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Celebrating Pride: How WCD is Championing Diversity in 2022



08.30.2022

Happy Pride Week! Calgary’s Pride Parade + Festival is in full swing, taking place from August 26 – September 5, 2022. In celebration and reflection, we’re looking back on the progress we’ve made to support the LGBTQA+ community and improve diversity, equity and inclusion at WCD this year.

WCD’s Progress Toward Diversity, Equity and Inclusion in 2022

1) Partnership with Pride in Business

    This year, we partnered with Pride in Business as their official Print & Signage Sponsor. Working to create connections within the LGBTQA+ community of professionals and entrepreneurs, Pride in Business is on a mission to enhance visibility, support and commerce in the community.

    Through our partnership, we’ve played a humble role in the success of several Pride in Business events, including Pride in Art, an event that showcased the work of several local LGBTQA+ artists, and the upcoming 10-Year Anniversary Rooftop Bash, taking place on August 31, 2022.

    Pride in Art Event
    Pride in Art 2022

    We’re proud to support Pride in Business, and we look forward to our continued partnership.

    2) WCD Diversity Council & Internal Awareness

      Last year, we recognized a need to create space for open discussion around diversity and inclusion in our workplace. In response, we established WCD’s first ever Diversity Council—an internal group of leaders committed to creating dialogue and taking actionable steps to ensure everyone feels empowered to be their most authentic selves at work.

      As an organization, we’re proud of the diversity that makes our culture uniquely ours. We also recognize that the work is never done, which is why our team is committed to continually improving our DEI initiatives. To start, we’re launching our 2022 employee survey with an added emphasis on collecting feedback and valuable insights from staff on areas we can improve DEI in the workplace.

      What Pride Week Means for WCD’s Candace Ogden

      Candace Ogden

      Last year, we celebrated Pride by interviewing WCD’s Rob Steed, VP of Partnerships & Client Engagement. This year, we asked Candace Ogden, Customer Service Representative to share a bit about what Pride means to her as a member of the LGBTQA+ community.

      Read last year's interview with Rob Steed >

      What does Pride mean to you?

      "For my family, Pride means being at one with who we are inside and out and accepting love as love. We teach our children that if we open our hearts to others, we will learn acceptance through doing so."

      How do you celebrate Pride week with your family?

      "Our family attends community events during Pride week which really helps to teach the youngest members in our family about diversity. But we don’t just celebrate Pride during this week. We are a family that celebrates who we are all throughout the year."

      How do you show your support for diversity and inclusion at work all year round?

      "In any social setting, including at work, the one thing I have learned on my journey is that being open and fully comfortable with who I am is a great way to stimulate inclusion anywhere. Not only do I show complete confidence in myself, I also make a genuine effort to show interest in others and learn about what makes them unique."

      We teach our children that if we open our hearts to others, we will learn acceptance through doing so.

      What is your advice to businesses who want to be better allies to the LGBTQA+ community?

      "My advice to businesses is to not only show the support visually, but to take a solid stance in advocating on behalf of the LGBTQA+ community. It is such a multifaceted community that often there is a lack of understanding for one another, even amongst those of us who are members of this community.

      Take time to listen and to try to understand others, and when there is a lack of understanding, find and provide resources to those who may be struggling with who they are."


      How You Can Celebrate Pride Week

      Feeling the spirit of Pride? Visit Calgary Pride's Community Events Calendar to discover the many inclusive and interactive events happening around the city this week.


      05.16.2025

      WCD x Lithe Strategic Partnership Announcement

      WCD and Lithe Announce Strategic Partnership to Deliver AI-driven Digital Mailroom Platform to Businesses across Canada WCD becomes the preferred Canadian partner of the Ondox digital mailroom platform, transforming document workflows for businesses across the country. Calgary, Canada and Glasgow, UK – Tue, May 20 – WCD, Canada’s leader in back-office optimization, today announced a strategic partnership with Lithe IT Limited, a global leader in document and process automation. Through this new alliance, WCD becomes a certified reseller and preferred Canadian partner of Ondox, Lithe’s industry-leading AI-driven digital mailroom platform. “We’re thrilled to welcome WCD as a certified reseller of the Ondox platform,” said Anthony Murphy, CEO of Lithe. “Their reputation for delivering trusted, high-value solutions aligns perfectly with our mission to help organizations modernize their document workflows.” The partnership brings together Lithe’s deep expertise in intelligent document processing and workflow automation with WCD’s leadership in back-office optimization—leveraging their more than 70 years of customer trust and strong regional presence in Canada. By integrating the AI-driven Ondox platform into WCD’s managed back-office services, organizations can capture, classify, route, and process inbound documents in real time. The result: a data-intelligent back office that accelerates workflows, boosts accuracy, and turns mailrooms into engines of business growth and competitive advantage. “Adding Ondox to our technology portfolio strengthens WCD’s mission to connect people, process, data and automation so the back-office becomes a strategic asset and actually delivers competitive advantage,” said Karen Brookman, President and CEO at WCD. “Our customers are looking for smarter ways to manage physical and digital communications. Ondox delivers exactly that – efficiency, compliance, and a seamless user experience.” This collaboration enhances WCD’s ability to deliver end-to-end digital transformation solutions and provides Lithe with a strong partner to expand Ondox’s footprint across North America. ## About Lithe Lithe unlocks the business potential of intelligent automation. Our AI-driven Ondox™ Digital Mailroom platform applies artificial intelligence to transform your whole company, not just your mailroom. For enterprise-scale organizations worldwide, Ondox cuts the cost of operations, increases team productivity, enables faster response to customers, strengthens security and compliance, and helps meet business resilience and sustainability goals. To mailroom operations and document-intensive business processes, Ondox delivers speed, smarts, simplicity, security, and scalability that traditional mailroom operations and other digital mailroom solutions cannot provide. Find out more at Ondox.ai. Media Contacts: For WCD Jennifer Brookman, Vice President, Revenue Operations & Innovation Email: marketing@wcdconnect.com For OndoxHolly O’Doherty, Marketing ManagerEmail: HollyODoherty@ondox.ai

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      05.15.2025

      The Next Evolution of WCD: Leading the Way in Back-Office Optimization

      Why WCD is Leading the Shift Toward Back-Office Optimization For over 70 years, WCD has helped organizations modernize the way they work—digitizing documents, automating workflows, and supporting business operations with hands-on services and technology. Today, we’re proud to announce the next chapter in our evolution: a deeper focus on Back-Office Optimization. This shift isn’t a departure from what we’ve always done—it’s a natural extension of our legacy and expertise. As businesses face mounting pressure to do more with less, streamline operations, and embrace digital transformation, the back office has become a critical frontier for innovation. The back-office is the foundation for enabling growth and holds untapped potential for competitive advantage. “The back office is the engine room of digital transformation. It's where inefficiencies hide and untapped potential lives,” says Karen Brookman, CEO of WCD. "When you modernize these processes, you unlock speed, accuracy and insight. People stop chasing paper and start driving value. That’s how organizations become more agile, more data-driven, and ultimately, more competitive. That’s the transformation we’re enabling." Why Back-Office Optimization — and Why Now? The back office may not be the most visible part of a business, but it’s often where complexity lives. Admin functions, finance, accounting, compliance, procurement, and HR teams are under more pressure than ever to operate faster, leaner, and smarter. At the same time, companies are navigating: Rising demand for cost-efficiency and productivityIncreased regulatory and compliance pressureRemote and hybrid workforces requiring digital collaborationAI and automation opportunities that go far beyond basic task management In this environment, organizations need more than just technology—they need expertise, integration, and insight. That’s where WCD comes in. A Foundation Built for Optimization WCD brings a unique combination of experience and adaptability to this opportunity: Decades of digital transformation leadership: From document digitization and mailroom automation to intelligent workflows and structured data extraction, we’ve been helping clients reduce manual work for years. Hands-on operational support: Our work in managed back-office services gives us a ground-level view into the challenges shared services teams face every day. Growing expertise in smart automation: We’re actively investing in AI-driven tools, cloud-based platforms, and modular service models that give our clients flexibility and scale. Our clients already trust us to manage complex document workflows. Now, we’re helping them reimagine how their entire back-office runs—from intake to insight. What This Means for Our Customers If you’re already working with us, you’ll see this as a natural evolution of our services. You’ll get even more value from a trusted partner who understands your business. For new customers, WCD represents a well-respected and proven alternative to one-size-fits-all service providers—an organization that brings both strategic thinking and executional excellence. Whether you’re in energy & natural resources, finance & insurance, education, government & public sector, transportation & logistics, healthcare, or enterprise operations, we’re here to help you modernize, streamline, and lead. Forward-thinking organizations across every sector are investing in smarter, more agile operations—and seeing the results. We’re here to help them capitalize on this mission-critical transformation, rethink how their back office functions, and build a better back-office. Follow us on LinkedIn for updates or reach out anytime to learn about how we can help you make your back-office into a competitive advantage.

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      09.18.2024

      WCD Announces an Exciting New Chapter in their History

      WCD divests its print and signage division to Cober Solutions, a respected leader in commercial and digital print. For over 70 years, WCD (West Canadian Digital Imaging Inc.) has continuously evolved to meet the changing needs of our customers and the markets we serve. We have always been at the forefront of converting traditional analogue services into automated, digital solutions. We are very proud of our outstanding reputation in the industry and for the work we’ve all done to build a market leading on-demand digital and information print company. We are thrilled to announce an exciting new chapter in our journey. Effective September 18, 2024, WCD will be divesting our print and signage division to Cober Solutions, a respected Canadian leader in commercial and on-demand print and ecommerce fulfillment company. Read about this in the Calgary Herald >> This is a strategic shift for WCD that will enable our company to focus on the expansion and future of managed services, including managed print and creative services, as well as the growth of our information management solutions. This is a critical step toward realizing our vision to become a truly technology-driven Managed Services company with increased investment in cutting-edge technologies and innovative solutions. Our goal is to remain at the forefront of our industry and deliver exceptional service and value to our customers. For all WCD customers, this change was thoughtfully considered with your future needs in mind and with no disruption to your services. For our managed services, creative services and information management customers, you will continue to work with WCD as you always have. This divesture means we will be focused on investing in solutions that support the success of your business and enable the adoption of automation and advanced technologies. Your day-to-day experience with us will not change, and you can look forward to more robust and forward-thinking solutions in the future. WCD and Cober Solutions have secured a print fulfillment partnership so that our customers will have access to their national footprint, enhanced capabilities and capacity. For our valued print and signage customers, you will gain access to a world-class, national print and fulfillment network through Cober Solutions. The familiar faces you've worked with for so many years will still be here, now part of the Cober family. We are working closely with Cober to ensure a successful transition and seamless continuation of the service you trust. What will not change is WCD’s unwavering commitment to our customers. The values that have guided our family business over many decades including integrity, innovation, exceptional service and commitment to community, will remain at the heart of everything we do. We are excited about this new chapter and the enhanced value it will bring to all our customers. To all of our customers, thank you for your continued trust in WCD. We're grateful for your support and look forward to growing together in this next exciting phase of our journey.

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