THE DIGITAL ECONOMY DOES NOT FRIGHTEN THOSE LEADING PORTUGAL’S MAIL SERVICE WHO, WITHOUT EVER FORGETTING THEIR ‘CORE’ BUSINESS SECTOR, ARE ADOPTING INNOVATIVE TOOLS AND PROCEDURES AND MOVING INTO NEW MARKET NICHES. ON THE VERGE OF CELEBRATING ITS FIFTH CENTENARY, THIS IS A COMPANY BUBBLING WITH NEW DIRECTIONS.
In a world undergoing constant technological change and making major strides forwards in the digitalisation of tasks, the CTT mail service strives to daily incorporate this change and maintain that, in the near future, the company will be “necessarily different, more digital”, more aligned to what its core business actually is. “We want to continue to be a company that enters into contact with people and entities, based on the transport of goods and objects in their physical format while always promoting the factor of proximity to our clients”, emphasised Francisco Simão, company director with responsibility for Information Technology Systems, Transformation and Processes, Innovation and Business Development.
The director of the company running the centuries old Portuguese mail service believes that there is “a great deal of value to be created out of the conjugation of these two realities, the physical and the digital, with CTT always aware that we live in a world that is not digital but hybrid in its essence.”
In order to accompany the new realities emerging in the business areas it operates in but also to search for the market niches it wishes to enter, CTT has developed a deep reaching process of internal capacity building, establishing a collaborative and participative platform entitled Inov+, implementing a “Transformation Program”, setting up the role of CTO – Chief Transformation Officer – and daily developing initiatives within the framework of a governance model with a concrete target: “to be on the front line of digital transformation in the business areas we operate in”, advanced Francisco Simão.
Banco CTT
Advantages of a purpose founded bankRight from its first minute, the CTT bank product range for this market contained a strong and innovative digital component based on the concepts of “simplicity and convenience”. “The fact that the CTT bank got built from the roots up meant we could avoid being dependent on legacy systems, which strengthened our heavy investment in digital channels right from the outset and including services such as homebanking and the CTT app, developed with a focus on user experiences. Today, the CTT bank has over 200,000 clients, with 85% of these young persons”, revealed the director Francisco Simão, highlighting how despite the institution having been built from scratch, “it was launched based upon assets already existing in CTT, using its network of offices and the know-how of its employees who already had a track record in retailing financial services.”
Mobility and intelligent solutions
Any company seeking to be on the “Front Line” inevitably needs to adopt a structured approach to innovation. CTT assumes this through “different approaches in accordance with the innovation objective and the temporal framework for the ideas under implementation”, our interlocutor clarified and highlighting how, in this context, the role of CTT partner start-ups is crucial: “In this ecosystem, we have examples of joint projects with practical applications. We have this year tested the “UOU Mobility”, a start-up from Aveiro, the building of an electric vehicle purpose adapted to the routes of our postmen in keeping with the considerable growth in the volume of packages.”
The optimisation of mobility represents a constant concern of CTT but not its only focus. “Among many projects, we are working with partners in the construction of a solution that enables same-day deliveries; developing a new approaches to payments made through the “Payshop” network; and in 2015, we acquired and integrated into our structure Escrita Inteligente, a start-up that developed the Recibos Online solutions and thus rendering physical receipts digital, an innovation already implemented in our stores”, the economist detailed.
CTT
Five centuries of ongoing renewal“In 2020, CTT will complete 500 years in business and, over the course of these five centuries, we have lived through various revolutions, always reinventing our business models for new realities. This capacity for adaptation, transformation and innovation forms part of our DNA and constitutes one of our main competitive advantages”, guaranteed Francisco Simão.
The challenges of digitalisation
With “enthusiasm and naturalness”, affirmed the CTT director, the company manages all of its activities, strategies and opportunities while focused upon the “challenge of preserving value in the mail business”. “Digitalisation daily challenges our core business. Nowadays, mail is directly impacted by the effect of e-substitution and this challenge triggers opportunities to leverage new means of growth, both through the business services adjacent to the mail service, for example the CTTAds.pt platform (for the service line Express & Packages) as well as E-Segue or the innovative products of Banco CTT”, describes the director, highlighting how these solutions seek to “diversify our revenue streams”, through targeting “new areas or niches that make sense to evaluate within the scope of that which constitutes our strategic framework.”
