Johannesburg, 20 Sep 2012
Managed print services (MPS) has been around in various forms for a number of years, through a mix of software tools, services and custom solutions and strategies. During this time, these have proven to have the power to transform an organisation, initially by improving overall print efficiency and then going beyond to deliver incremental savings and business process improvement, says Mark Hiller, country general manager, Lexmark South Africa.
Ultimately, a managed print services engagement is, and will remain, an equal balance of products, processes and people. Changing the physical print devices that people use is one thing, but changing their print practices, processes and behaviours is quite another. However, as technology and trends have evolved, so the delivery of MPS has needed to evolve along with it.
In the beginning of MPS, providers concentrated on the standardisation and consolidation of the output environment. The second stage became the optimisation of the fleet, and the final step involved looking at the processes and how those can be optimised. These three stages are the basis of every modern MPS project.
One of the most significant changes has been how business process optimisation has become part of the managed print services offering. Many of our customers already have an existing basic print services (BPS) contract and are now looking for the next step. They often expect from their service providers to be able to deliver standard MPS - or even more advanced services covering workflow solutions that simplify paper-based and digital processes as part of their business activities. This became necessary due to the growing volume of information and documents that a company has to deal with. This makes it easier and faster for employees to find the relevant information when needed.
The distinguishing features of a modern MPS project go far beyond the initial assess, manage and optimise process of a traditional implementation. Instead, experienced vendors and customers work together in an equal partnership to deal with the issues of process improvements and document workflow. This helps overcome the greater business challenges and achieve even higher savings and business efficiency. This is highlighted by MPS moving forward from having just regular tactical updates and summaries to quarterly or even biannual business reviews, incorporating strategic discussions on a higher management level. This includes identifying upcoming challenges and defining common business targets.
Although the growth in the MPS market is expected to continue unabated in the coming years, it is also reinforcing the current gap between those providers that deliver primary basic MPS and those more experienced that are leading the ongoing development of MPS to the next level.
MPS is no longer the preserve of larger enterprises, as more vendors are developing packaged services to target the small and mid-sized business, often via the channel.
New providers are constantly entering the market and bringing new definitions to the term MPS, often to their own tastes and particular offerings. Similarly, the SME market is highly competitive and more vendors are constantly entering the market, assisting their customers in the classic MPS areas such as assessment, consolidation and page accurate billing. A much smaller number of MPS providers are able to extend these offerings into the areas of business process optimisation (BPO) and enterprise content management, and herein lies the difference. In these cases, the move is away from basic procurement models to a collaborative partnership model in which shared goals and responsibilities are implemented as part of a complete MPS approach.
Lexmark, for example, supports its customers to transform from basic MPS models to move to more advanced services. This includes consulting on how they could optimise their business processes by deploying document solutions. We have made this an integral part of Lexmark's enterprise MPS offerings.
One thing that is consistent is that the majority of those looking at MPS are experiencing significant shifts in the overall structure of their output device fleets and strategies, including seeking consultancy on process optimisation. As a result, over the next two or three years, there will be a continued move towards MPS including BPO.
MPS remains an attractive means by which organisations of all sizes can drive cost efficiencies in their print infrastructure. However, today's market goes beyond device consolidation and cost savings to pursue business process transformation as businesses prepare to get greater value from their MPS engagements.
As core MPS offerings become more commoditised, the major providers will continue to innovate and focus more on the delivery of business transformation. Leading MPS providers are those continuing to work side-by-side with customers to develop their MPS offerings in order to meet the changing requirements. Those that are truly excelling are those that go beyond this to drive MPS development one step further, beyond even customer expectations.
In order to capitalise on this, MPS providers must be able to articulate a clear strategy on how they can support their customers' businesses on an ongoing basis. Those providers that can support ongoing innovation, internally and externally, as well as help customers contain costs and improve efficiency will be the ones that thrive in this time of change.
Share