In SA, many organisations are still at the beginning stages of their managed print services (MPS) journey.
So says Nancy Meyer, operations director at Kyocera Document Solutions SA, who points out most companies in the country have contracts that incorporate document workflow and additional aspects such as business process services and IT services.
According to Meyer, the MPS market continues to evolve and it is driven by customer awareness of the potential for improved business efficiency, predictable pricing and reduced business costs.
She believes industry expertise remains a key differentiator in the MPS space; and as providers expand their business process automation capabilities, so the market will continue to expand.
Meyer is of the view that MPS engagements require a move beyond a hardware-centric model for device consolidation and optimisation, and towards a business process-centric approach. For the channel, she points out, this is a mind shift from selling to listening.
"Customer expectations are changing, which means the channel needs to be more dynamic and agile in order to maintain a competitive advantage. The customer is no longer interested in the channel pushing a basket of products. They want a MPS provider that can tame the complexity of the print infrastructure and remove the IT burden," she says.
She notes the channel is investing a lot of time looking at what the customer wants. Because they are changing their businesses in terms of both processes and skills sets, there is a vested interest in the growth of MPS, she states.
To Meyer, change is a big challenge when looking at offering MPS. "The biggest hurdle is the requirement to change the way things operate when offering managed print service; so things like optimisation, right-sizing, or cost savings around a company's print and copy environments become part of the offering, and there is a move towards continuous management of a customer's print and copy environments, not just a look at how to save costs."
The business change includes support, break-fix, supplies replenishment, and an overall management of devices, she adds.
Another challenge is defining MPS in the South African market, she notes, adding there is still a need for education and this is probably due to vendors delivering different messages and programmes around MPS.
"Selling MPS is about the customer, understanding their pain and developing a solution that suits their pocket. Organisations would consider engaging a MPS provider to gain visibility and control of their print spending in order to free-up budget and to focus on improving overall business efficiency."
MPS is not just for large companies; it delivers cost savings and efficiency for companies of all sizes. MPS is scalable from the needs of SMEs to enterprises, she points out.
"The tables have been turned when it comes to MPS. The customer no longer invests in the solution, but the service provider needs to. The top ROI drivers for moving to MPS are to gain predictable costs, improved service reliability, and reduced consumables costs."
Improved document workflow, enhanced security and reducing paper usage are also important ROI indicators, she says. The ROI is, however, not only about reducing costs and managing output; it is also about impact on the environment.
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