Industry specialists and association experts cover issues from USPS technical specifications and new technologies reshaping direct mail to best practices in the mail supply chain.  

Alexandria, VA - Idealliance, the association for the Visual Communications and Media Industry, will present a diverse program of free sessions in the Idealliance Solutions Theater, Booth #1417, during the National Postal Forum, May 21-24, in the Baltimore, Md., Convention Center. Sessions comprise 20-30 minute presentations covering topics such as U.S. Postal Service specifications, new technologies reshaping direct mail, best practices in the mail supply chain, and resources for advancing a career in the mailing industry.

“We look forward to NPF attendees stopping by our booth and taking advantage of the information and insights that will be available in our Solutions Theater sessions,” says Idealliance President and Chief Executive Officer David Steinhardt. “We will have knowledgeable experts with real-world industry experience on hand to share information and answer visitors’ questions.”

The Solutions Theater schedule includes:

• Monday May 22: 10:30 a.m. – 10:50 a.m.: eDoc 101: The Basis of Mail.dat^®/Mail.XML^™ for Communication & USPS Data. Speaker: Bob Schimek, Senior Director of Postal Affairs, Satori Software, and Chair, Idealliance Mail.dat^® Working Group.
• Monday May 22: 12:30 p.m. – 1:00 p.m.: USPS Scorecard: Deep Dive & Drill Down—Your Data & What You Can Learn. Speakers: Tom Glassman, Director of Data Services & Postal Affairs, Wilen Direct, and Chair, Idealliance Postal Education Working Group.
• Monday May 22: 1:00 p.m.-1:20 p.m.: Direct Mail Revolution: How New Technologies are Re shaping Direct Mail in the 21st Century. Speaker: Kevin Gilligan, Vice President, Structural Graphics.
• Tuesday, May 23: 10:30 a.m. – 11:00 a.m.: Partnering & Collaborating: Building Best Practices in the Mail Supply Chain. Speakers: Rose Flanagan, Manager of Postal Strategies & Logistics, Data-Mail, and Co-Chair, Idealliance Postal Operations & Technologies Council; David J. Steinhardt, Idealliance President and Chief Executive Officer; and Christopher G. Lien, President, BCC Software.
• Tuesday, May 23: 12:30 p.m. – 12:50 p.m.: 3D Diagnostic Tools to Understand Business Performance. Speaker: Mike Philie, Idealliance Senior Consultant.
• Tuesday, May 23: 1:00 p.m. – 1:30 p.m.: Growing as a Mail Professional: Unlocking Expertise to Move Your Business & Career. Speaker: Tom Glassman, Director of Data Services & Postal Affairs, Wilen Direct, and Chair, Idealliance Postal Education Working Group.
• Wednesday, May 24: 9:30 a.m. – 10:00 a.m.: Is 2017 the Tipping Point for U.S. Postal Service Change? Speakers: Bob Galaher, Executive Director, National Association of Presort Mailers (NAPM); and Ken Garner, Idealliance Executive Vice President.
• Wednesday, May 24: 10:00 a.m. – 10:30 a.m.: Partnering & Collaborating: Building Best Practices in the Mail Supply Chain. Speakers: Rose Flanagan, Manager of Postal Strategies & Logistics, Data-Mail, and Co-Chair, Idealliance Postal Operations & Technologies Council; David J. Steinhardt, Idealliance President and Chief Executive Officer; and Christopher G. Lien, President, BCC Software.
• Wednesday, May 24: 10:30 a.m. – 11:30 a.m.: 2017: A Year of Innovation, Challenges and Changes for Industry and the US Postal Service. Speaker: Kai Fisher, United States Postal Service.

Idealliance staff and volunteer members will be at Booth #1417 throughout the conference to discuss and answer questions about the association’s programs, advocacy, and Working Groups related to mailing practices and postal issues. Idealliance’s Postal Operations & Technologies Council (POTC) works to improve mail preparation, postal distribution, logistics, and transportation through the application of information and supply chain technologies. The association also hosts several members-only Working Groups focusing on issues such as mailing software, fulfillment operations, international mailing, postal education, and USPS automation.

The Idealliance MailPro Mail Professional Certification online program equips those involved in the extended printing and mailing supply chain with a complete understanding of the postal-facing aspects of mailing. It offers access to expert instructors with more than 400 years of combined experience in developing real-life mailing solutions and working effectively with the U.S. Postal Service. MailPro courses include MailPro Fundamentals and MailPro Advanced. Visit https://tinyurl.com/k4hnwr4 for information.

Idealliance also hosts the annual Postal Exchange Conference, a unique cross-industry experience for catalog and direct marketers, equipment manufacturers, fulfillment companies, list management, logistic companies, mail preparers, mail owners, manufacturers, printers, publishers, software developers, and transportation carriers, collaborate to successfully advance technology and process improvement to lower total combined costs and improve mail supply. The next conference will be Feb. 8-9, 2018, at the Sheraton Sand Key Resort in Clearwater Beach, Fla.

For more information on Idealliance programs or the NPF Solutions Theater, please contact David Steinhardt at [email protected] or (703) 837-1066, or call Idealliance headquarters at (703) 837-1070.