Seamless Acceptance

 Introduction  Benefits  Requirements  Scorecard  Verifications  Postage Assessment  Onboarding 2 Seamless Acceptance Agenda

Seamless Acceptance is a fundamental shift from the traditional verification model, which was an up-front manual verification process on a per mailing basis Seamless measures the quality of a Mail Preparer’s process over a calendar month to identify trends in mail quality issues rather than isolated poor quality incidents Measurement is done post induction and no longer allows a mailer to rework and resubmit a mailing 3 Seamless Acceptance Introduction Traditional Verification Mail quality determined based on a per mailing basis Traditional Verification Mail quality determined based on a per mailing basis Seamless Verification All mailings submitted in an entire calendar month are used to determine quality on an aggregate basis Seamless Verification All mailings submitted in an entire calendar month are used to determine quality on an aggregate basis MAIL QUALITY

4 The complete Seamless Acceptance process automates and streamlines mail induction and verification Seamles s Entry (3) Capture data by handheld scanner (FS- IMD) at acceptance or induction (1) Mailers submit eDoc for all mailings, which will include: Unique Barcodes Piece data provided (1) Mailers submit eDoc for all mailings, which will include: Unique Barcodes Piece data provided (2) Auto-finalize postage statements Mail Preparation Submit Mailing Information Mail Induction & Scanning Reconcile & Report (6) Detailed mail quality reporting (5) Compare data scans to electronic documentation (4) Capture data by MPE scans Seamless Acceptance Introduction

93 mailers are on Seamless Acceptance and another 356 are on Seamless Parallel reviewing their reports and preparing to transition AUTOFINALIZATION ELECTRONIC POSTAGE STATEMENTS TREND BASED QUALITY MANAGEMENT STANDARDIZED AUTOMATED VERIFICATIONS STREAMLINED MAIL ACCEPTANCE SEAMLESS ACCEPTANCE BENEFITS 5 Seamless Acceptance Benefits

REQUIREMENTS Seamless Acceptance requires unique Intelligent Mail barcodes on all mailpieces, trays, and containers regardless of the rate they are paid. It also requires electronic documentation of mailing information (eDoc). Electronic Documentation (eDoc) Submit Electronically Submit Postage Statement Information & Supporting Documentation like Qualification Reports electronically for all mail eInduction Participate in eInduction if creating drop- shipments Specify Barcodes Barcode Information for Containers included in eDoc 6 Intelligent Mail Barcode Mailpiece Barcode Apply unique Intelligent Mail barcodes (IMb) to identify each postcard, letter and flat mailpiece regardless of rate Tray Barcode Apply unique Intelligent Mail tray barcodes (IMtb) on trays, tubs and sacks Container Barcode Apply unique Intelligent Mail container barcodes (IMcb) on placards for containers, such as pallets or APCs, when required 6 Seamless Acceptance Requirements Additional Requirements Beyond Full Service

7 Seamless Acceptance Onboarding Mailers preparing over 90% of eligible mail for Full-Service are candidates for Seamless. The path to Seamless Acceptance starts with on-boarding to Seamless Parallel: Ensure mail meets Seamless requirements Mail Seamless eligible Mail Classes and Processing Categories* Contact BMS Analyst to move to Seamless Parallel Seamless Parallel provides a test period before moving onto Seamless Acceptance Provide unique barcodes for all pieces Work toward barcoding 100% pieces with unique IMb (Auto and Non-Auto) Submit eDoc for all automation mailings Ensure that eDoc includes piece level detail (.pdr,.pbc, Mail PieceBlock) Review new eDoc warnings for Seamless * Eligible Mail Classes include First Class, Standard, Periodicals, and Bound Printed Matter Eligible Processing Categories include Letters, Cards, and Flats

8 Seamless Acceptance Onboarding Once on Seamless Parallel, mailers can work with USPS to understand mail quality results and prepare for Seamless Acceptance: Review Seamless results on the Mailer Scorecard Evaluate results against the “Mailer Contact” Thresholds Work with USPS to identify the root causes of any issues Resolve any mail preparation issues identified in Parallel Demonstrate mail quality under thresholds Quality must be maintained for at least one calendar month Activate to Seamless Acceptance

Weight Electronic Documentation Sampling Mail Processing Equipment Have all the pieces been paid for? Are the pieces addressed correctly? Is the mailing prepared correctly? Undocumented Delivery Point Barcode Quality Postage Nesting / Sortation Mail Characteristic Mail will be verified through the comparison of eDoc to data gathered as the mail is processed and sampled Seamless Acceptance assures revenue by using these main verification types to answer 3 main questions: 9 Seamless Verifications

Each verification determines Seamless Acceptance compliance and answers one of the three key questions: 10 Is the mailing prepared correctly? Are the pieces addressed correctly? Have all the pieces been paid for? Undocumented (Piece)Piece barcode is paid for and included in an eDoc Delivery Point Confirms that 5-, 9-, or 11- digit delivery point in the IMb is valid Weight Physical weight matches the weight in the eDoc Postage Postage affixed matches the eDoc Mail Characteristic Mail traits match eDoc (processing category; class; non- profit; etc.) Barcode Quality (Piece) IMbs are formatted per USPS standards Nesting/Sortation Physical sortation meets mail preparation rules Seamless Verifications 10

Results are from eDoc, Manual sampling, and Census verification over a calendar month for Seamless Acceptance or Seamless Parallel The tab is broken into 2 main sections and types of metrics, depending on how the data is obtained 11 Mailer Scorecard: Seamless From MPE Scans From Sampling Seamless also has a Mailer Scorecard report

1. CRID Seamless Status: Indicates if the eDoc submitter CRID is enabled for Seamless Acceptance or Seamless Acceptance Parallel Processing 2. % Seamless Acceptance Jobs: The number of Seamless Acceptance Jobs as a percentage of the total number of jobs submitted in eDoc 3. # Seamless Acceptance Containers: The number of containers marked for Seamless Acceptance processing from eDoc 4. # Seamless Acceptance Handling Units: The number of handling units marked for Seamless Acceptance processing from eDoc 5. # Seamless Acceptance Pieces: The number of pieces marked for Seamless Acceptance processing from eDoc Seamless Verifications 12

6. % Volume Seamless Acceptance: The number of pieces marked for Seamless Acceptance processing as a percentage of the total number of pieces claimed in eDocumentation 7. Sampling Quality Score: Mailer Quality based on a weighted average of manual sampling errors and piece barcode scan rates over the previous 3 months 8. % Seamless Acceptance Jobs not Auto-Finalized: The number of Seamless Acceptance jobs that were not auto-finalized as a percentage of the number of Seamless Acceptance jobs 9. Piece Scan Rate: The total number of unique piece scans as a percentage of the total number of unique pieces associated to an eDoc Seamless Verifications Adjusted Scan Rate: # of unique piece scans as % of number of unique pieces associated to eDoc excluding pieces where scan isn’t expected based on mail class, processing category, rate category, entry type facility, non- automation zones or high reject MPE machine runs

Seamless Verifications % Undocumented Pieces: The number of piece scans from Mail Processing Equipment and Sampling that could not be associated to an eDoc as a percentage of the total number of undocumented pieces and documented pieces from eDoc

15 Undocumented “Book- ending” A back-end enhancement changes how Undocumented pieces are associated and assigned to mailers: Previously, this process was based solely off of the mailer MID Now, this association categorizes pieces based on surrounding piece scans (known as “bookends”) as the mail is scanned on MPE As a result, pieces can be assigned to other CRIDs and impact how Undocumented piece counts are determined for a mailer Seamless Verifications 15

Seamless Verifications % Nesting/Sortation Errors (MPE): The number of piece nesting/sortation from mail processing scanning errors as a percentage of the number of total pieces from eDoc

Seamless Verifications % Delivery Point Piece Errors: The number of piece delivery point verification (DPV) validation errors as a percentage of the number of pieces processed for eDoc validations To Investigate and Fix This Error: Common root causes for delivery point verification errors may be: o Mailer is not using a CASS certified system. CASS = Coding Accuracy Support System, was designed to improve the accuracy of postal codes Ask mailer what software they are using o Ensure the software is certified

Seamless Verifications 14. # Containers Sampled : The number of containers samples taken # Handling Units Sampled: The number of handling units samples taken. 16. # Pieces Sampled: The number of piece samples taken.

To Investigate and Fix This Error, consider the following: Was there an Invalid Zip Code designated? Was there incorrect nesting? Nesting/Sortation Errors (Sampling) A nesting/sortation error will be logged if any of the following conditions are met when sampling scans are compared to eDoc: Nesting of FS-IMD Container sampling scans to FS-IMD Piece sampling scans does not match nesting in the eDoc The destination ZIP code of the FS-IMD Piece Scans parent FS-IMD Handling Unit does not match the destination ZIP code of the associated eDoc piece’s parent Handling Unit The % Nesting/Sortation Piece Errors is the total number of nesting/sortation validation errors as a percentage of the total number of piece samples Seamless Verifications 19

Weight Piece Errors Weight errors occur when the weight of the physical piece is different than what is claimed in the eDoc and crosses a weight category OR exceeds a threshold set for pound postage This error is generated when, in the sample scan: The sampled piece weight does not match the weight for the piece in the eDoc and the difference would cross a price level for the class and processing category (e.g. moving a First-Class letter from 1.2 oz to 3.1 oz.) The % Weight Piece Errors is the total number of piece weight validation errors as a percentage of the total number of pieces sampled To Investigate and Fix This Error: A common root cause for Weight Piece errors may be: o Weight populated incorrectly by mailer in eDoc Seamless Verifications 20

S:\Training\R41 April 2015 Seamless Verifications Postage Piece Errors Postage errors are generated when the postage amount, or the postage payment method, on the physical piece in the sample scan does not match the information submitted in the eDoc for the following fields: For a postage affixed mailpiece - less postage was applied to the mailpiece than was indicated in the eDoc, or, The postage payment method does not match the eDoc postage payment method The % Postage Piece Errors is the total number of piece postage validation errors as a percentage of the total number of pieces sampled 21 To Investigate and Fix This Error: A common root cause for Postage Piece errors may be: Postage populated incorrectly by mailer in eDoc

% Mail Characteristic Piece Errors (Sampling) A Mail Characteristic piece error is logged when the pieces sampled do not qualify for Standard mail or non-profit rates, or when the processing category of the sampled piece on the device does not match what is claimed in the eDoc To Investigate and Fix This Error: Common root causes for Mail Characteristic piece errors include: o eDoc specifications are not consistent between the Mail.XML and the Mail.DAT files Seamless Verifications 22

% Barcode Quality Piece Errors (Sampling) A barcode quality piece error is logged when the sample scan had an unreadable barcode or had no barcode on an automation piece. The % Barcode Quality Piece Error is the total number of barcode quality validation errors as a percentage of the total number of piece samples To Investigate and Fix This Error: Common root causes for barcode quality piece errors include: o Ensure all Mail Pieces contain valid and legible barcodes Seamless Verifications 23

Seamless Acceptance verification results are compared against the established Mailer Contact Threshold and Egregious threshold: 24 Verification Mailer Contact Threshold Egregious Threshold eDocCensusSampling Undocumented0.3%0.8%XX Delivery Point2%5%X Nesting/Sortation (MPE) 1%3%X Nesting/Sortation (eDoc) 2%4%X Nesting/Sortation (Sampling) 1.05*X Mail Characteristic1.05*X Postage1.05*X Weight1.05*X Barcode Quality1.05*X Seamless Verifications *Three postage adjustment factors, or PAFs—General (for sampling nesting/sortation errors, postage errors, and weight errors), Mail Characteristic and Barcode Quality—are applied to Seamless Acceptance sampling verifications.

Postage Adjustment Factor (PAF) Calculations Postage Adjustment Factor (PAF) Calculations General, Mail Characteristic, and Barcode Quality PAF Updates  The General, Mail Characteristic, and Barcode Quality PAF Postage Due calculation is changing for mail under the same eDoc Submitter CRID Previously, applied entire PAF to mailer’s postage Now, applying just the portion of the PAF above the threshold  Example: a Seamless CRID has had General PAF Sampling Errors logged against it, and the General Sampling (GS) PAF is above the threshold New: The General Sampling Postage Due = Postage Paid x (PAF –PAF Threshold) Previously, General Sampling Postage Due = Postage Paid x PAF Similar calculation change for Mail Characteristic and Barcode Quality PAFs 25 Postage Adjustment Factor TypeVerificationPAF ThresholdData Source General Nesting/Sortation 1.05 Sampling Postage Weight Mail Characteristic 1.05 Sampling Barcode Quality 1.05 Sampling

Postage Adjustment Factor (PAF) Calculations Postage Adjustment Factor (PAF) Calculations 26

Postage Assessment Postage Assessment  Mailer Scorecard measures mail quality over a calendar month for Full-Service Intelligent Mail, Move/Update, eInduction, and Seamless Acceptance  Additional postage will be assessed when the total pieces in error exceed an established mail quality threshold  Mail Entry Postage Assessment Report displays the total number of Assessment errors  It is assessed to eDoc submitters (Mail Owner or Mail Preparer) Sent via system generated to the mailer verification assessment evaluator (VAE )  The postage assessment process takes place the calendar month following a mailing 27

Postage Assessment Process Postage Assessment Process 28

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