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ENTERPRISE DATA WAREHOUSE

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For the Canada Post Group of Companies, “Big Data” is more than just a buzzword. Every five minutes, Canada Post’s largest mail processing plant generates a gigabyte of data related to the mail pieces moving through its system. Capturing, curating, storing, protecting, and sharing that data is far from a simple task, but it’s a challenge the Innovapost Enterprise Data Warehouse (EDW) team is helping tackle head-on.

“An Enterprise Data Warehouse is essentially a large technology database, or repository, that consolidates data from multiple business and operational sources and makes it available for processing and analysis,” explains Boris Bogatirev, Business Intelligence and Data Warehouse Architecture Lead at Innovapost. “In our case, data comes from front-end systems like web sites or retail point of sale terminals, as well as backend operational systems across Canada Post, Purolator, SCI Logistics and Innovapost.”

After implementing a state-of-the-art Enterprise Data Warehouse solution for the Group of Companies, Innovapost’s EDW team began working with the business and Canada Post’s Analytics Centre of Excellence to identify sources of data to store and secure in the new system. Once identified, these previously-siloed data sources are then linked and enriched with other sources of data to drive dynamic reporting, strategic analysis, planning and data-driven decision making.

TURNING DATA INTO INFORMATION AND INSIGHTS

“Our role is to help colleagues find new ways to merge and leverage data from multiple data sources within the Group of Companies,” Bogatirev explains. “In many cases, when you integrate what appears to be unrelated data, you often see trends and correlations you hadn’t anticipated. We live for those moments when we

deliver something to our clients that they didn’t have yesterday—something that gives them new, concrete information to build a better solution or to make a more effective decision.”

Within the Canada Post Group of Companies, data can be handled in a number of ways to explore efficiencies and improve services. “Look at package delivery, for example,” says Bogatirev. “Through simplified access to in-depth and near real-time data, it will be easier to identify the best routes packages should take to reach their destination. Right now, a package might leave a sorting machine and go directly onto a truck. But what if data showed that holding the package 10 minutes longer would allow it to join another twelve packages already en route to Ottawa and arrive an hour earlier? In cases like these, data can translate into a competitive advantage for time-sensitive deliveries.”

TURNING DATA INTO KNOWLEDGE FOR THE CANADA POST GROUP OF COMPANIES

Unifying, integrating,

and leveraging data for

next-generation analytics

and planning: that’s the

job of the Enterprise Data

Warehouse team

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A ONE-STOP-SHOP FOR DATA

Operating as a “one-stop-shop” for data, the Enterprise Data Warehouse team is composed of data architects, data integration developers, business intelligence developers, database administrators, data quality and quality assurance specialists, and more.

“We take projects from the idea phase right through to implementation,” notes Bogatirev. “We’ll sit down with a business colleague or analyst who might want to learn something specific about a set of mail users or a business problem such as how mail moves from point A to point B. Then, we’ll gather business requirements, do the design and architecture work, write the technical documentation, map the data across the information landscape, and deliver the answers to the client.”

The EDW team also prides itself on its ability to provide answers to complex questions in record time. “Because our designers, developers, administrators, Analytics Centre of Excellent (ACoE) analysts, and clients work together, our cycles close extremely quickly,” notes Bogatirev. “We’ve completed some projects in 30 to 60 days, which is pretty unheard of in the industry. We want to see a project through from start to finish, so we work together and support each other wherever possible.”

A STRONG FOUNDATION FOR THE FUTURE

Leveraging recently launched state-of-the-art data centre infrastructure, the Enterprise Data Warehouse team has access to technology that offers the latest in application availability, resiliency, scalability and flexibility. With a common infrastructure for server farms, storage solutions, and data centre networking now in place within the Group of Companies, Innovapost is able to gather and assimilate information in ways that were never before possible.

“In 2015, Canada Post invested heavily in modern, cutting edge tools and infrastructure for the Enterprise Data Warehouse. Now, we are building the data warehouse in order to understand our customers, our delivery network, and our product offerings so we can deliver the best possible service to all Canadians,” Bogatirev explains.

GROWING OUR TEAM

Facing ever-growing demand and new challenges, the Enterprise Data Warehouse group is always looking to add members to its team and expand the horizons of current employees.

“This team offers fantastic growth opportunities,” Bogatirev notes. “It’s a great place for young professionals with

knowledge of data systems and a passion for analytics who want to learn and do more. We’re always learning here, and are the first to admit when we don’t know something. That’s why we promote reading, training, and ongoing education to turn our people into specialists.”

“We operate in a quasi-startup mode,” adds Bogatirev. “If you want to expand your responsibilities, improve our processes, and make things better – your ideas are always welcome. We always try to invest in our people, grow with them, and learn with them, so if you’re proactive and a hard worker, this is the team for you!”

“An Enterprise Data Warehouse is essentially a large technology database, or repository, that consolidates data from multiple business and operational sources and makes it available for processing and analysis”Boris Bogatirev, Business Intelligence and Data Warehouse Architecture Lead at Innovapost.

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Contact us at info@innovapost.com

Head Office365 March RoadOttawa, Ontario K2K 3N5T 613-270-6262F 613-270-6525

www.innovapost.com

Innovapost offers a variety of Information System (IS) and Information Technology (IT) services to the Canada Post Group of Companies and their customers. With offices in Ottawa, Toronto and Mississauga, Innovapost operates as the Group’s Shared Services Provider to help realize greater value from technology and business process investments. Innovapost and the Innovapost logo are registered trademarks of Canada Post Corporation and are used under license by Innovapost Inc. Innovapost assumes no responsibility for the accuracy of the information presented, which is subject to change without notice.

Copyright 2016 Innovapost Inc. All rights reserved.

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