Visa Commercial Solutions
Businesses and government agencies of all sizes and types need the right combination of payment services, information management tools, and consultative expertise to manage expenses, improve cash flow, streamline their procurement procedures, reduce processing costs, tighten spending controls, and further improve supplier relationships. Visa's suite of commercial products is designed to help.

Small Business
The Visa Business suite of products includes Visa Business Credit, Visa Business Check Card, Visa Business Debit, Visa Signature Business, and Visa Business Electron. Together, these offerings provide small business owners with payment flexibility via unsurpassed acceptance, cash flow reporting, and in some cases merchant discounts and rewards so that they can focus on their business. Visa Business Electron is an electronic authorization platform used in many countries outside North America, and has authorization control attributes. With smart, simple, secure payment options from Visa Business, small businesses now have what they need to pursue their g
Visa Commercial payment and information products provide mid- to large-sized companies with the tools they need. Through Visa's multinational capabilities, global firms can benefit from the ability to integrate and streamline their worldwide payment processes. Visa Corporate offers payment options for travel and entertainment expenditures, and provides detailed transaction data, which allows companies to track policy compliance and supplier management. Visa Purchasing provides clients with a payment solution to easily acquire the goods and services needed to conduct business by streamlining time- and paper-intensive purchase orders, invoice processing, and check writing. The Visa Commercial Card allows mid-sized companies to combine procurement, travel and entertainment, and fleet functionality into a single payment solution. Visa Fleet provides specialized authorization controls that fleet operators need to monitor and manage spending for company-provided vehicles.

Core to all Visa Commercial payment solutions are information management, reconciliation and reporting tools; plus the ability to integrate payment data into company financial and expense management systems. Visa Information Management is a web-based tool that provides access to a suite of reporting and information tools in multiple languages to companies using any of the Visa Commercial solutions
Government agencies have a long history of using the Visa Purchase card and Travel card as payment solutions for a wide range of expenditures and functions, from administering government-sponsored loans to enabling spend tracking to support small businesses. Visa Payroll products provide a convenient and cost-effective way to automate salary delivery to government employees, regardless of whether they have bank accounts. Additionally, by offering Visa as a payment method for receivables such as taxes, license and registration fees, governments offer citizens a more convenient way to pay in person or online.

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Remember also that when Laurier was appointed party head, he was generally thought to be a weak stopgap, but he persisted, and nine years later (1896) was elected prime minister; he held office for 15 uninterrupted years. Dion, despite mutterings in the short term, should feel his position is fairly secure.

It has often been said that the Liberals exhibit arrogance as a "governing party" and that Dion lacks this assertiveness. Possibly he is just naturally modest and does not bluster. However, any leader with Michael Ignatieff and Bob Rae at his side will find that his party has no shortage of arrogance on offer.

But there is one more major reason to believe that Dion may expect a political longevity similar to Mackenzie King's: the McLuhan factor. While King campaigned mostly on radio, obviously elections now are won or lost on TV, where Marshall McLuhan argues that "cool" candidates resonate more and last longer than "hot" ones. On my TV screen, Stephen Harper appears hard-edged, brittle, intense – that is, decidedly hot. Dion is certainly not glib or flashy, but more low-key, considered, ductile, may I say "sophisticated" than Harper, and often more restrained. His style may have a little more in common with the cool Barack Obama than with the hectoring Hillary Clinton. If the camera accepts and appreciates him over the long run, so, I believe, will a majority of voters.

But there is one more major reason to believe that Dion may expect a political longevity similar to Mackenzie King's: the McLuhan factor. While King campaigned mostly on radio, obviously elections now are won or lost on TV, where Marshall McLuhan argues that "cool" candidates resonate more and last longer than "hot" ones. On my TV screen, Stephen Harper appears hard-edged, brittle, intense – that is, decidedly hot. Dion is certainly not glib or flashy, but more low-key, considered, ductile, may I say "sophisticated" than Harper, and often more restrained. His style may have a little more in common with the cool Barack Obama than with the hectoring Hillary Clinton. If the camera accepts and appreciates him over the long run, so, I believe, will a majority of voters

But there is one more major reason to believe that Dion may expect a political longevity similar to Mackenzie King's: the McLuhan factor. While King campaigned mostly on radio, obviously elections now are won or lost on TV, where Marshall McLuhan argues that "cool" candidates resonate more and last longer than "hot" ones. On my TV screen, Stephen Harper appears hard-edged, brittle, intense – that is, decidedly hot. Dion is certainly not glib or flashy, but more low-key, considered, ductile, may I say "sophisticated" than Harper, and often more restrained. His style may have a little more in common with the cool Barack Obama than with the hectoring Hillary Clinton. If the camera accepts and appreciates him over the long run, so, I believe, will a majority of voters.

Who does Stéphane Dion remind you of? Oddly enough, he reminds me of Canada's most successful politician of the 20th century, our longest serving prime minister, Mackenzie King.

Oh, I know, it is presently fashionable to point out Dion's apparent shortcomings. Mackenzie King, through most of the 1920s, even after he became prime minister, also heard repeated demands that he be replaced. But to say that Dion is a liability to his party's electoral prospects is wrong and short-sighted.The question should be: Compared to what? If the Liberal leader lacks dazzling charisma, so too does Harper, who has all the charm and warmth of a forensic accountant. I find Dion's obvious depth of character and diffident manner engaging.

Some comparisons and contrasts between King and Dion may be instructive. Both are examples of intellectuals in politics. Each holds an earned doctorate in the social sciences, King from Harvard, Dion from Paris.

Neither man has been adept in a second language. Dion is not yet assured in English, while King's French was extremely limited, almost non-existent, forcing him to rely heavily on a Québécois lieutenant such as Ernest Lapointe.

Dion seems very much his own man, leaning on no one particular colleague while steadily expanding his knowledge of Anglo Canada and of English.

Polls show that Dion is not wildly popular in his home province. Still, as an election nears, historical voting patterns suggest Québécois usually favour francophone confreres in office in Ottawa.

But compared with Mackenzie King, Dion has personal advantages at the polls that make him seem easily electable. Recall how difficult it was for King to find or hold a seat in the House, even as prime minister. His first riding was in Ontario, Waterloo North, in 1908, but he was defeated there in 1911 and in 1917.

In 1919, as party leader, a seat was found for him in P.E.I. He shifted to York North, Ont., in 1921 but suffered defeat again in the 1926 election, and a seat had to be "arranged" in (no kidding) Prince Albert, Sask. Small wonder there were frequent rumblings in the party about replacing him. By comparison with King, Dion may be Mr. Congeniality.

Mackenzie King held office for 22 years in spite of being humourless, a lifelong bachelor, and a dry, prolix speaker.