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PSA MTAC NOTES

February 2017

Washington, D.C.

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Tableof Contents

1. MTACAgendas 3

2. GeneralSessionNotes(Kovlakas) 5

3. FocusGroupNotes (Kovlakas) 11

a. EnterpriseAnalytics/DataUsage–Packages 11b. PaymentAcceptance&Education–Packages 12c. ProductInnovation&EmergingTechnology–GaryReblin 13d. MailPayment&Entry–Packages–RobertCintron,PaulMitchell 15

4. PackageGroupActionItems;OtherItemsofInterest(Medeiros) 27

NOTE:MOSTPRESENTATIONSANDUSPSFOCUSGROUPNOTESFORALLCLASSESOFMAILWILLBEAVAILABLEONTHEMTACWEBSITE.THISREPORTCONCENTRATESONPACKAGESGROUPSWETHINKWILLBEOFINTERESTTOPSAMEMBERS.

https://ribbs.usps.gov/index.cfm?page=mtac

PSAMTACRepresentativesDate:March6,2017

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MTAC OPEN SESSION Tuesday, February 28, 2017

US Postal Service Headquarters 475 L’Enfant Plaza, SW

Washington, DC 20260-1000

MTAC Open Session Agenda Ben Franklin Room, 11th Floor 1:00 PM – 1:05 PM Welcome and

Introductions Chairman Remarks

Steve Monteith – MTAC USPS Chair Erv Drewek – MTAC Industry Chair

1:05 PM – 1:20 PM

1:20 PM – 2:00 PM

2:00 PM – 2:30 PM

2:30 PM – 3:00 PM

Legislative Update

Marketing Update

Research Insights

Operations Update

CIO Priorities

Ron Stroman Deputy Postmaster General & Chief Government Relations Officer

Jim Cochrane Chief Customer and Marketing Officer & EVP

Chris Karpenko Exec. Dir., Brand Marketing and Lisa Nieman Director USPS OIG

David Williams Chief Operating Officer & EVP

Kristin Seaver Chief Information Officer & EVP

3:00 PM – 3:15 PM BREAK

3:15 PM – 4:00 PM

4:00 PM – 4:30 PM

4:30 PM – 4:45 PM

4:45 pm – 5:00 pm

5:00 PM

How Do You Get People to Open the Mail Piece? – Making Your Mail Irresistible

Inspection Service Review

WG / TT / UG Updates WG Closure Recognitions

PMG Comments

Closing Remarks

Dr. John Leininger Professor of Graphic Communications, Clemson University

Guy Cottrell Chief Postal Inspector

Erv Drewek/Steve Monteith

Megan J. Brennan Postmaster General & CEO

Erv Drewek/Steve Monteith

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MTAC MEETINGS – FEBRUARY-MARCH 2017

TUESDAY, FEBRUARY 28, 2017 ***MEETINGS/WORKGROUPS***

1:00 PM – 5:00 PM MTAC Open Session Ben Franklin Room - USPS Headquarters-475 L'Enfant Plaza, SW, Washington DC

5:00 PM – 7:00 PM MTAC Reception Hall of Flags-USPS Headquarters

WEDNESDAY, MARCH 1, 2017 ***FOCUS GROUP DISCUSSIONS***

8:00 AM – 8:45 AM MTAC Membership Assembly Ben Franklin Room

9:00 AM – 4:00 PM Times listed below

MTAC Focus Discussions MTAC MEMBERS WILL NOT ROTATE MEETING ROOMS. PLEASE STAY WITH YOUR MAIL CLASS.* FOCUS AREA VPS WILL ROTATE.

* First Class – Ben Franklin Room* Standard – Room 1P410* Packages – Room 4841* Periodicals – Room 7801

4:30 PM – 5:30 PM MTAC Business Meeting Ben Franklin Room (MTAC Industry Members Only)

FOCUS AREA

Mail Prep & Entry, Operations

(Cintron/ROSSER)

Enterprise Analytics/ Data Usage

(Cronkhite/ ANAGNOSTOPOULOS)

Payment & Acceptance, Education

(Mehra/ SCHIMEK)

Product Innovation/Emerging

Technology (Reblin/COLELLA)

9:00 AM –10:15 AM

STANDARD 2/FLANAGAN ROOM 1P410

PACKAGES 3/MEDEIROS ROOM 4841

PERIODICALS 4/STUMBO ROOM 7801

FIRST-CLASS 1/TATE BEN FRANKLIN ROOM

10:30 AM – 11:45 AM





LUNCH (11:45 AM – 1:00 PM)

1:15 PM – 2:30 PM





2:45 PM – 4:00 PM





THURSDAY, MARCH 2, 2017 ***MEETINGS/WORKGROUPS***

9:00 AM – 11:00 AM 12:00 PM – 1:00 PM

MTAC Leadership Meeting MTAC Executive Committee Meeting

Room 4841 (MTAC Leadership Only) Room 4841 (Executive Committee Only)

9:00 AM – 10:30 AM WG #173: Payment Modernization Room 1P629

10:30 AM – 11:45 PM UG #3: FAST & eInduction Room 1P629

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February 28, 2016 MTAC – General Session RonStroman(USPSDPMG)-LegislativeUpdate

Ithasbeenandwillcontinuetobealongprocess,we’vebeenbuildingoutconsensus.Afteralongeffort,welandedonanapproachfocusingonafewelements:

1. MedicareIntegration(cornerstoneofthebill)2. ½ofExigentSurchargereinstatedpermanently3. USPSemployeedemographicsusedincalculationsforFERS4. Nonpostal–AllowGovernmentServices

TheDPMGdescribehowvariouspartieshavesignedontosupportthecurrentproposal.The2016proposedlegislationreceivedapositiveCBOscore,buttimeranoutonthelegislativesession.Heiscautiouslyoptimisticaboutthelatestlegislation.Legislation(hedescribedasanimprovedbill)wasintroducedearlyoninthenewcongress.ExpectstoseeabetterCBOscore,andmoresupportcongressionallythanthelastbill.Havehadonesuccessfulhearing.C21,unions,PRC,PMGtestified.Hesaidtheinterestsofallkeystakeholderswerealigned.Feelsweareinbestpositioninthelast10yearstogetsomethingpassed.“Weseeaconsensusbuilding”…TheBillwillgothroughmarkup,andscoring.Havehaddiscussionsonthesenatesidetoo,thinkswecangetamarkupthatsatisfiesbothsides.Expectsitwillbemarkedupthismonth.Q:Doyouthinkwe’llhaveanewlawthisyear?A:Yes,webelieveweneedtogetitdonethiscalendaryear.Q:WaysandMeansdidnotweighinwithapprovallastyear,medicareprovisionwillimpacttheMedicareTrustFund.A:WehavesomeeducationtodowiththeWaysandMeansCommittee,wehavebeenabletoeducatetheOversightCommittee,willdowithWaysandMeanstoo.Shouldbeabletogettheirsupport.Q:AnyprogressonfillingouttheBOG?A:Nominationshavetostartoveragain,requiresanominationbythePresident.Hehasmanypositionstoappoint,fill.Itwilltakesometime,havetonominate,vetandapprove.Q:Assumelegislationpasses,howsoonwouldexigentrestoration(half)gointoeffect?Whatwouldbetheprocess?A:Dependsonwhenitpasses,PMGhassaidprefersithappensonnormalpricechangecycles.

CliffRucker–MarketingUpdate

CliffsaidtheJimCochranesayshellotothegroup,willbebacktoworknextMonday(had

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hipreplacement).Cliffdescribedsomeofwhat’sbeenhappeningsincehetookoverCustomerCareinOctober2016,including:

• He’sestablished152openworkstreamstochangethewaytheUSPSinteractwithclients.

• Puttinginanewagentplatformtohandlecalls.• Workingwithusps.comandmobilesupportchannels,makingimprovementsto

avoidcalls.• ImprovingBSNsandBandwidth,have12KclientsintheBSNportfolio,plansto

expandto65K.• VoiceoftheCustomersaystherea4keyareasofconcern:

o BetterCommunicationso Resolvedeliveryissueso Istheagentabletoresolvefirsttime(helpfulness)o Consistency

AbouttolaunchanewcustomerportalonBSN&mobileapp,ithasmobile-firstdesignapproach.MakingimprovementstotheSinglePackageLookupTool–mostusedbycustomers.72%ofincomingcallsarefromthoselookingfortheirpackage,requestingredilveryorredirectionetc.EstablishingDashboards&Reporting.WillhaveLiveChatAlotofworkhasbeendone,andCliffrequestedthatweemailhimwithfeedback.

ChrisKarpenko(USPSExecutiveDirector,BrandMarketing)&KarenMcCormick(OIG)

ProvidedanoverviewoftheIntegratedMediaResearchCenter:(http://www.imresearchcenter.com/).TheMarketingWorldisShifting,there’salotofdisruptiontakingplace.Google&YahooareabouttosurpassTVviewership.Omnichannelispopular–playersarecomplexandfragmentedShiftingperspective–needtounderstandthecustomerjourneytoknowwhichchannelsworkbestforgivenobjectives.Googlestats:Peoplechecktheirsmartphonesabout150timesaday.RevenueAttributioniskey.Havetobeabletotellwhypeoplebought,whichchanneldrovethepurchase.Whatarethebarrierstoimplementingmultichannelmarketing?95%ofmarketerssaytheyknowhowimportantmultichannelistoday,43%sayimprovingROIistheirbiggest

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challenge.IMRCismadeupofaBoardofAdvisors(USPS,PostCom,Axciom,BentleyUniversity,McCannaresomeontheBoard),andWorkingGroups.LaunchedawebsitelastOctober,2,500usershaveaccessedthewebsite,whichoffersresearch,casestudies,andarticles.~1,000piecesofresearch,withlinksthatlaunchouttothesourceofthecontent.Somearefree,someforcost.Willbeaddingmorefreearticles/research.

DavidWilliams(USPSCOO)

Q1ishistoricallythePostalService’smostchallengingintermsofServicePerformance.Sawyearonyearimprovementin30of31categoriestracked.WithFCM,we’veworkedoncleaningupthetailofthemail.FocusonLastMileopportunitiesforimprovement.Weareabletodrilldowntoseewhichcarrierstofocuson.PeakSeasonRecap:

• Hadagreatpeakseason.Gotalotofpositivepresscoverage.Delivered809millionpackagesthisseason(15%overPY).Over250KletterstoSanta,hitserviceperformancetargetsonParcelSelect,all-timehighsonPriorityMail.

• 34millionpackagesonMondayDec19thbusiestdayforpackages.• ServiceimprovementsoverSPLY,doublediggrowthinpackagevolumes,

alreadystartedplanningfor2017peakseasoninthefield(startedinJan).

NOCC(NetworkOperationsCommandCenter)-Allowsustotakearearviewmirrorapproach,userecentperformancedatatodriveoperationaladjustmentstoimproveperformance.

NetworkRationalization:thereisaphase2remaining.Weputphase2(66facilities)onholdwhenservicewasimpacted.Wearerefreshingthebusinesscasestovalidateplans–doesn’tthinkthey’llgettoall66thisyear.

DestinationPackagesServicesperformanceslightlydeclinedfromlastyear,theonlycategorythatwentdown.

Asflatsvolumedeclines,productivitygoesdown,downtimebetween1standsecondpassisabout18minsandneedtoaddsortprograms(resultsinmoredowntime).

GuyCottrell(ChiefPostalInspector)

MissionofInspectionServiceistokeepthingsmoving,continuityofoperations,protectingcustomersandassets.Makingmailsafe.

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WearetheSilentService.Workinthebackground.WhatwedoforUSPSwecandoforyou,theindustry…doingmailcenterreviews,settingupanemergencyplan.Youshouldthinkinadvance,anticipatewhatyouwoulddoifapieceofsuspiciousmailcamein…wearehappytocometalkwithyouaboutit.Whilerare,itsbesttothinkinadvance.Werespondtosuspiciousitemsatourfacilities.Wetrainourfolksonwhattolookfor,candosameforyou.Caneliminateallriskthroughpreventionbutyoucanmitigateit.Youneedaplanbutalsoneedtocommunicateitthroughoutyourorganization.Wecandothisforyou.Publication166–GuidetoMailCenterSecurity(https://about.usps.com/publications/pub166.pdf).Cybercrime–USPShasalargeITorganization.WepartnerwiththeCISOorganization(ChiefInformationSecurityOfficer).Weareverydependentuponourdigitalinformation,havetokeepitsecure.DescribedreshippingscamsasanexampleofcybercrimethattheISfightsagainst.

SafeguardingRevenueandAssets…HowdoestheIMbhelp?Weuseittotrackitems,incaseoftheftithelpspinpointinternalorexternalissues.MailboxFishing…stickypadonendofstringdroppedintobluebox,pulledoutwithmailstucktopadtostealmail.ISworkedwithUSPSEngineeringtodesignasolutiontocombatthis.Mountedonblueboxslot.Alsoputsignageontheboxes.

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RevenueInvestigations–TheISistryingtonarrowtheirfocus,theyarelookingfororganizationsthataredeliberatelynotprovidingproperpaymentforpostage.Notinterestedingoingaftermistakesorhonesterror.FocusonthosetryingtodefraudtheUSPS.TheyarecomfortablewithsomeofthenewprogramsPrithaisputtinginplacetoassureproperpayment…doesn’tmeanthattheISwon’tpursuecases.Thenewprocedureshavegreatlylessonedtheneedforpeopletoinvestigatecases.Someoftheaggressiveworkyou’veseeninthepast,hedoesn’tthinkwe’llseeasmuchaggressioninthefuture.MTE-stolenMTequipmentisbeingrecoveredbytheIS,thereisalotofcrimeandtheyworkwithPDsandrecyclingyardstorecovertheequipment(over$1.5millionlastyear).MailFraud–usingConsumerAlertNewsNetworktoeducateagainstit,helppreventit.Shortnewsreports,blendedintonewscastssothatitlookslikepartofnews.AlsothereisaPostalInspectorsseriesnowonCBSonSaturdaymornings.WhattheISdoesisallbakedintothepriceofastamp.Notaxpayerdollars.

KristinSeaver(ChiefInformationOfficer-Priorities)

GaveanoverviewofinitiativesunderwayintheCIOorganization.ThegroupistiedintotheUSPSmissionofbindingthenationtogether.We’vecreatedadigitalreflectionofthephysicalmailpiece.Wecanleverageourdigitalnetworknow,likewedothephysicalone,toimproveperformanceandcustomerexperience.

• IV(InformedVisibility)–KristinspoketoanoverviewofequipmentthroughoutthenetworkthatenablesIV,andplansforgolivewithprovisioningofIVdatawithinthemonth.We’reatabout74%ofallthemailtheytouchisvisible.Nestingisashorttermgap,overthenextseveraldeploymentsitwillimprove.Non-Automatedvolumeisstillavisibilitygap.

• PTRSuccessStory–Lastpeakwehadsomeissueswithstabilityandreliability,

continuedinto2016.SharedsomevisualizationsshowinghowsystemstabilityimprovedsignificantlyafterJuly,verystableandreliableafterthat,asaresultofdevelopment,systemimprovementandmaintenanceplanning.86%increaseininternetresponsetime.Nowdownto4minutestopulldownextractfiles.OutforDeliveryeventnotificationswithin2minutesofscan.

• APV–Wewillleveragethetechnologywehaveinplacetoweigh,dimandcheck

barcodetoverifythecorrectpostageisaffixed.Similartohowletterstreamevolved.Wewanttothinkaboutthisasthefutureofpackagepayment,reducedthefrictionwithgettingpackagesintothemail.

• PO!Roadmap–Weslowedwaydown,weneededtoplanforbusinessneeds,

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neededtoknowmoreaboutthebusinessneeds.Gavecredittoteamfordoingthat,workingwithcustomersandinternalstakeholders.PO!hasdoneitsjob,timetoreplaceit.PackagePlatform(eVSreplacement),PaymentModernization,Onboarding&AccountManagementwillbesomeofservicesinthenewsuite.WG179isworkingontheRoadmap.

• PaymentModernization–Willprovideoneplatformforallpaymentchannels.

MeganBrennan(PMGComments)

GaveahighlevelonFinancials–JanYTD,SinglePieceFCMdown5.7%,PSvolumedown2%,MTGMailup1.3%,PeriodicalsaboutsameasPY,Packagesup10%.Revenueoff$100mfromPY,expensesupdriveninpartbyworkloadcontentassociatedwithpackagevolume.Alotofheadwinds.

ThePMGthankedtheindustryforhelpingeducatelegislators,andhelptoadvocateforgettingtheUSPSonfirmerfinancialfooting.We’llcontinuetoworkthreepillars:legislation,regulationandmanagementactiontoensurewehavetheplatformthatpropelsyourbusiness.Q:Haveyoucommunicatedwiththenewadministration?A:We’vemetwiththetransitionteam.Provideda7page‘ownersmanual’ortransitionbrief.ProvidedbackgroundandcontextforUSPSandIndustry,andsaidhowthenewadministrationcansupportthePO:1-Legislationand2,addresstheBOGissue(nooneontheBOG).Q:Canyouexpandontheregulatoryreformyou’relookingfor?A:It’sthe10-yearreview.OurpositionisthataCapisfundamentallyunsuitedinanetworkenvironmentwithgrowingcosts.Sheknowsit’snotpopularbutbeingtransparent.Somesaywehaveamonopoly,butwelookatitasamonopolyinstatuteonly.Customershaveoptionsinhowtheycommunicate,wehaveanincentivetobeefficient,regardlessifthere’sacapornot.We’renotgoingtodoanythingthatwilldrivevolumeoutofthemail.Butitwouldbeirresponsiblenottobearguingformaximumpricingflexibility.Q:Ifyouimplementanewfederalrulein,2mustcomeout…doesthatapplytoUSPS?A:No.Q:Howareyoulookingtoreducecosts?A:Wearenottryingtopriceourwayoutofthis.Ononesidethereispressuretoimprovebusiness,onexpensewefullyexploitthemixofemployees,betterleverageourassets,revisitconsolidation,revisitthebusinesscasesthere.Wecanimproveofficeefficiency,improvedeliveriesperhouronthestreet.Rationalizetheairandsurfacenetwork.Thesearestrategiesinthe5yearplanvaluedatover$5billioninsavings.

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Q:Speakingofeliminationofthepricecap,youstillneedtomeettheotherobjectivesandfactorsincludingstability,affordabilityetc.Withoutapricecap,howdoyouachievethosefactors?A:Weneedtohavesufficientrevenuetocovercosts,howcanyouensurethatwithapricecap?We’renotgoingtodoanythingthat’sgoingtoacceleratemovementoutofthemail.

ThePMGsaidwecan’thaveheadlinessaying“USPSlosesbillions”everyquarter.Itcreatesacrisisinconfidencemakingitmoredifficultforallofustosellthemail.ShesaidtheUSPSwillcontinuetobecandidandtransparent,madeacommitmenttohavetheongoingdiscussionsintheappropriateforums.

February 2016 MTAC – Focus Sessions Enterprise Analytics/Data Usage – Packages Jim Wilson provided an update on the SHA-256 conversion. Most SW developers have downloaded and started coding. Deadline is July 31st 2017. 42% have completed, 16% are still coding. There was recently a SHA-1 hack successfully executed. The Address Management group is trying to get more R777 addresses into the DPV database. These are addresses where USPS cannot do street delivery, and USPS gives customer a free PO Box. Packages sent to these addresses are likely to be returned to sender, working on associating the R777 address to the USPS provided PO Box, so that USPS can attempt delivery, e.g. SurePost, SmartPost. There about 1.4 million of these PO Box only addresses, USPS can only code about 13% of them. USPS AMS data includes a flag on 5-digit zips that don’t have street delivery. USPS also offers, is some small communities, free PO Box delivery if within ¼ mile of the local PO. Future Addressing Initiatives

COA Correct – allows user to provide corrections to COA info they provided if info was missing or incorrect… will be offered by end of FY17. USPS to reach out by email to users before going to carrier to correct COA deficiencies (costly). e.g. user provides a COA, but APT # was missing, how does COA data update get to industry? Needs to figure that out, referring to it as “baby-coa” Looking at increasing frequency of database updates to industry, e.g. weekly (about 100K changes). Considering other attributes that might be of use to industry, flags… like the recently released Door Not Accessible, etc… One thing under consideration is to provide non-delivery day information (like when a business is closed on certain days). UAA Mail Study…Still in planning for a future study, dates TBD. Not a full blown study like in 2004, using PARS and FPARS data as the basis. Updated ACS best practices docs have been posted on Postal Pro. Colleges & Universities COA… USPS doesn’t process COA for students, relies on college to forward. USPS tried to address this issue in 2005, unsuccessfully, trying again in 2017 – adding data to NCOAlink, college gets the ok from student to give COA to USPS… would not get into ACS but would get into NCOALink, will match to a code 07

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so USPS can tabulate stats and size the benefit,… only for permanent moves – November timeframe.

Jim’s trying to determine more precise locations (within) postal facilities and boundaries. Using GIS. Will help assess efficiency of operations, via breadcrumbs and scans that are geocoded. John Medeiros: Is there a way to exclude some address coding errors from the quality compliance metrics calculations? Tolerance only goes so far, what if you ship a disproportionate percentage of your volume to a problem area. Jim Wilson agreed to take a look at it, work with Juliaann and Steve Dearing to see what makes sense. There is some challenge in that the data changes weekly so would need to look back on the state of the address information at the time of the mailing. Surface Visibility – Peak Accomplishments – Had 439 sites with SV this past peak season. Deployed a lot of devises with cellular, covered all annexes (64) (extra spaces for peak). Scan volume increased 95% this year. Now have visibility to pick ups at 3rd party locations. USPS feels they have full coverage, and ability to flex to peak. IMpb Compliance Update – Juliaann Hess

March 10th is the target for release of a Proposed Rule FRN for IMpb rules and assessments. Revised reporting that reflect the metrics that will be in place in July will be available this month. Will have a new WG for 2018 AQ thresholds, start in July. Webinars planned to help clients prepare for the new rules and thresholds. USPS plans to update Tracking results page to display the Expected Delivery Date for some scenarios where it was not being done. USPS Pub 199 will be revised in conjunction with the FRN publishing.

Payment Acceptance & Education - Packages

March 26 Release– many fixes being deployed around IMpb compliance, calculations in reports, performance, loading files, duplicates, etc… reporting will calculate performance in aggregate across all classes as well. Several questions submitted in the Pulse of Industry were answered and discussed at length>

Sampling scenarios… • PSLW sampled over 1 lb is repriced as PS • PS Samples under 1 lb is priced as PS – cannot reprice as PS LW

Question on PSLW Tier… A: USPS has evaluated sample data for past 6 mos,… A PS 1.5% tolerance is solid for 0 to 8 oz, and over a pound it is generous. Q4: Scale Accuracy – USPS says is 2 oz variance for SWP, shouldn’t industry have the same threshold? A: SWP is for single piece, eVS is presorted and may include Dest Entry discounts. Different processes, different equipment.

Pritha said that in regards to the verification logic going into the eVS redesign, it is extremely important that this focus group be involved in reviewing what will be implemented. We need to walk through a white paper the USPS is developing, in about 2 weeks to discuss it. Will use the UG2 team, and WG 179 as well. Review current verifications and the new design for eVS. What we sample, etc. Ingest logic. MEETING IN DC AND WEBEX on March 23rd 8am start.

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NOTE: with the increase in ship from store, the scales they use may not be accurate or users there are just estimating the weight. As a result, may see impact on PAF scores.

Reviewed change to Shipping Products Indicia, encouraged folks to use now, deadline is end of this year. USPS sent letter out to permit holders recently announcing the change. Outbound parcel indicia:

US Postage Paid Shipping Products

Permit No. City State

Parcel Return Service – revised text in class block on PRS banner. To say:

SHIPPING PRODUCTS PERMIT No. 77999

Verdana will send out a copy of the letter announcing the change from Karen. Will do an MTAC Advisory. Also share the letter at the UG 2 meeting. APV Overview:

Phase 1 – Focus is on PC Postage to start. Assessing on weight, dim, zone and packaging. Have upgraded scales on all automated equipment. Capture weight in-line. Weight & info from Indicia Creation Record is compared to what scales capture. Compare price paid to what’s due, over or under, they go to providers in automated fashion, to subsequently go to shipper for adjustment if over a threshold. Automated billing process. Not plugged into EPS yet. USPS wants automated courtesy warnings to start 4/3. Manual warnings to begin in February. 8/1 go live. Verify Postage web page has been up since 2/17 (https://www.usps.com/business/verify-postage.htm ). USPS has been piloting with providers for past year.

eVS IMpb compliance assessments- New reports coming in march. Download options, etc… reports were reviewed. If you have any concerns on PO! roadmap you need to raise them to Pritha, Garrett and Vicki ASAP. David Gilmour & Ada are leading the BCG redesign, would love to get more participation as a subgroup of the WG. Shared high level direction on a new UX. It will have an area to link to providers of SW, printing your own labels, etc. Shared a cut sheet, for review, asked for feedback on wording and content. (See APPENDIX A at end of report). Send feedback to Vicki Bosh (USPS to send a soft copy). Product Innovation & Emerging Technology – Gary Reblin Seeing an increase in PRS volumes.

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Group E PO Boxes go live May 2017 – USPS Met with privacy and SOR may be needed before a final decision is made…. Also, USPS is creating a mapping so USPS can over label in operations, when equipment detects a E box. Charges for Permits… elimination Reply Mail Parcel Fees. Annual and account maintenance fees are eliminated – mailers must convert to shipping products permit by Dec 31st. Combined outbound and return permits (one fee)… chart, Permit Changes by Phase… should be in the letter. Jan 17 vs Mar 17. PRS pickup changes: Effective April 30, 17, DMM update May 17, pickup every: Facility Type: RADC Every 24hrs

RDU 48hrs RSCF 24hrs Excludes Sat, Sun and Holidays.

Unless authorized in an authorization letter… should adhere to these pickup hours. USPS Encourages return logistics providers to schedule FAST appointments. Upcoming Initiatives:

• Precious Cargo FR boxes…. USPS is coming up with a process to supply the boxes to businesses for resale, via an NSA price, with or without the postage.

• Scan Weigh Pay: Automated assessment of parcels. Tested with one company, about to pilot with another company. No postage due. Account for NSA contracts. Creates a billing manifest, reduce and eliminate manual processing (e.g. Postage Due process)… initially only for end-to-end products.

• #SWP in human readable on return shipping labels, not creating new STCs for this. • Online refunds in Sept this year for Extra Svcs and PME, also ability to do Bulk uploads. • eSignature on File (DAR completed), via MyUSPS. Target September as well. • Eliminate ES forms at RSS sites. SigCon, RR for Merch, Insured over and under $500,

Forms 3813, 3813-p, 3804, 163 • BPOD letter, simplify, add address to letter, Publish SOR (Summer?)…. Will leave the

old letter in place in case it impacts vendor sw. • Redesign Registered Mail (or offer another secure delivery option, e.g. beacon, blue

tooth, etc,. creating a mesh network). • Retail receipts sent to your email • RSS Lookup for Tracking of packages and claims • Redesign 3849 for (left notice attempted delivery) – doing 30 day test in NoVa about

150,000 recipients, may revise. Easier to use, clearer. QR code to schedule redelivery, links to MyUSPS. In the future will email recipient.

• Mobile Pickup: Use Mobile App to schedule: Pickup, Caller Svc, extra svc forms, keys, stamps, packaging supplies…

• Delivery on Demand: allow you to pay to have USPS hold your mail and deliver at certain day and time. Shipper would be able to know (based on AMS data)- 2018 idea.

Simplification Ideas for 2018 (Tiffany – Manager of Products Implementation)

• Evaluating the need for indicia on products that have STCs. • Evaluating if there’s value in putting CRRT on label as an incentive.

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• Evaluating ways to avoid over labeling by including both the origin PIC and the manifest PIC electronically.

Developing a joint USPS-Industry team to work on products and services for healthcare and pharmaceuticals. First of several industry specific efforts. Mail Payment & Entry – Packages – Robert Cintron, Paul Mitchell

• Service Visualization o PS performance has been performing above target

• Delivery Discussion o PEAK Carrier challenges o 15% increase SPLY o Had to push as much out with regular carrier as possible, or earlier in the day

(before 8am) o Misdelivery complaints, less this year over SPLY (aggregate, not class specific) o Business Closed & UAA Delivered – 11% of BC scans were residential

addresses, ~0.5% were Bus Closed. • FAST Update

o Reviewed the new FAST appointment business rules, including “Late Reschedule” Appointments.

o Late Reschedule window is 1 hr prior and up to 24hrs after original appointment. o Want to make the dock as accessible as possible.

• MTE Update (mail specific)

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APPENDIX A

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2016-11-02 MTAC Focus Group Sessions at USPS Headquarters Wednesday. Morning General session: Opening Comments:

1. Robert Cintron and Issac Cronkhite Presentation on Enterprise Analytics

2. Last Mile Analytics

a. Aggregating data on 155 million delivery points

b. Also includes the “IBM last mile factor” there are 15,000 receivers of mail around the country with scanners than scan mail when received

c. Now using all the carrier scan data

d. Last Mile Sampling Performance Diagnostics view has drill down capability to Region, District, MPOO, and DDU. Colour coded visualizations.

e. Can also filter by Mail Class, Mail Category, and Sample type (City Route, PO Box, Rural Route, Highway Contract Route). Ability to drill into each route.

f. All classes of mail are tracked including political mail

g. Not available for customers to view themselves

3. Service Performance Visualization Tool

i. Entry point, Container level, and similar views to the last mile report

ii. Up and running for mail, working on the details for Packages

iii. Not available to customers to view themselves

Payment and Acceptance – by Pritha Mehra Opening comments:

1. Review of action items

a. Workgroup 179 (PostalOne roadmap), established to cover PostalOne and eVS future state discussions)

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b. PostalOne 30-minutes time out, will time out 30 minutes even if you have been active. Request that the timer be 30 minutes of being inactive.

c. Bulk MID upload tool. This tool will be implemented in 2017, estimated Q2-2017.

d. Non-compliance issues due to timeliness. Address needs to be received before AAU. Manifest for payment needs to be received by 11:59pm on the day of the AAU scan. Considerable discussion on timeliness when addresses are supplied on in the shipper partner file. Need the group to revising the timeliness rules. Issues around on-line and off-line reports matching and latency in reporting. USPS states that the on-line report is accurate and applying the correct metrics. USPS has committed to working with several industry members to work through the details.

2. Sampling

a. Considerable discussion around sampling and current issues. Request for industry members to provide examples and feedback on current sampling approach and recommendations.

b. USPS will cover these issues on the eVS/PTS user group call next Thursday.

3. eVS roadmap Objectives

a. There are 128 logged “pain points”

b. USPS has created a pareto of issues of Flats vs Packages

i. Issues listed in order

1. Reporting

2. Account Management

3. Edoc Processing

4. Data Provisioning

5. Pricing Manifest Processing

6. Verification

7. Payment

ii. Reporting is by far the biggest issue for Evs Package shippers

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4. Payment Modernization

a. Release 1 September 2016

i. Enterprise PO Boxes Online in Pilot

ii. Expanding to additional customers in November 2016

b. Release 2 and 3 in 2017

i. Release 2 is in development

ii. Release 3 is in planning

5. IMPB Compliance

a. 69 metrics down to 10

b. 89% Address, a new workgroup in be established for this metric, short term workgroup in July 2017 to agree on January 2018

c. 91% Manifest, 94% in January 2018

d. Barcode 95%, 98% in January 2018

e. Not including the secondary information

f. USPS targeting Spring (March) of next year for ability to download data extracts.

6. EVS IMPB Vendor Software Certification

a. There are 9 vendors currently certified, list posted on RIBBS

Product Innovation/Emerging Technology – by Gary Reblin (ran by Steve Montiff USPS VP of Marketing) Opening Comments:

1. Price Change

a. Parcel Select Lightweight

i. Considerable questions on cost coverage and can Negotiated Service Agreements now be created on PSLW. There was no real commitment on NSA or cost coverage.

2. Shipping

a. Package Pick-Up

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i. There are now 47,000 ZIP codes available for package pick-up

b. PRS (Parcel Return Service) RDU locations

i. Currently 7,718 locations

ii. Looking to expand to an additional 8,150 locations

iii. Total should be 15,868

iv. Written request required to expand to locations

v. Requires 30 days to expand

c. Parcel Return Service (RADC)

i. This is a new product available under a negotiated service agreement

ii. There are 90 locations nationwide

iii. Must pick up every 48 hours

iv. Appointment in FAST required.

v. This is an “all or nothing” option if doing RADC can’t do RDU

d. Scan, Weigh and Pay

i. This is a post pay model, currently in a test mode

ii. Simple shipping solution to improve the customer experience

iii. Support a post-payment billing process via automated parcel assessment

iv. Eliminate manual package assessment/postage due

v. Goal to migrate some customers to this method

vi. There are 214 locations that have the sales

vii. Requires a label change with “SWP” listed above the barcode

viii. Industry comments suggest this appears to be a good option for Return type packages (UAA, RTS, Refused) but unsure of the benefits for outbound shipments.

e. Product Simplification

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f. There are 1.3 million PO Boxes for customers that don’t have street delivery. USPS is considering providing a link from street address to the free PO box. Questions from the industry if the list of addresses so that these packages are not sent to the USPS or can be directed to the PO box.

g. Product Simplification

i. Goals:

1. Make it easier for customers

2. Improve Profitability

3. Improve Network Efficiency

4. Reduce Costs

5. Stimulate interest in Mail

6. Add value to print

7. Industry had a discussion about having a generic Postage Paid Indicia or and Indicialess package. Discussion also included request to use the electronic record for all the information. Customers do not want to have to over label to change the service type code.

Mail Prep and Entry - by Robert Cintron Opening Comments:

1. FAST Software

a. FAST Appointment Enhancement was released on Sep 25.

b. Had the ability to adjust the appointment number for a reschedule 1 hour before and 24 hours after.

c. Approx 60% of appointments are closed out as normal “good”

d. 30% of appointments are no shows

i. Investigation found recurring appointments, 912 appointments have been removed

e. Good appointment breakdown

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i. 50% early

ii. 12% on time

iii. 38% late

2. Surface Visibility

a. 65% of the 113 sites are now scanning

3. Delivery Issues

a. Last Mile impact

i. All pieces had a -2.1% impact to service numbers

b. WIMP (Where is my package) rate is approx. 0.60 per 1000 packages

c. USPS working to have a scanner alert to the carrier when a package is scanned at the wrong delivery location. Using GPS location of the scan and compare to the GPS location of the address. Will be used as a guide to prevent mis-delivery.

d. UAA (Undeliverable As Addresses) is approx. 0.15% of all packages

i. Frequently a package is scanned as UAA but delivered the next day. The USPS has moved the AAU down in the list of scanner screen options. Has moved the Attempted Delivery options up in the screen. This change was made on Oct 15th. Question from the industry to use the address supplied in the file that has been DPV validated to prevent a UAA because the address has been validated. USPS is working to build in that type of logic.

e. Service Performance

i. Parcel Select is 99.75%, up 0.16% over last year.

ii. Scanning (all packages) 97.45%, up 0.32% over last year.

iii. Industry question for the USPS to supply scanning and service rates on Returns packages as feedback stating the service and scanning is much lower on Returns.

f. Network Integration Support Update

i. Hub list (L014) will now be part of the regular labeling list release.

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ii. ADC FCM Parcel List will become part of the regular labeling list release.

g. MTEs

i. Seeing an 8-9% growth over the last three months for MTE

ii. 7.25 pieces of MTE ordered for Q1FY17

h. Automated Delivery unit sorter in FDR in New York

i. Using for Carrier routes

ii. Using for walk out routes for packages

iii. Identified 10 delivery unit locations that have the volume and footprint to support

1. 4 ordered and will be delivered after peak

2. Request from industry to supply the locations for planning

i. 15,000 new delivery vehicles have been added to the fleet for this peak

Enterprise Analytics – by Issac Cronkhite Opening Comments:

1. IMPB Compliance

a. Current Metrics

i. 99.98% on IMPB Barcode

ii. 98.66% on Address (either full address or DPV)

iii. 95.39% on Manifest version 1.6

b. New Metrics – January 2017

i. 93.52% on Address Quality being able to obtain DPV (includes Secondary information, which will not be measured or charged in January 2017)

1. Goal 89%

ii. 94.86% Shipping services file Quality, includes manifest errors

1. Goal 91%

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iii. 98.54% Barcode Quality (including passing validations, format, unique, etc)

1. Goal 95%

c. In October over 20 Million packages with Address issues

d. Top issues

i. 3.71% Entry Facility Miss match

ii. 0.85% Invalid method of payment

e. Workgroup 178

i. Recommendation to fold current IMPB metrics into the measures for January 2017

f. Request from the industry to revisit the threshold for same day evs file requirements and assessment when Shipping Partner file has been supplied.

2. Visibility Enhancements

a. Added “On its way to the USPS” to the website Banner when using Shipping partner file.

b. Future change will list the actual shipping partner in the website banner

c. New event code 30 “No Access” has been updated to the scanner and tracking. The carrier can’t gain access, e.g. gate locked, gated community. STC event.

d. New event code 72 “Animal Interference” has been updated to the scanner and tracking. The carrier can’t gain access because of dogs, bees, etc. STC event.

e. New event code 57 “Local Weather” has been updated to the scanner and tracking. The carrier can’t gain access, e.g. flood, snow. STC event.

f. New event code 58 “Held but not retrieved from Locker” has been updated to the scanner and tracking. STC event.

g. New event code 71 “Delivery Delay” has been updated to the scanner and tracking. E.g. package out for delivery but did not get delivered. Not a STC event

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Updated:___3/1/2017______

February–March2017FocusGroupActionItems Page1

MTACFocusGroupActionItemsWednesday,March1,2017

ENTERPRISEANALYTICS/DATAUSAGEIsaacCronkhite,USPSVP-EnterpriseAnalytics

AngeloAnagnostopoulos,MTACIndustryLeader,EnterpriseAnalyticsandDataUsage

Session1:PACKAGESERVICES(JohnMedeiros,MTACIndustryLeader)

ACTIONITEMS

• Newresidenceexclusion,howtofilterdataoutofIMpbAddressQualityComplianceerrors

• MappingACSeventcodestoPTReventlevel

• ValidatemilitaryaddressesareexcludedfromIMpbAddressQualityComplianceerrors

• Follow-upMEPTdetailedinfoonEntryFacilityZIPCodedatainIMpbqualitymetrics

• ExplorethepossibilityofprovidingawayformailerstoseequalitymetricsthroughaD3visualization

MTACACTIONITEMS

Wednesday,March1,2017

MAILPREPARATION&ENTRY,OPERATIONSRobertCintron,USPSVP-NetworkOperations

BobRosser,MTACIndustryLeader,MailPrep,Entry&Operations

Session4:PACKAGES(JohnMedeiros,MTACIndustryLeader)

ACTIONITEMS

• ProvideanupdateonUAAscancodes&provideflowdiagram(delivery)

• InvestigatePRSissues(timeintransit;scanning;misdeliveries)

• Providedeliverydiagnostics(carriersonstreetandbreadcrumbs)

• Suggestion:Indicatemailshapeonslides

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Updated:___3/1/2017______


MTACFocusGroupSessionNotesWednesday,March1,2017

PAYMENTANDACCEPTANCE,EDUCATION

PrithaMehra,USPSVP-MailEntryandPaymentTechnologyBobSchimek,MTACIndustryLeader,PaymentandAcceptance,Education

Session2:PACKAGESERVICES(JohnMedeiros,MTACIndustryLeader)ActionItem

1. USPStoschedulePackageMeetingforMarch23,2017a. USPStosharetheVerificationRoadmapwhitepaperwiththegroupb. Ingestofmanifestc. IMpbComplianced. ReviewreturnssimplificationusingAutomatedPackageVerificationplatform

2. USPStosendtheIMpbComplianceFactSheet3. ResendletterregardingtheShippingProductsIndiciachangestoMTACUserGroup2andsend

outanMTACAdvisory/DMMAdvisory4. OscartoprovideissuesaroundPRSpackagesbeingredirectedtoSCFsinsteadofRDUs.

MTACFocusGroupActionItemsWednesday,March1,2017

EMERGINGTECHNOLOGY&PRODUCTINNOVATION

GaryReblin,USPSVP-NewProductsandInnovationSteveColella,MTACIndustryLeader,EmergingTechnology&ProductInnovation

Session3:PACKAGESERVICES(JohnMedeiros,MTACIndustryLeader)

ACTIONITEMS

• Question: Should Package Services hold off on changing indicia to Marketing Mail until final decision on Standard Mail letters and flats is resolved? Steve Monteith will provide update.

• Update DMM with current language for shipping products permit indicia.

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Updated:___3/1/2017______


• Change Service Request - address gap at plant level - package industry doesn’t want to pay for returned pieces that they do not want.

• When Tom Foti completes his task force study on international opportunities invite to give

presentation at next MTAC and include information on international terminal dues.

Other Topics of Interest

• USPS to host a webinar to clarify rule changes posted in a Federal Register Notice on February 22, 2017 on Lithium Batteries. Date TBD.

• USPS plans to publish an Industry Alert to clarify modifications to IMpb Compliance

Rules that went into effect on February 1st along with timeline for future implementations. A Federal Register Notice will be filed by March 10, 2017. USPS will ask for Industry Comments in the FRN.

• USPSplanstoinitiateaWorkGroupfocusedondevelopingnewproductsandservicesforpharmaceuticalsandhealthcare.InterestedparticipantsshouldcontactKarenKey.(Note:theWorkGroupisaproposedcollaborationbetweenUSPSandIndustryseparatefromMTAC).

• A newly proposed MTAC Work Group is under review by the MTAC Executive Committee titled: PackageAcceptanceandPaymentImprovements. WorkGroupMissionStatement:ThisworkgroupwillreviewEpics,FeaturesandUserStoriesforpaymentandacceptanceservicesforcommercialpackages.

ImpactonOtherIssues/Procedures–Theoutputoftheworkgroupmayimpactthefollowing:

• MailingReceipts• VerificationResultsReporting• PostagePayment

DesiredResults:Theworkgroupwillreviewthefollowingartifactsinsupportofthepackageplatformimprovements:

• Servicedefinitionsofkeycapabilitiestoacceptandpayforpackages• Epics,UserStoriesandFeaturesinsupportofacceptance,verification,paymentand

reportsforcommercialpackagemailings. AreaofFocus:MailAcceptanceandPayment

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