable elements of the linear production model.
The various case studies included in this report demonstrate the potential of the circular economic model to bring numerous social benefits, such as strengthening local economies, empowering the poorest families and building resilience, through stimulating the entrepreneurial spirit of businesses based on the solidarity economy.
Although the circular economy concept is not yet very well known in Brazil, this system has already taken root in various countries, in innovative businesses and major global production chains.
Toward Sustainability: Helping communities engage with and protect the environment
From the coastal sand dunes of Michigan’s Lower Peninsula to the warm waters of the Amazon River Basin, the Mott Foundation has long supported the stewardship of the world’s most precious natural resources. Featuring beautiful photography and first-hand perspectives of those working on the ground, the Foundation’s latest annual report highlights five examples of that work and introduces an important and exciting new focus in Mott’s grantmaking — advancing climate change solutions.
The report also features a message from William S. White, the Foundation’s chairman and CEO, who reflects on how this new focus builds on decades of exploration and learning. That experience, White says, “has taught us that this grantmaking must seek practical ways to simultaneously build strong economic, environmental and social conditions for all people — in a word, ‘sustainability.’”
Read more at http://www.mott.org/AR13
Closing The Loop: the benefits of Circular Economy for developing countries a...Alexandre Fernandes
This report presents evidence to the effect that emerging economies can leapfrog development stages and implement an economic model that is better both for society and for the environment. The circular Cradle
to Cradle® paradigm* is a production model aimed at leveraging steady economic development for the future, without causing environmental damage. If implemented correctly, it is capable of promoting the maintenance of natural ecosystems while at the same time offering benefits to the poorest groups in society.
The report illustrates the tremendous window of opportunity provided for Brazil by the new Solid Waste National Policy. Policies such as this can help low- and middle-income countries to build on and formalise existing informal circular economic activities, thereby taking a development path that avoids many unsustainable elements of the linear production model.
The various case studies included in this report demonstrate the potential of the circular economic model to bring numerous social benefits, such as strengthening local economies, empowering the poorest families and building resilience, through stimulating the entrepreneurial spirit of businesses based on the solidarity economy.
Although the circular economy concept is not yet very well known in Brazil, this system has already taken root in various countries, in innovative businesses and major global production chains.
Toward Sustainability: Helping communities engage with and protect the environment
From the coastal sand dunes of Michigan’s Lower Peninsula to the warm waters of the Amazon River Basin, the Mott Foundation has long supported the stewardship of the world’s most precious natural resources. Featuring beautiful photography and first-hand perspectives of those working on the ground, the Foundation’s latest annual report highlights five examples of that work and introduces an important and exciting new focus in Mott’s grantmaking — advancing climate change solutions.
The report also features a message from William S. White, the Foundation’s chairman and CEO, who reflects on how this new focus builds on decades of exploration and learning. That experience, White says, “has taught us that this grantmaking must seek practical ways to simultaneously build strong economic, environmental and social conditions for all people — in a word, ‘sustainability.’”
Read more at http://www.mott.org/AR13
eModeration white paper: Moderating and Managing Communities of Purpose Emoderation
What are Communities of Purpose? Who is using them, and how? How to overcome specialist issues? All the questions brands should answer before setting up a specialist community.
The Mobile Marketing Association (MMA) is the premier global non-profit trade association established to lead the growth of mobile marketing and its associated technologies. The MMA is an action-oriented organization designed to clear obstacles to market development, establish mobile media guidelines and best practices for sustainable growth, and evangelize the use of the mobile channel. The more than 750 member companies, representing over forty countries around the globe, include all members of the mobile media ecosystem. The Mobile Marketing Association’s global headquarters are located in the United States and it has regional chapters including North America (NA), Europe, Latin American (LATAM) and Asia Pacific (APAC) branches.
As the primary source for mobile marketing information and expertise, the MMA is dedicated to:
Provide an industry forum to work cooperatively to resolve key issues
Unify industry-wide, global and regional work groups that focus on industry initiatives
Provide representation for the mobile marketing industry for major legislative bodies worldwide
Globally share perspectives on mobile marketing for Europe, Asia, Americas, and Africa
Fuel B2B interaction through seminars, conferences and events
Develop metrics to measure ad delivery and consumer response
Develop open and compatible mobile marketing technical and creative standards
Define and publish mobile marketing practices on privacy, ad delivery, ad measurement, etc.
Provide effective guidelines for mobile marketing to advertisers, agencies and consumers
Serve as the key advocate on behalf of the mobile marketing industry
The Complete Pinterest Guide for Brands Emoderation
Detailed and practical advice to brands on how to participate on the Pinterest platform, including how to optimise and curate your content, tips and tricks for making the most of the platform.
Pensions at a Glance: Latin America and the CaribbeanMauro Bassotti
The biggest pension policy challenge faced by most countries in Latin America and the Caribbean (LAC) today is low coverage of formal pension systems, both in terms of the proportion of workers participating in pension schemes and the proportion of the elderly receiving some kind of pension income. Efforts to close the coverage gap, for example, through non-contributory pensions, are therefore at the heart of the pension policy debate
in the region. However, these policies might pose significant fiscal challenges in the next decades as the population ages. Chapter 2 presents three main indicators describing the demographic conditions relevant for pension policy, namely fertility rates, life expectancy and old-age support ratios. This is followed by a systematic comparison, in Chapter 3, of system designs across countries using the standard OECD Pensions at a Glance typology and presenting several key indicators of adequacy, including gender-specific gross and net
replacement rates and pension wealth at different income levels. Finally, Chapter 4 provides the profiles of each pension system in Latin America and the Caribbean in terms of their architecture, rules and parameters.
Aperçu du webinaire :
GéoConnexions, une initiative nationale dirigée par Ressources naturelles Canada (RNCan), invite le public a apprendre avantage sur les standards qui favorisent la consultation, l’utilisation et le partage en ligne des données géospatiales. Depuis 2010, GéoConnexions a élaboré une série de ressources (guides, procédures et manuels) qui facilite l’accès à l’information géospatiale ainsi que l’utilisation de cette dernière.
Ce webinaire présente les résultats d’une subvention de développement, en partenariat avec le Conseil de recherches en sciences humaines (CRSH) : « Mapping the Legal and Policy Boundaries of Digital Cartography », dirigée par Dr. R. Fraser Taylor du Geomatics and Cartographic Research Centre (GCRC) de l’Université de Carleton, et Dr. Teresa Scassa, du Centre de recherche en droit, technologie et société, de la faculté de droit de l’Université d’Ottawa, en collaboration avec la Clinique d’intérêt public et de politique d’internet du Canada (CIPPIC) et GéoConnexions.
Vous apprendrez davantage sur les sujets suivants :
· Le savoir traditionnel et la cybercartographie;
· Les complexités de la propriété intellectuelle et le savoir traditionnel;
· Les défis et les solutions possibles en matière de droit occidental et de savoir traditionnel;
· Le rôle des collaborations en cybercartographie dans les régions nordiques.
eModeration white paper: Moderating and Managing Communities of Purpose Emoderation
What are Communities of Purpose? Who is using them, and how? How to overcome specialist issues? All the questions brands should answer before setting up a specialist community.
The Mobile Marketing Association (MMA) is the premier global non-profit trade association established to lead the growth of mobile marketing and its associated technologies. The MMA is an action-oriented organization designed to clear obstacles to market development, establish mobile media guidelines and best practices for sustainable growth, and evangelize the use of the mobile channel. The more than 750 member companies, representing over forty countries around the globe, include all members of the mobile media ecosystem. The Mobile Marketing Association’s global headquarters are located in the United States and it has regional chapters including North America (NA), Europe, Latin American (LATAM) and Asia Pacific (APAC) branches.
As the primary source for mobile marketing information and expertise, the MMA is dedicated to:
Provide an industry forum to work cooperatively to resolve key issues
Unify industry-wide, global and regional work groups that focus on industry initiatives
Provide representation for the mobile marketing industry for major legislative bodies worldwide
Globally share perspectives on mobile marketing for Europe, Asia, Americas, and Africa
Fuel B2B interaction through seminars, conferences and events
Develop metrics to measure ad delivery and consumer response
Develop open and compatible mobile marketing technical and creative standards
Define and publish mobile marketing practices on privacy, ad delivery, ad measurement, etc.
Provide effective guidelines for mobile marketing to advertisers, agencies and consumers
Serve as the key advocate on behalf of the mobile marketing industry
The Complete Pinterest Guide for Brands Emoderation
Detailed and practical advice to brands on how to participate on the Pinterest platform, including how to optimise and curate your content, tips and tricks for making the most of the platform.
Pensions at a Glance: Latin America and the CaribbeanMauro Bassotti
The biggest pension policy challenge faced by most countries in Latin America and the Caribbean (LAC) today is low coverage of formal pension systems, both in terms of the proportion of workers participating in pension schemes and the proportion of the elderly receiving some kind of pension income. Efforts to close the coverage gap, for example, through non-contributory pensions, are therefore at the heart of the pension policy debate
in the region. However, these policies might pose significant fiscal challenges in the next decades as the population ages. Chapter 2 presents three main indicators describing the demographic conditions relevant for pension policy, namely fertility rates, life expectancy and old-age support ratios. This is followed by a systematic comparison, in Chapter 3, of system designs across countries using the standard OECD Pensions at a Glance typology and presenting several key indicators of adequacy, including gender-specific gross and net
replacement rates and pension wealth at different income levels. Finally, Chapter 4 provides the profiles of each pension system in Latin America and the Caribbean in terms of their architecture, rules and parameters.
Aperçu du webinaire :
GéoConnexions, une initiative nationale dirigée par Ressources naturelles Canada (RNCan), invite le public a apprendre avantage sur les standards qui favorisent la consultation, l’utilisation et le partage en ligne des données géospatiales. Depuis 2010, GéoConnexions a élaboré une série de ressources (guides, procédures et manuels) qui facilite l’accès à l’information géospatiale ainsi que l’utilisation de cette dernière.
Ce webinaire présente les résultats d’une subvention de développement, en partenariat avec le Conseil de recherches en sciences humaines (CRSH) : « Mapping the Legal and Policy Boundaries of Digital Cartography », dirigée par Dr. R. Fraser Taylor du Geomatics and Cartographic Research Centre (GCRC) de l’Université de Carleton, et Dr. Teresa Scassa, du Centre de recherche en droit, technologie et société, de la faculté de droit de l’Université d’Ottawa, en collaboration avec la Clinique d’intérêt public et de politique d’internet du Canada (CIPPIC) et GéoConnexions.
Vous apprendrez davantage sur les sujets suivants :
· Le savoir traditionnel et la cybercartographie;
· Les complexités de la propriété intellectuelle et le savoir traditionnel;
· Les défis et les solutions possibles en matière de droit occidental et de savoir traditionnel;
· Le rôle des collaborations en cybercartographie dans les régions nordiques.
Delivering a Parcel Tracking System for the FutureDLT Solutions
Hersh Shah and Rich Hoggins from Accenture, and Bob Moran from USPS, share delivering a parcel tracking system for the future from the 2015 Informatica Government Summit.
The Economist Intelligence Unit surveyed over 600 business leaders worldwide and across different industry sectors about the use of Big Data in their organizations.
The research confirms a growing appetite for data and data-driven decisions and those who harness these correctly stay ahead of the game. The report provides insight on their use of Big Data today and in the future, and highlights the advantages seen and the specific challenges Big Data has on decision making for business leaders.
Key findings:
75% of respondents believe their organizations to be data-driven
9 out of 10 say decisions made in the past 3 years would have been better if they’d had all the relevant information
42% say that unstructured content is too difficult to interpret
85% say the issue is not about volume but the ability to analyze and act on the data in real time
Freight transportation in the future - Some indicationsPer Olof Arnäs
This presentation highlights some of the notable trends and developments that are affecting transportation (freight) and logistics. The areas covered are digitalization, automation, "new" transport modes, sharing economy, real-time data driven decision making, block chain technology and servitization. Any and/or all of these may have profound impact on freight transport.
SpaceX and the promising future of space travelPPT CHEF
A presentation we did based on a case study of Elon Musk's SpaceX and the promising future of space travel. Photos provided in public domain by SpaceX and NASA.
The New Delivery Reality: Achieving High Performance in the Post And Parcel I...accenture
Powerful digital trends continue to reinvent the post and parcel industry. Technology-driven innovations redefine products, realign customer expectations and reshape the competitive landscape. As retail shifts toward digital, post and parcel organizations are reengineering their core businesses to meet the new reality of rapidly growing B2C parcel delivery.
Lower barriers to entry and the rise of ecosystems and integrated value chains are eroding organizational boundaries and spurring convergence. Automation, the need for digital skills, demographic shifts and globalization are upending labor supply and demand. The future is in flux.
Advances in talent analytics are finally allowing workforce planning to become as dynamic as this environment. Prescriptive analytics tools help organizations go beyond describing “what is happening now” or “what might happen in the future” to control “what should happen.”
Scenario-based strategic workforce planning is a digital playground for the business to constantly optimize workforce choices—testing, learning and tweaking across dimensions and futures—to deliver the business strategy.
DMA (Direct Marketing Association) Email Tracker Study 2017Christopher Hughes
Despite new innovations in customer engagement, email marketing still outperforms all other marketing channels in terms of return on investment, the average ROI for every £1 spent increased compared to last year, up to £30.01 from £29.64 last year.
One in ten marketers admit their emails aren’t relevant to customers. Are we in danger of killing email with irrelevant content?
While email remains ‘important’ or ‘very important’ for the vast majority, 95%, of marketers, it's a curious paradox that fewer than one in 10 (9%) say all their emails are relevant to their customers.
This is a report detailing my industrial placement year at Tomo Motor Parts Ltd. This report was submitted to Brunel University and formed the majority of my A+ result for the year.
Benefits of Modern Cloud Data Lake Platform Qubole GCP - WhitepaperVasu S
IDC explains how data leaders are adopting cloud data lake platforms built by companies like Qubole and Google Cloud Platform to address the growing need for mission-critical analytics during COVID-19
https://www.qubole.com/resources/white-papers/benefits-of-modern-cloud-data-lake-platform-idc-qubole-gcp
MTM Certification - Candidate handbook - BCMTMS - 2020
Visit www.nbmtm.org for details.
The National Board of Medication Therapy Management (NBMTM) is a pharmacist-led, 501(c)(3) nonprofit and independent evaluation organization whose purpose is to advance the profession of pharmacy and empower pharmacists specifically focusing on medication therapy management (MTM). Our accountability is both to the profession of pharmacy and to the public.
NBMTM is the first and only organization to offer MTM certification to pharmacists. The mission of the NBMTM is to serve the public by improving the quality of pharmaceutical care through a valid and reliable process of certification and maintenance of certification in medication therapy management.
Série de webinaires sur le gouvernement ouvert du Canada
L'équipe du #GouvOuvert est de retour avec un nouveau webinaire le 28 novembre! Nous allons discuter au sujet des #coulisses des #donnéesouvertes au avec la professeure
@TraceyLauriault
de
@Carleton_U
et
@JaimieBoyd
. Inscrivez-vous maintenant: http://ow.ly/UQvu50xabIb
Week 13 (Apr. 8) – Assemblages, Genealogies and Dynamic Nominalism
Course description:
The emphasis is to learn to envision data genealogically, as a social and technical assemblages, as infrastructure and reframe them beyond technological conceptions. During the term we will explore data, facts and truth; the power of data both big and small; governmentality and biopolitics; risk, probability and the taming of chance; algorithmic culture, dynamic nominalism, categorization and ontologies; the translation of people, space and social phenomena into and by data and software and the role of data in the production of knowledge.
This class format is a graduate MA seminar and a collaborative workshop. We will work with Ottawa Police Services and critically examine the socio-technological data assemblage of that institution. This includes a fieldtrip to the Elgin street station; a tour of the 911 Communication Centre and we will meet with data experts.
April 4, 2019, 17:30-19:30
IOG's Policy Crunch
Disruptive Innovation and Public Policy in the Digital Age event series
The Global Race in Digital Governance
https://iog.ca/events/the-global-race-in-digital-governance/
March 25, 2019, 9:30 AM
International Meeting of NAICS code Experts
Statistics Canada
Simon Goldberg Room, RH Coats building
100 Tunney’s Pasture Driveway
With research contributions by Ben Wright, Carleton University and Dustin Moores, University of Ottawa
Presented at the:
Canadian Aviation Safety Collaboration Forum
International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO)
Montreal, QC
January 23, 2019
This presentation was made in real-time while attending the Forum. The objective was to observe and listen, and share some examples outside of this community that may provide insight about data sharing models with a focus on governance.
From Aspiration to Reality: Open Smart Cities
Open smart cities might become a reality for Canada. Globally there are a number of initiatives, programs, and practices that are open smart city like which means that it is possible to have an open, responsive and engaged city that is both socio-technologically enabled, but also one where there is receptivity to and a willingness to grow a critically informed type of technological citizenship (Feenberg). For an open smart city to exist, public officials, the private sector, scholars, civil society and residents and citizens require a definition and a guide to start the exercise of imagining what an open smart city might look like. There is much critical scholarship about the smart city and there are many counter smart city narratives, but there are few depictions of what engagement, participatory design and technological leadership might be. The few examples that do exist are project based and few are systemic. An open smart city definition and guide was therefore created by a group of stakeholders in such a way that it can be used as the basis for the design of an open smart city from the ground up, or to help actors shape or steer the course of emerging or ongoing data and networked urbanist forms (Kitchin) of smart cities to lead them towards being open, engaged and receptive to technological citizenship.
This talk will discuss some of the successes resulting from this Open Smart Cities work, which might also be called a form or engaged scholarship. For example the language for the call for tender of the Infrastructure Canada Smart City Challenge was modified to include as a requisite that engagement and openness be part of the submissions from communities. Also, those involved with the guide have been writing policy articles that critique either AI or the smart city while also offering examples of what is possible. These articles are being read by proponents of Sidewalk Labs in Toronto. Also, the global Open Data Conference held in Argentina in September of 2018 hosted a full workshop on Open Smart Cities and finally Open North is working toward developing key performance indicators to assess those shortlisted by Infrastructure Canada and to help those communities develop an Open Smart Cities submission. The objective of the talk is to demonstrate that it is actually possible to shift public policy on large infrastructure projects, at least, in the short term.
This week we will learn about user generated content (UGC), citizen science, crowdsourcing & volunteered geographic information (VGI). We will also discuss divergent views on data humanitarianism.
Cottbus Brandenburg University of Technology Lecture series on Smart RegionsCritically Assembling Data, Processes & Things: Toward and Open Smart CityJune 5, 2018
This lecture will critically focus on smart cities from a data based socio-technological assemblage approach. It is a theoretical and methodological framework that allows for an empirical examination of how smart cities are socially and technically constructed, and to study them as discursive regimes and as a large technological infrastructural systems.
The lecture will refer to the research outcomes of the ERC funded Programmable City Project led by Rob Kitchin at Maynooth University and will feature examples of empirical research conducted in Dublin and other Irish cities.
In addition, the lecture will discuss the research outcomes of the Canadian Open Smart Cities project funded by the Government of Canada GeoConnections Program. Examples will be drawn from five case studies namely about the cities of Edmonton, Guelph, Ottawa and Montreal, and the Ontario Smart Grid as well as number of international best practices. The recent Infrastructure Canada Canadian Smart City Challenge and the controversial Sidewalk Lab Waterfront Toronto project will also be discussed.
It will be argued that no two smart cities are alike although the technological solutionist and networked urbanist approaches dominate and it is suggested that these kind of smart cities may not live up to the promise of being better places to live.
In this lecture, the ideals of an Open Smart City are offered instead and in this kind of city residents, civil society, academics, and the private sector collaborate with public officials to mobilize data and technologies when warranted in an ethical, accountable and transparent way in order to govern the city as a fair, viable and livable commons that balances economic development, social progress and environmental responsibility. Although an Open Smart City does not yet exist, it will be argued that it is possible.
Conference of Irish Geographies 2018
The Earth as Our Home
Automating Homelessness May 12, 2018
The research for these studies is funded by a European Research Council Advanced Investigator award ERC-2012-AdG-323636-SOFTCITY.
Presentation #2:Open/Big Urban DataLessons Learned from the Programmable City ProjectMansion House, Dublin, May 9th, 201810am-2pmhttp://progcity.maynoothuniversity.ie/2018/03/lessons-for-smart-cities-from-the-programmable-city-project/
Financé par : GéoConnexions
Dirigé par : Nord Ouvert
Le noyau de l’équipe :
Rachel Bloom et Jean-Noé Landry, Nord Ouvert
Dr Tracey P. Lauriault, Carleton University
David Fewer, Clinique d’intérêt public et de politique d’Internet du Canada (CIPPIC)
Dr Mark Fox, University of Toronto
Assistant et assistante de recherche, Carleton University
Carly Livingstone
Stephen Letts
Open Smart City in Canada Project
Funded by: GeoConnections
Lead by: OpenNorth
Project core team:
Rachel Bloom & Jean-Noe Landry, Open North
Dr. Tracey P. Lauriault, Carleton University
David Fewer, LL.M., Canadian Internet Policy and Public Interest Clinic (CIPPIC)
Dr. Mark Fox, University of Toronto
Research Assistants Carleton University
Carly Livingstone
Stephen Letts
Introductory remarks
- Jean-Noe Landry, Executive Director, Open North
Webinar 2 includes:
- Summary of Webinar 1: E-Scan and Assessment of Smart -
Cities in Canada (listen at: http://bit.ly/2yp7H8k )
- Situating smart cities amongst current digital practices
- Towards guiding principles for Open Smart Cities
- Examples of international best practices from international cities
- Observations & Next Steps
Webinar Presenters:
- Rachel Bloom, Open North
- Dr Tracey P. Lauriault, School of Journalism and Communication, Carleton University
Content Contributors:
- David Fewer CIPPIC,
- Mark Fox U. of Toronto,
- Stephen Letts (RA Carleton U.)
Project Name:
- Open Smart Cities in Canada
Date:
- December 14, 2017
Canada is a data and technological society. There is no sector that is uninformed by data or unmediated by code, algorithms, software and infrastructure. Consider the Internet of Things (IoT), smart cities, and precision agriculture; or smart fisheries, forestry, and energy and of course governing. In a data based and technological society, leadership is the responsibility of all citizens, a parent, teacher, scholar, administrator, public servant, nurse and doctor, mayor and councillor, fisher, builder, business person, industrialist, MP, MLA, PM, and so on. In other words leadership is distributed and requires people power. This form of citizenship, according to Andrew Feenberg, Canada Research Chair in Philosophy of Technology, requires agency, knowledge and the capacity to act or power. In this GovMaker Keynote I will introduce the concept of technological citizenship, I will discuss what principled public interest governing might look like, and how we might go about critically applying philosophy in our daily practice. In terms of practice I will discuss innovative policy and regulation such as the right to repair movement, EU legislation such as the right to explanation, data subjects and the right to access and also data sovereignty from a globalization and an indigenous perspective.
More from Communication and Media Studies, Carleton University (20)
UiPath Test Automation using UiPath Test Suite series, part 3DianaGray10
Welcome to UiPath Test Automation using UiPath Test Suite series part 3. In this session, we will cover desktop automation along with UI automation.
Topics covered:
UI automation Introduction,
UI automation Sample
Desktop automation flow
Pradeep Chinnala, Senior Consultant Automation Developer @WonderBotz and UiPath MVP
Deepak Rai, Automation Practice Lead, Boundaryless Group and UiPath MVP
Slack (or Teams) Automation for Bonterra Impact Management (fka Social Soluti...Jeffrey Haguewood
Sidekick Solutions uses Bonterra Impact Management (fka Social Solutions Apricot) and automation solutions to integrate data for business workflows.
We believe integration and automation are essential to user experience and the promise of efficient work through technology. Automation is the critical ingredient to realizing that full vision. We develop integration products and services for Bonterra Case Management software to support the deployment of automations for a variety of use cases.
This video focuses on the notifications, alerts, and approval requests using Slack for Bonterra Impact Management. The solutions covered in this webinar can also be deployed for Microsoft Teams.
Interested in deploying notification automations for Bonterra Impact Management? Contact us at sales@sidekicksolutionsllc.com to discuss next steps.
Neuro-symbolic is not enough, we need neuro-*semantic*Frank van Harmelen
Neuro-symbolic (NeSy) AI is on the rise. However, simply machine learning on just any symbolic structure is not sufficient to really harvest the gains of NeSy. These will only be gained when the symbolic structures have an actual semantics. I give an operational definition of semantics as “predictable inference”.
All of this illustrated with link prediction over knowledge graphs, but the argument is general.
Connector Corner: Automate dynamic content and events by pushing a buttonDianaGray10
Here is something new! In our next Connector Corner webinar, we will demonstrate how you can use a single workflow to:
Create a campaign using Mailchimp with merge tags/fields
Send an interactive Slack channel message (using buttons)
Have the message received by managers and peers along with a test email for review
But there’s more:
In a second workflow supporting the same use case, you’ll see:
Your campaign sent to target colleagues for approval
If the “Approve” button is clicked, a Jira/Zendesk ticket is created for the marketing design team
But—if the “Reject” button is pushed, colleagues will be alerted via Slack message
Join us to learn more about this new, human-in-the-loop capability, brought to you by Integration Service connectors.
And...
Speakers:
Akshay Agnihotri, Product Manager
Charlie Greenberg, Host
Dev Dives: Train smarter, not harder – active learning and UiPath LLMs for do...UiPathCommunity
💥 Speed, accuracy, and scaling – discover the superpowers of GenAI in action with UiPath Document Understanding and Communications Mining™:
See how to accelerate model training and optimize model performance with active learning
Learn about the latest enhancements to out-of-the-box document processing – with little to no training required
Get an exclusive demo of the new family of UiPath LLMs – GenAI models specialized for processing different types of documents and messages
This is a hands-on session specifically designed for automation developers and AI enthusiasts seeking to enhance their knowledge in leveraging the latest intelligent document processing capabilities offered by UiPath.
Speakers:
👨🏫 Andras Palfi, Senior Product Manager, UiPath
👩🏫 Lenka Dulovicova, Product Program Manager, UiPath
GraphRAG is All You need? LLM & Knowledge GraphGuy Korland
Guy Korland, CEO and Co-founder of FalkorDB, will review two articles on the integration of language models with knowledge graphs.
1. Unifying Large Language Models and Knowledge Graphs: A Roadmap.
https://arxiv.org/abs/2306.08302
2. Microsoft Research's GraphRAG paper and a review paper on various uses of knowledge graphs:
https://www.microsoft.com/en-us/research/blog/graphrag-unlocking-llm-discovery-on-narrative-private-data/
Encryption in Microsoft 365 - ExpertsLive Netherlands 2024Albert Hoitingh
In this session I delve into the encryption technology used in Microsoft 365 and Microsoft Purview. Including the concepts of Customer Key and Double Key Encryption.
Accelerate your Kubernetes clusters with Varnish CachingThijs Feryn
A presentation about the usage and availability of Varnish on Kubernetes. This talk explores the capabilities of Varnish caching and shows how to use the Varnish Helm chart to deploy it to Kubernetes.
This presentation was delivered at K8SUG Singapore. See https://feryn.eu/presentations/accelerate-your-kubernetes-clusters-with-varnish-caching-k8sug-singapore-28-2024 for more details.
JMeter webinar - integration with InfluxDB and GrafanaRTTS
Watch this recorded webinar about real-time monitoring of application performance. See how to integrate Apache JMeter, the open-source leader in performance testing, with InfluxDB, the open-source time-series database, and Grafana, the open-source analytics and visualization application.
In this webinar, we will review the benefits of leveraging InfluxDB and Grafana when executing load tests and demonstrate how these tools are used to visualize performance metrics.
Length: 30 minutes
Session Overview
-------------------------------------------
During this webinar, we will cover the following topics while demonstrating the integrations of JMeter, InfluxDB and Grafana:
- What out-of-the-box solutions are available for real-time monitoring JMeter tests?
- What are the benefits of integrating InfluxDB and Grafana into the load testing stack?
- Which features are provided by Grafana?
- Demonstration of InfluxDB and Grafana using a practice web application
To view the webinar recording, go to:
https://www.rttsweb.com/jmeter-integration-webinar
4. For the exclusive use of Tracey Lauriault, tlauriau@gmail.com, Carleton University.
Acknowledgements
This report was written and researched by David Stewart-Patterson, Vijay Gill, and Crystal Hoganson. It was made
possible with funding from Canada Post Corporation.
Special thanks go to Dave Crapper of Genesis Public Opinion Research Inc., who conducted the focus groups and the
residential and small business polling that provided the basis for Chapter 5.
We also thank our internal Conference Board contributors, Ross Prusakowski and Decky Kabongi, for their work on
the econometric analysis; and Dan Muzyka and Glen Hodgson for reviewing the report.
We extend our thanks to the three external reviewers of this report: Michael Trebilcock of the University of Toronto,
and Frank Graves and Derek Jansen of EKOS Research Associates.
The findings and conclusions of this report are entirely those of The Conference Board of Canada. Any errors and
omissions in fact or interpretation remain the sole responsibility of The Conference Board of Canada.
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ii | The Future of Postal Service in Canada—April 2013
Our projection suggests that Canada Post’s transaction
mail, addressed and unaddressed advertising mail, and
publication volumes will decline by about 26 to 27 per
cent by 2020. Parcel volume is projected to buck the
trend and see a 26 per cent increase over the same period,
but this will remain small as a share of total mail traffic.
While the Crown corporation’s Postal Transformation
initiative will have a significant impact on its bottom
line by boosting productivity and improving efficiency,
its annual operating loss is nonetheless projected to
reach about $1 billion by 2020.
By presenting a portfolio of potential responses to the
challenge of sustaining postal service, this report offers
a framework for discussion of options by Canadians.
Polling of small business and residential customers confirmed that their habits are changing, with almost half
of households saying they now send two pieces of mail
or less per month. While small businesses, as a group,
also are using mail less frequently, they remain relatively dependent on mail for invoicing and payments.
Both groups of customers confirmed that their demand
for parcel service will continue to rise with the spread
of e-commerce. But residential customers noted growing frustration over the need to travel to pick up parcels
when no one is home to accept delivery during the day.
Residential and small business customers recognize that
the price of a stamp represents good value, and both
appear willing to accept slower service than they currently receive. What matters most to these customers is
not speed but certainty of delivery and, on this score,
they express a high degree of confidence in the mail.
Their responses suggest that Canada Post, like postal
services in other developed countries, is now providing
a higher level of service than necessary.
Canadians believe that despite the spread of electronic
communications, they always will need postal service.
They have a high degree of trust in Canada Post; one that
carries over from physical delivery to digital products.
However, neither residential nor small business customers have fully made the connection between the changes
in their own behaviour and the impact of these changes
on Canada Post’s business model. They recognize that
the status quo is no longer viable, but are not yet fully
convinced of the scale and speed of change that may be
required. Nonetheless, 80 per cent of the household and
small business customers surveyed for our report agreed
with the statement that “Canada Post has to make fundamental changes to the way it has operated in the past
in order to be relevant in the future.”
The quantitative analysis done for this report suggests
that Canada Post could reduce its projected losses significantly by raising prices faster than inflation, but that it
cannot realistically return to self-sustainability through
price increases alone. Therefore, the report examined five
options for cutting costs: wage restraint; alternate-day
delivery for mail (but not parcels); converting Canadian
households’ receiving door-to-door delivery to community mailboxes; further replacement of corporate post
offices with franchised postal outlets; and reduced speed
of delivery. Eliminating delivery to the door for urban
residential customers would be the option with the largest financial impact, saving a projected $576 million
a year by 2020.
No single change to prices or service standards will be
sufficient to enable self-sustainability as mail volumes
continue to decline. While there will probably be a relatively stable and residual level of demand for mail services, it is impossible to determine when and where that
level might be reached. Any given change in service is
likely to have a one-time positive impact on the bottom
line, but cannot change the relentless downward slope
of the mail volume curve. Thus, sustaining a postal service that will meet the evolving needs of Canadians will
require a combination of measures, but not necessarily
all at once.
The purpose of this report is not to recommend any one
or particular combination of options. Rather, its goal is to
illustrate both the potential financial impact of a range
of choices and how such changes would be seen by
Canada Post’s business and residential customers. By
presenting a portfolio of potential responses to the challenge of sustaining postal service, this report offers a
framework for discussion of options by Canadians in
their roles as customers and, through the Government
of Canada, as shareholders and taxpayers.
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2 | The Future of Postal Service in Canada—April 2013
Chart 1
Mail Volume and Number of Addresses
(billions of pieces; millions of addresses)
Mail volume (left)
Number of addresses (right)
Forecast
18
17
16
15
14
13
12
12
11
10
9
8
7
6
2003 04 05 06 07 08 09 10 11 12f 13f 14f 15f 16f 17f 18f 19f 20f
The econometric analysis was used primarily to provide
price and GDP elasticities, and was augmented with a risk
matrix in order to complete the projection of volumes
by line of business. Data from ZenithOptimedia were
leveraged to estimate the impacts of expected advertising expenditures on alternate sources such as Internet
search/display, mobile advertising, and digital replicas
of publications. Although demographic factors (such
as the share of population by decade of birth) were
correlated with transaction mail volumes, they were
not statistically significant in terms of providing
explanatory power.
Source: Canada Post; The Conference Board of Canada.
of Canada to conduct an independent assessment of
the future of postal service in Canada, and to consider
potential paths forward.
The first step was to assess how technological change is
affecting the expectations of Canadians and the extent
to which they actually use and depend on its services.
To this end, the Conference Board interviewed a range
of Canada Post’s major customers and engaged Genesis
Public Opinion Research Inc. to conduct focus groups
and a telephone poll of small business customers and
a parallel telephone poll of residential customers.
Methodology
To quantify the impact of economic, technological,
and demographic trends on Canada Post’s business, the
Conference Board employed econometric analysis and
a competitor risk assessment to project future mail volumes, revenues, and operating income. This framework,
in turn, was used to test the financial impact of a variety
of potential actions aimed at improving the sustainability
of the postal business.
While Canada Post supplied some of the historical
data used in the analysis, the analytical framework was
developed independently. The resulting observations
and conclusions are those of The Conference Board
of Canada alone.
To quantify the impact of economic, technological, and
demographic trends, the Conference Board employed
econometric analysis and a competitor risk assessment.
The research explored the attitudes and behaviour of
Canada Post customers through a combination of interviews, focus groups, and polling. The Conference Board
conducted individual interviews with a selection of
Canada Post’s major customers to add qualitative
insight to the quantitative analysis.
Genesis Public Opinion Research Inc. explored the
attitudes of residential customers through a telephone
survey of households across the country. The objectives
of the survey were to:
understand customers’ current use of both lettermail
and courier/package services;
determine their service expectations and related
attitudes to those lines of business;
assess their use and evaluations of corporate and
private retail outlets;
determine their understanding of the business
challenges Canada Post faces.
The residential survey selected and interviewed correspondents based on the way in which they receive mail.
The target sample included approximately 500 customers
who get mail delivered to their door (DTD), 300 who
use group mailboxes (CMB), 250 who receive mail in
their lobby or common area (LBA), 100 who have mail
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Chapter 2
Global Trends in Postal Service
Chapter Summary
Electronic alternatives are changing the face
of postal service around the world.
Other countries are pursuing the following five
major approaches to enable postal services to
reduce costs or enhance revenue:
– liberalization and privatization;
– expansion into new lines of business;
– development of digital products;
– expansion of parcel delivery;
– reduction of service standards.
Canada Post already is pursuing two of
these approaches by developing new digital
products—including epost and Vault—and
by increasing its efficiency, capacity, and
service offerings in the parcel business.
T
he digital revolution has changed the face of
postal service as we know it. No longer is the
post office viewed as the primary means of
connecting people and businesses wherever they are
located. Widespread access to broadband and mobile
technologies is having a fundamental impact on how
people and businesses communicate. People increasingly are communicating by phone, e-mail, text, and
other web-enabled tools. Growing numbers are accessing information for work and for pleasure on websites,
e-readers, and tablets. Customers and providers alike
are handling statements, invoices, and payments online.
E-commerce has moved quickly from an add-on means
of browsing for products to a primary sales channel.
Generally, survival in the core business of lettermail has
required taking out costs faster than volume-driven revenue declines. This has meant either additional investment
in technologies such as high-speed sorting equipment
or reductions in service standards. However, there is a
growing recognition around the world that postal services
must develop new strategies to survive. A 2012 study by
the International Post Corporation and Boston Consulting
Group concluded that, by 2020, moving the mail will
no longer be the core business of postal operators.1
Despite differences in the economic and social environments across countries, it is clear that postal operators
around the world are facing declining lettermail volumes.
The Universal Postal Union reported that between 2006
and 2010, domestic lettermail traffic decreased by 3.5 per
cent, while international mail decreased 13 per cent.2
1
International Post Corporation and The Boston Consulting Group,
Focus on the Future, 22.
2
Universal Postal Union, The Global Postal Network—Key Figures.
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6 | The Future of Postal Service in Canada—April 2013
25 per cent, invested in new equipment, decreased
its labour costs by 14 per cent, and nearly doubled
its productivity.8
In New Zealand, postal reform was driven by a “broad
economic policy of commercialization of the state enterprise sector.”9 The New Zealand government owns NZ
Post, but the organization is directed to act like a private
sector firm—it needs to generate a profit, repay loans,
self-fund through its earnings, and pay taxes and dividends.10 NZ Post moved from generating a loss to creating a profit by cutting costs by 30 per cent, speeding
up mail delivery, increasing “on time” delivery by 15 per
cent, and nearly doubling its overall productivity.11,12
As a Crown corporation, Canada Post has both a public
service mandate and an obligation to act like a private
sector firm—at least to the extent of being self-sufficient.
Neither privatization nor liberalization of markets is,
by itself, a strategy for sustaining postal services in an
environment of decline. They are policies intended to
drive more rapid response to that environment by encouraging or enabling postal services to make decisions that
might be more difficult or politically impossible to pursue
as an arm of government.
In 1981, Canada turned its postal service into a Crown
corporation. As such, Canada Post has both a public
service mandate and an obligation to act like a private
sector firm—at least to the extent of being self-sufficient.
Until fiscal year 2011, Canada Post operated consistently
at a profit. And, it had been doing so while its monopoly
lettermail privilege declined in value due to a growing
number of cost-effective substitutes. Put another way,
the proliferation of digital alternatives to mail has, in
effect, liberalized the postal market to a great degree.
8
Ibid., 4.
9
Iacobucci, Trebilcock, and Epps, Rerouting the Mail, 11.
The key decisions with respect to the future of postal
service in Canada are about public policy; that is, about
how postal services could change in order to meet the
evolving needs of Canadians in the digital era. Privatization
has been a means to that end in some other jurisdictions,
but this report focuses on desired outcomes rather than
mechanisms for achieving those outcomes.
Expansion Into Financial Services
For international postal operators, the primary new business line being entered is financial services. In some
countries, such as Japan and Great Britain, financial
services have been a core element of the post office for
many years. In other countries, financial services have
been gradually introduced to postal services over time.
The addition of financial services through postal outlets
offers many potential benefits. For instance, it can facilitate financial inclusion in rural areas while also mitigating
the decline in postal revenues.13 Postal banks serve large
markets, but can be low in incremental cost because they
make shared use of the postal retail network. According
to a discussion paper of the United Nations Department
of Economic and Social Affairs, banking revenues in
many countries are actually essential to generate profits
from their postal networks.14
Postal services are generally accepted as safe, trusted, reliable institutions. As such, the public tends to view postal
financial services as a “safe haven.”15 The Universal
Postal Union (UPU) estimates that more than 1 billion
people worldwide conduct banking through postal services and, in 2010, 51 postal operators worldwide held
1.6 billion in savings and deposit accounts.16
13 Berthaud and Davico, Global Panorama on Postal Financial
Inclusion, 3.
10 Ibid.
14 Scher, Postal Savings and the Provision of Financial Services, 15.
11 Geloso and Chassin, Canada Post, 3.
15 Berthaud and Davico, Global Panorama on Postal Financial
Inclusion, 3.
12 Lammam and Karabegovic, “Recent Mail Disruption Strengthens
Case to Privatize Canada Post.”
16 Ibid.
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Within a rapidly changing global communications market,
postal operators around the world have to adapt quickly
to changes in consumer and business demand. Therefore,
business plans must be modified in order to build parcel
traffic generated by e-commerce and move into digital
services. Postal services generally do not view digital
communications as a separate initiative, but rather as a
means of transforming their business models to incorporate e-commerce and e-substitution.
Finland, for instance, is experimenting with the concept
of secure digital mailboxes. This system, called Netposti,
is an alternative to a physical mailbox. Physical mail
is opened, scanned, and sent as a PDF file to a secure
digital mailbox. Citizens are provided with accounts tied
to their social security numbers and e-mail addresses.23
Consumers receive an e-mail or a text message when
their mail is ready to be viewed. Envelopes are analyzed,
and items such as credit cards are filtered out for physical
delivery. Scanned mail is also delivered to physical
addresses, but residential mail services have been
reduced to twice a week.24
Digital products are evolving within a highly competitive
marketplace, and their potential contribution to the sustainability of postal service is uncertain.
Finns are significant users of electronic services, and
once the use of e-commerce began to take off, so too
did concerns about credit card safety. By signing a
cooperation agreement with the leading Finnish online
payment provider, Netposti allows consumers to click
an invoice button and receive a receipt of their online
purchase directly to their secure Netposti account.25
Then there is Polish Post, which recently released a
new line of digital products. Poland’s postal market has
been opened up to full competition and the NeoKartka
service was developed in response to customer demand
for more digital mail services.26 This hybrid service
allows customers to send greeting cards and postcards
electronically for conversion to the physical form prior
to delivery.27
In the past 10 years, Italy’s Poste Italiane has invested
heavily in technology to bridge the physical and electronic worlds. Poste Italiane developed an advanced
technological infrastructure where over 80 per cent of
correspondence is sorted using automated systems.28
In addition, Poste Italiane has been able to expand its
services and offer new products while utilizing various
channels: electronic invoicing for government contractors,
scanning and electronic archiving, and mobile virtual
network operators (e.g., using mobile devices to pay
bills and send mail).29
Canada Post is actively developing digital products. In
2011, it set up a distinct Digital Delivery Network in
parallel with its Physical Delivery Network. Its digital
product line now includes its epost system for the secure
delivery of statements and payment of bills, the Canada
Post Vault service for secure storage of personal and
sensitive information, and Data and Integrated Market
Solutions to support precision target marketing by
Canadian businesses.30
Digital products, however, are evolving within a highly
competitive marketplace. The international experience
suggests that such products cannot replace lost lettermail business. But they do have the potential to generate some revenue for Canada Post that could contribute
to offsetting the costs of maintaining the physical mail
delivery system. Their potential degree of contribution
is uncertain, so future digital revenues are not addressed
within the revenue projections of this report.
26 Post Parcel, “Polish Post Launches Hybrid Postcard
Delivery Service.”
27 Ibid.
23 United States Postal Service, Office of the Inspector General,
The Postal Service Role in the Digital Age, 28.
28 United States Postal Service, Office of the Inspector General,
The Postal Service Role in the Digital Age, 29.
24 Ibid.
29 Ibid., 30.
25 Ibid., 4.
30 Canada Post Corporation, Transformation, 6–11.
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10 | The Future of Postal Service in Canada—April 2013
six to five delivery days a week.39 Post Danmark has
chosen to deliver bulk mail three days a week and alternate
between areas. Meanwhile, Finland has taken a hybrid
approach on a trial basis, reducing delivery frequency
in certain regions to twice a week while also delivering
mail electronically.40 When customers were asked if
this service was meeting their needs, responses indicated a high degree of satisfaction.41
Potential changes to service standards in Canada,
including reduced days of delivery, are examined
in detail later in this report.
Conclusion
Canada’s experience is not unique. The situation in the
United States is far more severe: the U.S. Postal Service
reported a loss of US$15.9 billion in the fiscal year ended
September 30, 2012, more than triple its US$5.1 billion
loss in the previous year.42 Postal operators around the
world are being forced to deal with the same pressures
on traditional mail volumes. Some have dramatically
reshaped their business models, moving their core operations into new lines of business or new markets. Others
have focused on adding revenue through complementary
digital products and growth sectors such as parcels, while
also exploring ways to sustain their postal networks
through investment in technology and changes in
service standards.
The clear message from the international experience
is that dealing with the technology-driven decline of
lettermail requires significant changes to the traditional
postal business model. In addition, while management
initiatives can drive significant innovation and efficiencies,
the scale of the challenge ultimately requires policy decisions by governments to shape the future course of
postal service within their jurisdictions.
39 Singapore Post, SingPost Implements 5-Day Mail Collection and
Delivery Service.
40 van Heel, Airoldi, and Bos, The Postman Always Brings Twice, 7.
41 Ibid.
42 United States Postal Service, Postal Service $15.9 Billion Loss
Highlights Urgent Need for Legislative Reform.
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Transmission of Bills and
Statements to Customers
Many Canadians still receive paper bills by mail. From
the customer’s point of view, receiving bills has no cost
and is convenient. For companies sending statements
and bills, however, postal service is a major expense
and digital alternatives offer large cost savings.
An executive at a major bank said the bank began
encouraging customers to convert to electronic delivery
five years ago, and intensified its efforts two years ago.
Customers are currently converting at about 1 per cent
per month, and more than half now receive their statements electronically. A major publishing firm said that
its web-based transactions in the first three quarters of
2012 were up 20 per cent from the same period in 2011.
The firm also said that the electronic share of the company’s transactions has grown more than tenfold in the
past five years—from 2 per cent to more than 25 per cent.
Conversion to electronic delivery is being positioned as
offering greater convenience to the customer, as well as
cost savings to the mailer.
A growing number of major mailers have begun charging
customers who want to continue receiving paper bills. This
has prompted an advocacy campaign by the Canadian
Association of Retired Persons, which has focused on
the $2 per month fees now being levied by companies
that include Bell Media, Rogers, TELUS, and TD Bank.1
It is becoming common for newer entrants into the telecom sector to default to online bills and charge a fee for
paper bill service, adding pressure for incumbent providers to do the same. 2 Imposing a cost on customers
for paper delivery can only accelerate the conversion
to electronic transmission.
Not all major customers are cutting transaction mail to
the same extent. But conversion to electronic delivery is
being positioned as offering greater convenience to the
1
Canadian Association of Retired Persons (CARP), Paper Bill
Surcharge Advocacy Update.
2 Roseman, Bell Wants to Charge Web Clients $2 for Paper Bills.
customer, as well as cost savings to the mailer. The
2011 postal labour disruption provided a huge incentive
for both sender and receiver to convert. Those who made
the change at that time generally have not reverted.
Mailers still find physical mail more effective for certain kinds of transactions such as subscription renewals,
but they will continue to encourage conversion to electronic transactions for cost reasons. As one mailer we
interviewed put it, “We would love to do all electronic,
but that’s certainly not realistic.”
The current pace of conversions may level off, but the
ultimate share of customers who will refuse conversion
is not clear. Mailers who are still heavily dependent on
physical mail confirmed that this is linked to the older
demographics of their customer base. One publisher said
subscribers to titles geared to older, rural, and female
readers show little interest in electronic transactions—
but for those aimed at younger male readers, web
transactions are “off the charts.”
Government Mail
The Government of Canada is both Canada Post’s owner
and one of its biggest customers. Like other major mailers,
the federal government is seeking to cut costs by reducing
its use of postal services. In April 2012, for instance, the
government announced that it would phase out the use
of paper cheques by April 2016 and instead make payments to Canadians by direct deposit. Public Works and
Government Services Canada (PWGSC) has set the cost
of producing a cheque at $0.82, compared with only
$0.13 for making the same payment by direct deposit.
This initiative is expected to save the government about
$17.4 million a year, starting in fiscal 2014–15.
Once the process is complete, PWGSC said that “cheques
will only be issued under exceptional circumstances; for
example, when Canadians do not have access to a financial institution because they live in a remote location.” 3
This means that by 2016, the federal government, as a
Canada Post customer, will use its wholly owned postal
service to deliver only a tiny fraction of its 300 million
3
Public Works and Government Services Canada, Government
of Canada Increasing the Use of Direct Deposit.
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14 | The Future of Postal Service in Canada—April 2013
of paper for marketing direct mail plummeted from
165 tonnes in 2010 to 92 tonnes in 2011—a drop of
44 per cent in a single year.6
In the advertising business, Canada Post has some
unique attributes that enable it to charge premium rates
for specific markets. One major retailer, for example,
said in an interview that it heavily uses flyers, but chooses
Canada Post for only about 10 per cent of its total volume.
Canada Post’s universal delivery network enables the
retailer to connect with certain customers that it would
otherwise be unable to reach or target, but Canada
Post’s costs are more than triple that of distribution
via newspaper.
Another mailer we interviewed cited Canada Post’s
ability to target customers down to the route level as key,
but noted that newspapers are beginning to improve service in this area. Another praised Canada Post’s unique
degree of access to customers in apartment buildings
and condominiums. For large firms, mail is but one
channel among many marketing options, and cost is
critical. One mailer told us: “If I can find a distributor
who can do 80 per cent of what we can do with Canada
Post, I’ll move.”
As sources of competition for Admail in the future,
magazines, TV, radio, and newspapers (for ad placement) are not considered to be increasing threats. In
fact, the difficulties that magazine and newspapers have
had in terms of their own physical distribution may present
a mild opportunity. Meanwhile, the decline in newspaper
distribution also provides a particular opportunity for
unaddressed Admail, which competes almost directly
with newspapers in distribution.
The total amount of advertising spending in Canada (on
sources other than Admail) is forecast to grow from just
under $11 billion in 2011 to over $12 billion in 2014.7
What is striking is the rise of Internet advertising spending as a share of the total, which is forecast to increase
from 25 to 35 per cent over the same period, overtaking
TV for the top spot. (See Chart 2.)
Chart 2
Canadian Advertising Expenditure Share of Total
(per cent)
Newspapers
Radio
Magazines
Outdoor
TV
Internet
Forecast
40
30
20
10
0
2000
02
04
06
08
10
12f
Source: ZenithOptimedia.
Like all forms of traditional advertising, Admail (both
addressed and unaddressed) faces competition from the
various forms of Internet advertising, more specifically:
Online display. Advertising spending on online display (such as web banners) reached $800 million in
2011 and is expected to exceed $1.1 billion in 2014.
Online display advertising has grown significantly
more sophisticated in its ability to target individuals
according to demographics, location, search history,
etc.—contributing to its ongoing growth. And while
display ads may not have the “staying power” of
physical flyers (which can sit on a coffee table as a
reminder), they are increasingly able to perform this
role by appearing on websites that are visited by
individuals multiple times per day. Moreover, the
lower visibility is offset by low cost per ad relative to
Admail (roughly $20 to $50 per thousand visitors).8
Online video. The ad spend on online video is relatively small, sitting at $80 million in 2011. But this
is expected to quadruple by 2014 due to increasing
use of streaming video. This is considered to be a
direct threat for TV advertising spending.
Internet classified. One of the “oldest” forms of
Internet advertising spending, Internet classified hit
$600 million in 2011. But as a result of its maturity,
6 Scotiabank, Paper—Measuring and Reducing Paper Consumption.
7 Barnard, ZenithOptimedia Releases September 2012 Advertising
Expenditure Forecasts, 47.
14f
8 ZenithOptimedia, Americas Market MediaFact, 62.
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16 | The Future of Postal Service in Canada—April 2013
rate structure. Another was blunter: “The way the rates
are structured in Canada motivates me to do everything
in my power not to use Canada Post.”
Table 2
Canada Post Segment and Purolator Parcel Volumes
and Revenues
Canada Post
2003
2010
Purolator
2003
2010
Volume (millions)
162
143
129
143
Revenue ($ millions)
991
1,275
1,079
1,493
Yield ($/parcel)
6.12
8.92
8.36
10.44
Source: Canada Post Corporation.
periodicals. These replicas are mainly intended for
tablets, but can also be read on smartphones and personal computers. Digital replicas (as well as general
electronic content consumed through tablets, e-readers,
and smartphones) add potential for an even more rapid
shift away from physical distribution of periodicals.
While data for Canadian digital replica distribution are
not available, the trend in the U.S. is indicative of what is
to come. For example, 7 of the top 25 consumer magazines (rated by circulation) in the U.S. had digital replicas
as of June 2012. Of the seven, two—Game Informer
magazine and Maxim— have seen their digital replica
distribution exceed 10 per cent of their total circulation.9 Other magazines, such as Reader’s Digest and
O (the Oprah magazine), that do not necessarily target
younger demographics have also released digital replicas, suggesting that this will likely be more than a
niche phenomenon.
Canada Post’s publication volume also is being affected by
a shift in federal policy. The government used to subsidize postal rates for publications. Instead, it now offers a
general subsidy to magazines. This has given publishers
a strong incentive to encourage newsstand sales rather
than mailed subscriptions—especially for magazines
using high-quality glossy paper and inserts. On this
subject, one publisher we interviewed pointed to what
he called a “penalty box” (much higher rates for publications that weigh more than 200 grams) in Canada Post’s
9 Lulofs, The Top 25 U.S. Consumer Magazines.
Parcels
In Canada, as elsewhere, the parcel business is the
exception to the downward trend. E-commerce is having
a major upward impact on parcel volume. One e-commerce
firm said its parcel volume is doubling every year, and
it expects that growth trend to continue for at least the
next five years. For e-commerce fulfillment, both the
speed and frequency of delivery are important for customer satisfaction. That said, customers have shown little interest in paying extra for faster delivery options.
Despite the fact that Canada Post’s monopoly does not
cover parcel service, it has been sharing in this rising
overall market. The Canada Post group actually competes
for parcels through two vehicles, its postal segment and
its Purolator courier business. On this score, Purolator
has, to date, been more successful. (See Table 2.)
In Canada, as elsewhere, the parcel business is the
exception to the downward trend—e-commerce is having
a major upward impact on parcel volume.
One major shipper mentioned having moved from
exclusive reliance on Canada Post to heavy reliance on
a private sector competitor and then back to the Canada
Post group. The factors in returning to Canada Post were
its stronger on-time performance, reduction in the proportion of damaged shipments, and initiation of improvements such as signature service and the ability to track
and trace shipments.
As with other major mailers, the 2011 labour disruption
was highly damaging, leading to lost sales as well as
delayed shipments. Shippers, however, do have both
short- and long-term alternatives and can factor the risk of
labour disruption into their choice of delivery company.
One Canada Post customer mentioned hedging its bets
by signing a combination agreement with both Canada
Post and Purolator.
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Traditional print media and retailers are attempting to
make use of these technologies to avoid being left behind.
The trend of subsidizing digital devices in exchange
for an ongoing subscription commitment is an example.
Barnes and Noble now discounts its Nook e-readers and
tablets when the customer commits to a digital New
York Times subscription.17 The Times (U.K.) is making
a similar offer to customers who purchase Google’s
Nexus 7 tablet.18
17 Melanson, Barnes Noble Offers Discounted Nooks.
18 Smith, The Times UK Offers Digital Newspaper Subscriptions.
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20 | The Future of Postal Service in Canada—April 2013
Rather, the rapidly evolving competitive factors have
come to dominate, but mail volumes will still be positively affected by economic growth.
The Conference Board was able to estimate elasticities
with respect to economic growth and price for transaction mail, addressed Admail, unaddressed Admail,
and publications. This was done through econometric
modelling using historical price and volume data. A
trend variable was introduced in order to account for
the combined impact of the various external factors that
have contributed to flat or declining mail volumes. In
other words, the trend variable helped to normalize the
data in order to help isolate the influence of GDP and
price on mail volumes.
Table 3 shows the coefficients that were estimated
with the modelling. A coefficient of 1 indicates that
volumes are expected to grow in equal proportion relative to the corresponding explanatory variable (all things
being equal). A coefficient of less than 1 indicates less
than proportional growth, while a negative coefficient
indicates that volumes would decline with growth in
the explanatory variable. The coefficients for parcel
volumes were not derived from the econometric modelling, as the estimated coefficients were rarely shown to
be significant. This is likely due to the fact that Canada
Post is one of many competitors in the parcel business.
In addition, the coefficients for publications were only
borderline significant, as was the price elasticity coefficient for unaddressed Admail.
Table 3
Mail Volume Coefficients With Respect to Real GDP
Growth and Real Price Changes
Real GDP
Real price
Transaction mail
0.82
–0.80
Parcels
1.25
–0.75
Addressed Admail
0.80
–1.00
Unaddressed Admail
1.18
–0.46
Publications
0.85
–1.00
Source: The Conference Board of Canada.
Throughout the estimation process, price elasticities
for transaction mail were consistently between –1 and 0
(inelastic). This is consistent with the evidence from the
mailer surveys: the price of mail delivery was generally
not a significant factor when determining mail volumes,
and transaction mail service was considered to be good
value for money. Meanwhile, addressed Admail customers
were estimated to be a bit more price-sensitive, while
unaddressed Admail customers were less so (partly due to
the lower per unit price), with the caveat that the results
from the modelling were only borderline-significant.
The volumes for all lines of business were generally
estimated to be influenced by economic growth in
roughly equal proportion (with unaddressed Admail
responding most significantly to economic growth).
Note that a stronger response to GDP growth also
means that volumes are expected to fall more quickly
in recessionary periods.
Volume and Revenue Projections
The above coefficients were combined with a qualitative assessment of the impact of the competitive threats
discussed earlier in order to project volumes and revenues by line of business to 2020 (with the exception
of the 2012 projection, as explained below).
The Conference Board’s Canadian Outlook Long-Term
Economic Forecast was the source of GDP and the consumer price index (CPI) (for deflating nominal price
increases) forecasts. Transaction mail prices were projected to increase by the rate of CPI (approximately 2 per
cent per year) after the year 2014 and beyond. Prior to
that, the rate increases by $0.02 per year, on the basis of
the $0.02 per year increase in the basic letter rate that
has been approved through 2014. In addition, the quantitative and qualitative evidence suggests that while the
basic letter rate has increased at a pace slower than inflation over the past two decades (or perhaps because of
that), there is room for the price to grow without negatively affecting transaction mail revenues.
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22 | The Future of Postal Service in Canada—April 2013
Chart 5
Projected Net Loss From Operations to 2020
Table 5
2011 Operating Results
($ millions)
($ millions)
Canada Post segment
Revenue
5,861
7,484
Costs
6,189
7,710
Operating income
–328
Baseline with PT plan savings included
Total
–226
Source: The Conference Board of Canada; Canada Post Corporation.
Projection
0
Baseline without PT plan savings
−500
−1,000
−1,500
contributed heavily to the operating loss in 2011.1
Operating income includes the expense portion of pension and other employee future benefits, but excludes the
longer-term impact of the significant deficit in Canada
Post’s pension plan. This report and its scenarios focus
exclusively on the Canada Post segment, because this is
the business that is constrained by public policy.
This projection of mail volumes leads to a very negative
outlook for Canada Post revenues and for its bottom line.
The start of our projection period includes the anticipated
negative impact of a planned change in the accounting for
current costs associated with providing future employee
benefits. From this base, the Conference Board projected
two scenarios.
The first is a “business as usual” outlook that does not
include the impact of the Postal Transformation initiative, either in terms of savings realized through 2012 or
those that are expected through 2017. This first scenario
effectively maintains the labour force at its current level,
meaning that retirees and other leavers are replaced on
an ongoing basis.
The second scenario includes both the realized and
expected impact of the Postal Transformation (PT)
initiative. This recognizes the impact of the actions that
Canada Post management already has launched, with
the objective of significantly improving efficiency and
reducing costs through the application of leading-edge
technologies. This scenario is the one used as the baseline against which all additional options are measured.
(See Chart 5.)
1
Canada Post Corporation, Transformation, 5.
2012p 13p 14p 15p 16p 17p 18p 19p 20p
p = projection
Source: The Conference Board of Canada.
The Postal Transformation initiative will have a significant impact in improving financial performance, but the
Conference Board projects that the annual operating
loss still will reach about $1 billion by 2020.
It is possible that Canada Post could offset some of
these losses in its current core business lines through
increased profits in other activities. These activities
include growth of its existing Purolator courier service,
development of electronic postal products, or entry into
new lines of business that could leverage its expertise
and physical assets.
Despite its major investments in technology to cut costs
and improve efficiency, Canada Post’s annual operating
loss is projected to reach $1 billion by 2020.
However, Canadians should be careful not to rely on
competitive, profit-oriented activities within the broader
Canada Post group as a means of financially sustaining
postal services. First, there is no way to guarantee sustained profitability in rapidly evolving markets. Second,
any Canada Post-owned businesses participating in open
markets must generate competitive financial returns. If
these operations are required to siphon capital into subsidies for postal services, they are more likely to underinvest and fall behind. Third, there is no public policy
rationale for a government-owned business to engage
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Chapter 5
Expectations and Use
of Postal Service
Chapter Summary
Household and small business customers
are using mail less frequently. Almost half of
households send two pieces of mail or less
each month.
Both groups of customers see the current price
of a stamp as good value, and are willing to
tolerate slower service than they now receive.
What matters most is the certainty that mail
will be delivered to its intended destination.
E-commerce is increasing the demand for
parcel delivery. However, having to travel to
pick up parcels when no one is home to accept
delivery is a growing source of frustration.
Many customers, especially in rural areas,
would be significantly inconvenienced if the
distance to the nearest postal outlet was
doubled. But most are highly satisfied with
the retail service they receive, whether from
a corporate or franchised outlet.
Most Canadians believe that despite the
spread of electronic communications, they
always will need postal service and recognize
the need for some degree of change.
T
his chapter describes the responses of Canadian
residential and small business customers to questions about their expectations and actual use of
postal service, about their perceptions of the challenges
facing Canada Post, and about how they might react to
various potential avenues for addressing those challenges.
How the Use of Postal Services
Is Changing
The surveys confirm that traditional forms of paperbased communications are increasingly being overtaken
by electronic forms of communication. Almost half of
households surveyed (47 per cent) said they are sending
less mail today than three to four years ago. Slightly
more (49 per cent) said they are sending about the
same amount of mail. Only 3 per cent claimed to
be sending more mail.
As for incoming mail, just over half of those surveyed
(51 per cent) said that their household currently receives
about the same amount of lettermail that it used to “three
to four years ago.” However, one-third claimed that their
household receives less mail than it used to, while half
that number (17 per cent) said they receive more.
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