Small businesses need to ensure they have a carefully mapped out business strategy that addresses the needs of their organisation, before deciding on office automation equipment, says product marketing manager at Kyocera Mita SA, Michael Powell.
Powell says office automation is about more than the selection and deployment of equipment, and companies should have clearly set out objectives from the start of the process.
“A large number of companies don't execute that critical first step of mapping out what they want to see in the way of results. They assume having the latest and greatest equipment is a solution in itself and don't realise the value they might be neglecting or losing,” he says. The first step is to map out a strategy that will meet the business requirements. Companies need this so they carefully consider the needs of the business and implement a convergent technology solution, which will meet those requirements, he notes.
“Generally, the need to be met is searchable, well-managed information resources that can answer needs from both inside and outside the business. Unless existing infrastructure is seriously out of date, a very effective solution can be achieved through applying proper systems and procedures on the devices they already have.”
For Powell, a second major concern would be forms overlay. He says there are large savings involved in keeping templates of essential documents on hand, rather than having stockpiles of pre-printed documents that might become obsolete if a director resigns or the company moves premises.
A third major concern, according to him, is monitoring maintenance of the equipment. “With new devices, there are software packages available that will monitor machines for downtime and a number of dealers offer services such as responding proactively to maintenance issues. This is far preferable to a typical situation where support is only called after a machine goes down. This can cost a large amount in terms of lost productivity and disruption of business processes - even lost sales. Ultimately, having a proper system for maintenance will save money, apart from mitigating or eliminating the financial consequences of unplanned downtime.”
As the quality, performance and range of modern equipment continues to improve, businesses need to ensure they achieve their desired results and get maximum value out of their equipment, he says.
“The focus is not on the technology. It's on the needs of the business - the results the overall solution gets for the company and the value-add that new equipment can offer is much more important than the technology itself.”
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