{"id":4626,"date":"2015-12-09T18:06:59","date_gmt":"2015-12-09T23:06:59","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/digital.hbs.edu\/platform-rctom\/submission\/royal-mail-plc-heavy-lies-the-crown\/"},"modified":"2015-12-09T18:06:59","modified_gmt":"2015-12-09T23:06:59","slug":"royal-mail-plc-heavy-lies-the-crown","status":"publish","type":"hck-submission","link":"https:\/\/d3.harvard.edu\/platform-rctom\/submission\/royal-mail-plc-heavy-lies-the-crown\/","title":{"rendered":"Royal Mail Plc \u2013 Heavy Lies the Crown"},"content":{"rendered":"<p>Royal Mail is among the largest logistics businesses\u00a0in the UK. For centuries it has been the dominant\u00a0(currently the only) provider of end-2-end letter mail operations and it has\u00a0built\u00a0an extensive distribution system in order to support its business model. It is also a\u00a0Universal Service Obligation designee. As such, RM is required to\u00a0offer timely postal services within the UK at a uniform tariff established by Ofcom\u00a0&#8211; the postal regulator, and does not have the ability to set stamp prices.<\/p>\n<p><span style=\"line-height: 1.5\">The Internet has pushed letter mail volume into a decline. As a consequence,\u00a0RM has focused on leveraging its logistics platform and expanding its UK Parcelforce business in order to tap into the e-commerce driven growth in UK parcels. Unlike in mail, the parcel market is not regulated but\u00a0its growth profile makes it very competitive.<\/span><\/p>\n<p>Having in mind that mail is in a terminal spiral to the bottom, RM has taken active steps to reposition strategically its business to parcel. However, while the intent is in place, the operating reality is much different. RM suffers from several significant operational issues affecting\u00a0its ability to create value for its shareholders.<\/p>\n<p><strong><em>\u201cThe Amazon drone just dropped this for you\u201d (or RM&#8217;s lag in adopting new\u00a0technologies)<\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n<figure id=\"attachment_4763\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-4763\" style=\"width: 186px\" class=\"wp-caption alignright\"><a href=\"https:\/\/i4tsk12in2b2y7uts14c528g-wpengine.netdna-ssl.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2015\/12\/Sorry-you-were-out.jpg\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\" wp-image-4763\" src=\"https:\/\/i4tsk12in2b2y7uts14c528g-wpengine.netdna-ssl.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2015\/12\/Sorry-you-were-out-300x187.jpg\" alt=\"RM's note indicating unsuccessful delivery attempt\" width=\"186\" height=\"116\" srcset=\"https:\/\/d3.harvard.edu\/platform-rctom\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2015\/12\/Sorry-you-were-out-300x187.jpg 300w, https:\/\/d3.harvard.edu\/platform-rctom\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2015\/12\/Sorry-you-were-out.jpg 508w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 186px) 100vw, 186px\" \/><\/a><figcaption id=\"caption-attachment-4763\" class=\"wp-caption-text\">RM&#8217;s note indicating unsuccessful delivery attempt<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p>RM has relied mainly on its mail leadership position to drive parcel volumes. This has resulted in significant underinvestment in technology, labor-intensive sorting processes and excessive redelivery costs.<\/p>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<figure id=\"attachment_5121\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-5121\" style=\"width: 493px\" class=\"wp-caption alignright\"><a href=\"https:\/\/i4tsk12in2b2y7uts14c528g-wpengine.netdna-ssl.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2015\/12\/Distribution-centres1.jpg\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\" wp-image-5121\" src=\"https:\/\/i4tsk12in2b2y7uts14c528g-wpengine.netdna-ssl.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2015\/12\/Distribution-centres1-300x93.jpg\" alt=\"Distribution center automation - Royal Mail vs. DPD, a UK competitor \" width=\"493\" height=\"164\" \/><\/a><figcaption id=\"caption-attachment-5121\" class=\"wp-caption-text\">Distribution center automation &#8211; Royal Mail vs. DPD, a UK competitor<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p>RM has made a significant push to overcome these\u00a0deficiencies by\u00a0investing in process automation. Nevertheless, there is still a long way to go and\u00a0even as it rolls out its new tracking technology, its competitors have long pushed ahead and stole market share by having\u00a0a technologically superior product.\u00a0\u00a0They are in position to offer\u00a0GPS-enabled service that pins down delivery windows within the hour<sup>2<\/sup>. RM management is confident that eventually the gap will be closed, however, the question remains if RM will be able to recoup the cost of automating its process at all or it will simply avoid losing more market share<sup>2<\/sup>.<\/p>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<figure id=\"attachment_4817\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-4817\" style=\"width: 205px\" class=\"wp-caption alignright\"><a href=\"https:\/\/i4tsk12in2b2y7uts14c528g-wpengine.netdna-ssl.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2015\/12\/Amazon-Drone.jpg\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\" wp-image-4817\" src=\"https:\/\/i4tsk12in2b2y7uts14c528g-wpengine.netdna-ssl.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2015\/12\/Amazon-Drone-300x187.jpg\" alt=\"Amazon's drone prototype\" width=\"205\" height=\"128\" srcset=\"https:\/\/d3.harvard.edu\/platform-rctom\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2015\/12\/Amazon-Drone-300x187.jpg 300w, https:\/\/d3.harvard.edu\/platform-rctom\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2015\/12\/Amazon-Drone.jpg 505w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 205px) 100vw, 205px\" \/><\/a><figcaption id=\"caption-attachment-4817\" class=\"wp-caption-text\">Amazon&#8217;s drone prototype<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p>Meanwhile, the technology lag has diminished the value proposition for large customers active in the e-commerce space who\u00a0were otherwise attracted by RM&#8217;s quality and reliability reputation. Retailers with brick and mortar presence have began\u00a0promoting \u201cclick and collect\u201d model which has undermined package volumes. Amazon on the other hand has announced plans to start independent delivery service and is also aggressively experimenting with technologically advanced delivery methods.\u00a0Uber is also rumored as a potential new entrant in the parcel delivery business which further erodes and disrupts the status quo.<\/p>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<figure id=\"attachment_4922\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-4922\" style=\"width: 300px\" class=\"wp-caption alignright\"><a href=\"https:\/\/i4tsk12in2b2y7uts14c528g-wpengine.netdna-ssl.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2015\/12\/Mount-Pleasant.jpg\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-medium wp-image-4922\" src=\"https:\/\/i4tsk12in2b2y7uts14c528g-wpengine.netdna-ssl.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2015\/12\/Mount-Pleasant-300x102.jpg\" alt=\"RM's largest distribution center situated in the heart of London\" width=\"300\" height=\"102\" srcset=\"https:\/\/d3.harvard.edu\/platform-rctom\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2015\/12\/Mount-Pleasant-300x102.jpg 300w, https:\/\/d3.harvard.edu\/platform-rctom\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2015\/12\/Mount-Pleasant-1024x347.jpg 1024w, https:\/\/d3.harvard.edu\/platform-rctom\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2015\/12\/Mount-Pleasant-600x204.jpg 600w, https:\/\/d3.harvard.edu\/platform-rctom\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2015\/12\/Mount-Pleasant.jpg 1076w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 300px) 100vw, 300px\" \/><\/a><figcaption id=\"caption-attachment-4922\" class=\"wp-caption-text\">Mount Pleasant &#8211; RM&#8217;s largest distribution center situated in the heart of London<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p><strong><em>\u201cLocation, location, location\u201d (or the high\u00a0opportunity cost of RM&#8217;s real estate)<\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n<p>RM operates out of a portfolio of prime real estate properties which serve as its distribution centers. Real estate\u00a0monetization has been a crucial upside for the business, however,\u00a0the\u00a0lack of automation has prevented RM\u00a0from consolidating faster some of activities into suburbs. As a result the company implicitly pays the opportunity cost of owning assets which could otherwise bring in disposal\u00a0proceeds estimated at\u00a0\u00a3500 MM<sup>3<\/sup>.<\/p>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p><strong><em>\u201cUnited we stand\u201d (or RM&#8217;s inability to meaningfully decrease labor costs)<\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n<figure id=\"attachment_5154\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-5154\" style=\"width: 527px\" class=\"wp-caption alignright\"><a href=\"https:\/\/i4tsk12in2b2y7uts14c528g-wpengine.netdna-ssl.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2015\/12\/strike.jpg\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\" wp-image-5154\" src=\"https:\/\/i4tsk12in2b2y7uts14c528g-wpengine.netdna-ssl.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2015\/12\/strike-300x92.jpg\" alt=\"Protesting CWU members\" width=\"527\" height=\"150\" \/><\/a><figcaption id=\"caption-attachment-5154\" class=\"wp-caption-text\">Protesting CWU members<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p>In the face of aggressive volume declines in its core mail business and the need to automate parcel handling, Royal Mail lacks the crucial ability to downsize its labor force.\u00a0It cannot fire its employees and needs to rely on natural attrition. Most of RM\u2019s employees are part of the Communication Workers Union (CWU), which prevents it from implementing forced redundancies and remains adamant on issues like workers\u2019 pay. Furthermore, the CWU is opposing RM\u2019s automation spending budget and argues that management should focus on human resources issues instead<sup>4<\/sup>.\u00a0The high degree of unionization also exposes the business to frequent disruption. Historically, disputes have resulted in wide scale industrial action interfering with RM\u2019s ordinary course of business (1988, 1996, 2007, 2009)\u00a0and seriously threatened\u00a0RM\u2019s IPO in 2013.<\/p>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/i4tsk12in2b2y7uts14c528g-wpengine.netdna-ssl.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2015\/12\/Staff-Costs.jpg\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"alignright wp-image-4905 size-medium\" src=\"https:\/\/i4tsk12in2b2y7uts14c528g-wpengine.netdna-ssl.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2015\/12\/Staff-Costs-300x170.jpg\" alt=\"Staff costs are among the highest among peers\" width=\"300\" height=\"170\" srcset=\"https:\/\/d3.harvard.edu\/platform-rctom\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2015\/12\/Staff-Costs-300x170.jpg 300w, https:\/\/d3.harvard.edu\/platform-rctom\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2015\/12\/Staff-Costs.jpg 501w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 300px) 100vw, 300px\" \/><\/a><\/p>\n<p>Employee costs are the highest among RM\u2019s peer group of European postal companies while revenue per employee is about half of the peer group average<sup>5<\/sup>. Its operating metrics are not much better either. While a Deutsche Post postal worker serves 244 families on average, a Royal Mail one will deliver to only 191 households. It is estimated that if RM was as efficient as its German counterpart in mail delivery, it could operate with 7% or 10,000 fewer staff, generating savings of \u00a3300 MM a year<sup>6<\/sup>. Meanwhile back at home in the UK the emerging competitors in the parcel business have cheaper and more flexible workforce giving them significant cost advantages.<\/p>\n<p><strong><em>Will Royal Mail ever &#8220;deliver&#8221;?<\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n<p>To Royal Mail&#8217;s credit, since 2006 it has managed to achieve some automation, reduce mail centers from 69 to 39 and cut labor force by 17% thanks to attrition. However, in the face of mail volume declining faster than expected and tough parcel competitive environment, the question for the company is whether its progress in aligning its operations to its business model\u00a0is sufficient.<\/p>\n<p>As far as its ability to create shareholder value to date is concerned, it has lost about \u00a31.2 Bn of its market cap<sup>7<\/sup> since January 2014.<\/p>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p><strong>Sources:<\/strong><\/p>\n<ol>\n<li>RBC Equity Research \u201cRoyal Mail plc. Costs getting better, staying underperform\u201d, November 26, 2015<\/li>\n<li>Plimmer, \u201cRoyal Mail needs to deliver on modernisation plans, post haste\u201d, Financial Times, June 18, 2015<\/li>\n<li>Evans, \u201cRoyal Mail: investors eye \u00a3500m property windfall\u201d, The Telegraph, October 1, 2013<\/li>\n<li>Schram, \u201cRoyal Mail to cut 3000 jobs in light of letters decline causing profit to plummet 30%\u201d, International Business Times, November 19, 2015<\/li>\n<li>Credit Suisse Equity Research \u201cRoyal Mail. Structural challenges remain\u201d, May 14, 2015<\/li>\n<li>Analysis by Sam Bland, Investec<\/li>\n<li>Yahoo Finance<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Tracing its roots back to 1516, Royal Mail (RM) is the incumbent postal service provider in the UK, offering letter and parcel delivery and international logistics services. After almost 500 years of public ownership, the British Government IPO-ed the business in 2013 and finally sold its remaining shares in October 2015. However, the company is yet to overcome the legacy of historical under-investment, over-regulation and likely under-management which affect its operations today1.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":797,"featured_media":5077,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","template":"","categories":[],"class_list":["post-4626","hck-submission","type-hck-submission","status-publish","has-post-thumbnail","hentry"],"connected_submission_link":"https:\/\/d3.harvard.edu\/platform-rctom\/assignment\/the-tom-challenge-tom-winners-and-losers-assignment\/","yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO plugin v27.2 - https:\/\/yoast.com\/product\/yoast-seo-wordpress\/ -->\n<title>Royal Mail Plc \u2013 Heavy Lies the Crown - Technology and Operations Management<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/d3.harvard.edu\/platform-rctom\/submission\/royal-mail-plc-heavy-lies-the-crown\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Royal Mail Plc \u2013 Heavy Lies the Crown - Technology and Operations Management\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"Tracing its roots back to 1516, Royal Mail (RM) is the incumbent postal service provider in the UK, offering letter and parcel delivery and international logistics services. After almost 500 years of public ownership, the British Government IPO-ed the business in 2013 and finally sold its remaining shares in October 2015. However, the company is yet to overcome the legacy of historical under-investment, over-regulation and likely under-management which affect its operations today1.\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/d3.harvard.edu\/platform-rctom\/submission\/royal-mail-plc-heavy-lies-the-crown\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"Technology and Operations Management\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:image\" content=\"https:\/\/d3.harvard.edu\/platform-rctom\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2015\/12\/Royal-Mail.jpg\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:width\" content=\"406\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:height\" content=\"305\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:type\" content=\"image\/jpeg\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:card\" content=\"summary_large_image\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:label1\" content=\"Est. reading time\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data1\" content=\"5 minutes\" \/>\n<script type=\"application\/ld+json\" class=\"yoast-schema-graph\">{\"@context\":\"https:\/\/schema.org\",\"@graph\":[{\"@type\":\"WebPage\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/d3.harvard.edu\/platform-rctom\/submission\/royal-mail-plc-heavy-lies-the-crown\/\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/d3.harvard.edu\/platform-rctom\/submission\/royal-mail-plc-heavy-lies-the-crown\/\",\"name\":\"Royal Mail Plc \u2013 Heavy Lies the Crown - Technology and Operations Management\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/d3.harvard.edu\/platform-rctom\/#website\"},\"primaryImageOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/d3.harvard.edu\/platform-rctom\/submission\/royal-mail-plc-heavy-lies-the-crown\/#primaryimage\"},\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/d3.harvard.edu\/platform-rctom\/submission\/royal-mail-plc-heavy-lies-the-crown\/#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"https:\/\/d3.harvard.edu\/platform-rctom\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2015\/12\/Royal-Mail.jpg\",\"datePublished\":\"2015-12-09T23:06:59+00:00\",\"breadcrumb\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/d3.harvard.edu\/platform-rctom\/submission\/royal-mail-plc-heavy-lies-the-crown\/#breadcrumb\"},\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"ReadAction\",\"target\":[\"https:\/\/d3.harvard.edu\/platform-rctom\/submission\/royal-mail-plc-heavy-lies-the-crown\/\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/d3.harvard.edu\/platform-rctom\/submission\/royal-mail-plc-heavy-lies-the-crown\/#primaryimage\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/d3.harvard.edu\/platform-rctom\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2015\/12\/Royal-Mail.jpg\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\/\/d3.harvard.edu\/platform-rctom\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2015\/12\/Royal-Mail.jpg\",\"width\":406,\"height\":305},{\"@type\":\"BreadcrumbList\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/d3.harvard.edu\/platform-rctom\/submission\/royal-mail-plc-heavy-lies-the-crown\/#breadcrumb\",\"itemListElement\":[{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":1,\"name\":\"Home\",\"item\":\"https:\/\/d3.harvard.edu\/platform-rctom\/\"},{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":2,\"name\":\"Submissions\",\"item\":\"https:\/\/d3.harvard.edu\/platform-rctom\/submission\/\"},{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":3,\"name\":\"Royal Mail Plc \u2013 Heavy Lies the Crown\"}]},{\"@type\":\"WebSite\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/d3.harvard.edu\/platform-rctom\/#website\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/d3.harvard.edu\/platform-rctom\/\",\"name\":\"Technology and Operations Management\",\"description\":\"MBA Student Perspectives\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"SearchAction\",\"target\":{\"@type\":\"EntryPoint\",\"urlTemplate\":\"https:\/\/d3.harvard.edu\/platform-rctom\/?s={search_term_string}\"},\"query-input\":{\"@type\":\"PropertyValueSpecification\",\"valueRequired\":true,\"valueName\":\"search_term_string\"}}],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\"}]}<\/script>\n<!-- \/ Yoast SEO plugin. -->","yoast_head_json":{"title":"Royal Mail Plc \u2013 Heavy Lies the Crown - Technology and Operations Management","robots":{"index":"index","follow":"follow","max-snippet":"max-snippet:-1","max-image-preview":"max-image-preview:large","max-video-preview":"max-video-preview:-1"},"canonical":"https:\/\/d3.harvard.edu\/platform-rctom\/submission\/royal-mail-plc-heavy-lies-the-crown\/","og_locale":"en_US","og_type":"article","og_title":"Royal Mail Plc \u2013 Heavy Lies the Crown - Technology and Operations Management","og_description":"Tracing its roots back to 1516, Royal Mail (RM) is the incumbent postal service provider in the UK, offering letter and parcel delivery and international logistics services. After almost 500 years of public ownership, the British Government IPO-ed the business in 2013 and finally sold its remaining shares in October 2015. However, the company is yet to overcome the legacy of historical under-investment, over-regulation and likely under-management which affect its operations today1.","og_url":"https:\/\/d3.harvard.edu\/platform-rctom\/submission\/royal-mail-plc-heavy-lies-the-crown\/","og_site_name":"Technology and Operations Management","og_image":[{"width":406,"height":305,"url":"https:\/\/d3.harvard.edu\/platform-rctom\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2015\/12\/Royal-Mail.jpg","type":"image\/jpeg"}],"twitter_card":"summary_large_image","twitter_misc":{"Est. reading time":"5 minutes"},"schema":{"@context":"https:\/\/schema.org","@graph":[{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https:\/\/d3.harvard.edu\/platform-rctom\/submission\/royal-mail-plc-heavy-lies-the-crown\/","url":"https:\/\/d3.harvard.edu\/platform-rctom\/submission\/royal-mail-plc-heavy-lies-the-crown\/","name":"Royal Mail Plc \u2013 Heavy Lies the Crown - Technology and Operations Management","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/d3.harvard.edu\/platform-rctom\/#website"},"primaryImageOfPage":{"@id":"https:\/\/d3.harvard.edu\/platform-rctom\/submission\/royal-mail-plc-heavy-lies-the-crown\/#primaryimage"},"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/d3.harvard.edu\/platform-rctom\/submission\/royal-mail-plc-heavy-lies-the-crown\/#primaryimage"},"thumbnailUrl":"https:\/\/d3.harvard.edu\/platform-rctom\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2015\/12\/Royal-Mail.jpg","datePublished":"2015-12-09T23:06:59+00:00","breadcrumb":{"@id":"https:\/\/d3.harvard.edu\/platform-rctom\/submission\/royal-mail-plc-heavy-lies-the-crown\/#breadcrumb"},"inLanguage":"en-US","potentialAction":[{"@type":"ReadAction","target":["https:\/\/d3.harvard.edu\/platform-rctom\/submission\/royal-mail-plc-heavy-lies-the-crown\/"]}]},{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/d3.harvard.edu\/platform-rctom\/submission\/royal-mail-plc-heavy-lies-the-crown\/#primaryimage","url":"https:\/\/d3.harvard.edu\/platform-rctom\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2015\/12\/Royal-Mail.jpg","contentUrl":"https:\/\/d3.harvard.edu\/platform-rctom\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2015\/12\/Royal-Mail.jpg","width":406,"height":305},{"@type":"BreadcrumbList","@id":"https:\/\/d3.harvard.edu\/platform-rctom\/submission\/royal-mail-plc-heavy-lies-the-crown\/#breadcrumb","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"name":"Home","item":"https:\/\/d3.harvard.edu\/platform-rctom\/"},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"name":"Submissions","item":"https:\/\/d3.harvard.edu\/platform-rctom\/submission\/"},{"@type":"ListItem","position":3,"name":"Royal Mail Plc \u2013 Heavy Lies the Crown"}]},{"@type":"WebSite","@id":"https:\/\/d3.harvard.edu\/platform-rctom\/#website","url":"https:\/\/d3.harvard.edu\/platform-rctom\/","name":"Technology and Operations Management","description":"MBA Student Perspectives","potentialAction":[{"@type":"SearchAction","target":{"@type":"EntryPoint","urlTemplate":"https:\/\/d3.harvard.edu\/platform-rctom\/?s={search_term_string}"},"query-input":{"@type":"PropertyValueSpecification","valueRequired":true,"valueName":"search_term_string"}}],"inLanguage":"en-US"}]}},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/d3.harvard.edu\/platform-rctom\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/hck-submission\/4626","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/d3.harvard.edu\/platform-rctom\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/hck-submission"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/d3.harvard.edu\/platform-rctom\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/hck-submission"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/d3.harvard.edu\/platform-rctom\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/797"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/d3.harvard.edu\/platform-rctom\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=4626"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/d3.harvard.edu\/platform-rctom\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/hck-submission\/4626\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/d3.harvard.edu\/platform-rctom\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/5077"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/d3.harvard.edu\/platform-rctom\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=4626"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/d3.harvard.edu\/platform-rctom\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=4626"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}