What were the key trends and industry developments in 2022?

The developments of 2022 will pave the way for commercial print trends in 2023 – so what were they? We have seen a real shift towards automation. Print businesses now place even more value on increasing uptime across the entire print lifecycle. This covers everything from pre-press to finishing, including logistics and fulfilment. Automation has helped businesses better serve their customers. It’s also enabled staff to spend more time bringing strategic value.

Sustainability is another key development. Customers now hold suppliers accountable as they assess their supply chains and find more sustainable print options and solutions. This has sharpened market competition and positively impacted the industry as a whole, an impact we support wholeheartedly at Ricoh. 

What are the biggest opportunities and commercial print trends in 2023?

In 2023, we believe Ink Jet will become more prominent. With Ink Jet, you can obtain faster run speeds, increase job volumes, produce smaller print runs and enables full-colour printing on all jobs, extending the historic break even between Digital and Offset. We are particularly proud to be innovating and leading the way in this technology. 

This year, there will also be a continued need for greater efficiencies in production through automation, but through focusing on integrated workflows and robotics and AI. We have written about the benefits of AI for print service providers here.

Data will also become ever more important as the industry looks to create efficiencies in production, particularly around big data that identify cost and efficiency savings for brands and marketing agencies. 

Another trend is partnership and collaboration. To ensure a strong relationship with a client, you must treat it as a partnership and collaborate. Operating in sync enables you to support all aspects of the business and helps nurture opportunities to spark new business. You can read about one of our partnerships here with Aura Print. 

How have economic, political, and supply chain challenges prepared you for 2023?

There has been a growing need for adaptable and flexible businesses over the past few years. One of the ways we have developed our business model was by moving away from the traditional supplier-customer relationship. We have made it clear that our clients can come to us as a trusted advisor to provide the necessary support in times of uncertainty. Ensuring we always stay true to this mantra will set us up for a strong future. 

Fostering these stronger customer relationships has also allowed us to identify synergies that generate shared business outcomes. 

One of the synergies we have identified with clients is finding greater efficiencies in our processes by streamlining our vendors’ network. These trusted relationships and efficiency levels will only develop in the years ahead. We’ve honoured the importance of our customer relationships in our new Champions of Print video. 

How can suppliers better help printers navigate the challenges and seize the opportunities in 2023?

It is crucial to be an advisor who does not solely focus on the production and output of the business but can support clients on broader challenges. 

We have adopted a delivery service that focuses on our customers’ growth by creating extra capacities which move away from the traditional relationship. Throughout the organisation, we have seen the benefit of providing post-sales business support and EDGE Business Development, helping clients diversify and grow.

How can suppliers do more to promote the effectiveness of print to the broader business community in 2023?

For organisations to promote print effectiveness, there is a need to become more active across the complete supply chain. To demonstrate how effective print can be compared to Digital Campaigns and to be part of the design process, not just a fulfilment of work.  

Working with industry bodies such as the BPIF and IPIA, as well as collaborating with other printers and marketing agencies, will enable originations to demonstrate the benefits of print.

Explore our Anything in Print hub if you are interested in understanding more about Ricoh’s commercial print offering. 

This article was originally published in PrintWeek 

Related articles: 

https://insights.ricoh.co.uk/digital-printing/customer-value-in-print 

https://insights.ricoh.co.uk/digital-printing/power-of-print

https://insights.ricoh.co.uk/digital-printing/celebrating-our-champions-of-print 

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When your organisation needs a new print solution, either situated centrally in your office space or designed for a hybrid workforce dotted around the country, where should you look and, perhaps more importantly, what should you look for?

It’s only natural that the first thing you’ll check is how much each device will cost. After all, we all want to achieve the best return on investment – and 69% of business leaders say print is key to unlocking growth and revenue. But we’ve also all heard the saying ‘buy cheap, buy twice’.  The truth is, there are many variables you need to consider. In this article, we’ll discuss some of those variables, and how important finding the right partner is in securing a good return on investment.

What are the key considerations for a good ROI?

Modern multifunctional print solutions can offer your business far more than just everyday print features. They represent central hubs of productivity in the office and for your people – no matter where they’re working – and as such, provide a vast array of opportunities for adding value to your organisation. Here are some crucial things to consider:

Energy consumption

There are printers which help you cut down on energy consumption. Look for devices with features such as auto-off timers to trim down that carbon footprint and save you cash.

Saving space

Office space is expensive, we all know that. So, finding technology that can manage and maintain several business-critical processes on their own, rather than looking at multiple devices is crucial. You’ll free up lots of extra space that can be put to better use for your business.

Future-proofing

Print technology is evolving all the time. And fast. Leading print providers and partners understand this implicitly and will offer solutions that autonomously update with the latest software and functionality – which increases the device’s lifecycle dramatically and enables you to integrate future innovations more easily.

How can print solutions generate ROI across your business

Today’s print solutions can deliver significant benefits across your entire organisation, adding value to multiple business-critical operations and processes. 

One of these areas is, of course, productivity. Modern devices do far more than just print. They offer a multitude of functions that take tedious tasks out of your people’s hands, freeing them up to focus on more profitable projects.

They also introduce features such as secure documentation, scanning and integration with the cloud, which reduces paper trails and hastens the sharing of information between different devices and users. Effective, efficient, and a much more enjoyable work environment and fulfilled experience for your people.

Choosing the right partner for print ROI

Your choice of print partner can have a huge impact on your return on investment. So how do you know who to pick?

One thing to keep front of mind during your decision is the level of support you will receive. Working with a collaborative partner is the best way to effectively integrate new devices and software into your organisation while ensuring your people know how to use them – all while securing true value for money.

It is also important to find a partner who is open to a discussion around adapting agreements, within the Contractual Compliance Guidelines to make sure you’re getting the best price and service across the full timeline of your agreement. 

Ricoh, your people-first Managed Print Service provider 

Ricoh has years of experience in understanding the vital role office print plays in an organisation – including return on investment.

As a Managed Print Service provider, we specialise in analysing the needs of your business, identifying the right solutions for both you and your people, and then integrating them seamlessly into your workflows – ensuring your people know how to make the most of them.

And we don’t stop there. We offer ongoing support to make sure you get the most from our collaboration, and that your people work happily and productively to produce their best work for your business.

Finding your perfect Managed Print Solution

Learn more about Ricoh’s support values with our ‘Finding Your Perfect Print Solution’ guide.

Click to read Finding your Perfect Office Print Solution

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When remote workers use home printers or local print shops outside of the company’s network of suppliers to print outbound mail, there is always a hidden cost. And even if outbound mail is produced in the office, disparate departmental print devices can often result in little central control, leaving businesses with spiralling costs and even, inconsistently used brand guidelines.

Hybrid Mail is the solution and can transform how businesses process ad hoc mail. It provides automated systems and processes for standardised mail creation and secure submission to centralised print facilities where mail can be enveloped and aggregated, saving cost in both the production and distribution of outbound mail.

As businesses evaluate how to adapt to new working practices to enable more governance and control over critical processes, we believe that Hybrid Mail is set for a big year. But remote working isn’t the only reason why. Here are the three key trends we see building demand for Hybrid Mail this year: 

Hybrid Mail can support remote and hybrid working

All businesses are coming to terms with the “new normal”, but in reality, the necessity for home or remote working in 2020 accelerated an existing trend. Flexible working arrangements were already becoming more commonplace. Now, businesses are looking to formalise how outbound mail in the remote, hybrid and flexible workplace is controlled from a cost, efficiency and brand perspective.

Hybrid Mail delivers all these benefits by providing remote-working employees with a secure portal to create, approve, and submit compliant mail communications that are then fulfilled at a central print and mail facility – possibly qualifying for volume postal discounts.

It can also empower employees to make quick updates to document features such as signatures, names and letterheads, without the delay of them needing to log a support ticket with IT. By saving time on manual tasks, employees can focus on their core duties and generating value for the business.

Standardising and automating outbound communications

Businesses exploring how to streamline their ad hoc mail streams through Hybrid Mail are also reassessing the content and documentation they produce and investigating more innovative ways of communicating.

By reassessing the way content reads and feels, businesses are finding opportunities to streamline information into less paperwork, enhance corporate branding and, if appropriate, switch to a digital form of communication like SMS or email. The benefits of Hybrid Mail are the same, regardless of the communication method offering an unmatched level of governance. 

Providing employees with a sophisticated document creation, approval and submission workflow, Hybrid Mail also allows central control and automation to be applied as the business best sees fit. This ensures multi-channel communications can be created efficiently and that customer preferences for communication are considered.

Furthermore, ongoing customer service can be improved through quick and easy access to an electronic archive of communications sent to each client, making query response quicker and more accurate, and the production of duplicate documents a simple process.

Hybrid Mail can maximise print room efficiency 

There are many arguments to be made in favour of enterprise businesses establishing a single print room, whether this is in-house or outsourced to an external service provider that consolidates volumes with its other customers. A push towards Hybrid Mail can also help deliver efficiency improvements to print rooms.

For example, outbound mail documents can be consolidated into a single, brand-compliant, print-ready file, removing potential issues with missing fonts and inconsistent formatting.

Many organisations underestimate the complexities and potential pitfalls behind what seems to be a simple File-Print process, and an external service provider might very well charge additional costs to manage these issues on the production floor. Processing these documents through a Hybrid Mail workflow with defined approval protocols results in better quality communications and greater efficiency in print and fulfilment operations.

Those organisations already with in-house print and mail facilities will also benefit from Hybrid Mail. A switch to this solution might either increase or decrease mail volumes going through the print room facility, but either way, creating efficiency.

The process of implementing Hybrid Mail might also see a reconsideration of additional print work that is currently outsourced – marketing print, for example – and which might now be considered worth bringing into the corporate print room to help maximise the company’s investment there.

Remove hidden costs and deliver greater agility with Hybrid Mail

Flexible working is a reality, and more agile, permanent solutions can replace heavy lifting. Hybrid Mail is a smart solution that removes hidden costs, delivering greater agility and efficiency for businesses grappling with increased needs for digital transformation, along with accelerating trends towards remote and hybrid working by employees. Achieve high levels of process automation, and feel the benefits throughout your organisation.     

If you’d like to discover more about Hybrid Mail, read our case studies. We recently helped Camden Council and East and North East Hertfordshire NHS Trust streamline their outbound communications.

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Managed Print Services work with you to develop a digital strategy that incorporates print, scan and paper workflows into your wider processes and practices. They help you identify the strengths and weaknesses of your organisation and use their expertise to provide the right solution for you and your people – whether at home or back in the office.

And then, perhaps most importantly, they continue to work with you to implement and integrate new processes, practices and technology. Offering ongoing support to ensure you get the most out of the opportunity that lies ahead. In this article, we’ll take a look at the key areas where Managed Print Services can support your business.

What do we mean by support?

For most people, support – especially in a professional context – means customer service. And, from faraway call centres to confused chat bots and tedious instructions, we know all too well what this feels like when it’s done wrong.

For Managed Print Services, support goes far beyond that, becoming a full end-to-end consideration throughout your partnership. It’s about supporting your organisation as it identifies the right digital strategy moving forwards, helping you implement that strategy. then ensuring your people can perform their jobs to the best of their abilities.

Why is support vital now and in the future?

For your business, global challenges have encouraged greater collaboration between different organisations, waking us all up to the fact that we aren’t alone, and that working together can help us get a healthy slice of a much bigger pie. These learnings won’t disappear, and it’s important your business keeps up with how things have evolved.

For your people, hybrid working practices are also here to stay. Does your organisation have the right solutions and processes in place to support your people? Can they work effectively whether they’re at home or in the office? Managed Print Services can help make sure that it does.

How will a Managed Print Service support you?

Let’s take a look at some of the key specifics of what Managed Print Services can support you with: 

Technology

Do you have the devices and programs your people need in order to work productively wherever they are? Are your current solutions updated with the latest security software? Is your print room stocked on paper and toner? Your Managed Print Service partner can take these tasks out of your IT team’s hands and sort them for you.

Productivity 

Once you’ve got the right things in place, it’s vital that your people know how to make the most of them. Managed Print Service partners will work alongside your people, offering training, support and advice to help ingratiate them with new and better ways of working.

Experience

One of the most valuable aspects of engaging with a Managed Print Service partner is the wealth of experience they bring to the table. Current trends, the latest solutions and technical expertise will all be at your organisation’s disposal throughout any relationship.

How will a Managed Print Service support your people?

Equally importantly, Managed Print Services can offer key solutions to support your people:

Technical support

Engaging with a Managed Print Service partner can ensure your people have access to the software, documents and devices they need to work productively in the office, at home, or on the move.

Security

If your people are accessing your documents from multiple locations and devices, they need to know they’re doing so safely and securely. The support of a Managed Print Service partner can offer that peace of mind.

Connectivity

We’ve all had to adapt to new ways of working together in the past 18 months. Virtual meeting rooms, chat solutions, and digital document storage and retrieval have become commonplace in our lives. As we move forwards to more hybrid working models, with some at home and some in the office, we again must adapt to provide the right support to our employees. A Managed Print Service partner can help you find the right balance.

Ricoh, your people-first Managed Print Service provider

Ricoh has years of experience in understanding the vital role office print plays in an organisation.

As a leading Managed Print Service provider and workplace systems integrator, we specialise in analysing the needs of your business, identifying the right solutions for both you and your people, and then integrating them seamlessly into your workflows –  ensuring your people know how to make the most of them.

And we don’t stop there. We have a UK-based contact centre and hold a Customer Service Excellence Certification, offering ongoing support to make sure you get the most from our collaboration, and that your people work happily and productively to produce their best work for your business.

Finding your perfect Managed Print Solution

Learn more about Ricoh’s support values with our ‘Finding Your Perfect Print Solution’ guide.

Click to read Finding your Perfect Office Print Solution

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At the heart of every office lies its print hardware. Once they were dedicated devices that specialised in printing or scanning. Today they’re multi-function machines that enhance business-critical processes, enable greater flexibility, increase productivity and make your people’s lives much easier.

It all comes down to productivity. Who wouldn’t want to automate tedious tasks so their staff can work on more profitable projects? Or reduce human error by providing technical solutions to problematic paper trails?

But the real potential of your office print lies in Managed Print Services. Engaging with a partner who understands how each part ticks. Linking them together into one, cohesive unit and combining them seamlessly with your own digitisation strategy. 

In this article, we’ll be looking at productivity, and how to find the right Managed Print Services partner for you.

Why office print is vital to your productivity

Your print room and multi-function devices are part of the lifeblood of your organisation – no matter which industry you are in. And as we’ve discussed, modern solutions provide much more than just printing or scanning. Let’s take a look at how office print improves productivity for your people.

Storing and retrieving documents quickly

For many organisations, the days of cabinets filled to the brim with paper, filed away for a rainy day, are hopefully long gone. 

These challenges can still remain, but today we can for the most part, thank multi-function print devices for making the secure storage, archiving, scanning and retrieval of documents a quick and painless process.

Enabling hybrid working

It’s now old news that some form of remote working is here to stay. The events of 2020 onwards have shown that we are capable of performing our roles in different locations. And for many, the benefits that remote working has to offer our work/life balance are too good to give up.

Without modern office print, we wouldn’t have been able to adapt to new challenges, support our people with their print needs, or prepare for the future’s hybrid mix of remote and in-office workers.

Providing greater accessibility and productivity

One of the key considerations in the design of new multi-function print devices is how easy they are to use for people in different departments or performing different roles. 

By featuring user-friendly interfaces and touch screens, simplified operating systems and seamless integration with other devices such as mobiles and laptops (including on the move), your Office Print Solution can elevate day-to-day productivity across the board.

Why office print should be a key consideration for your digitisation strategy

Providing your people with the right office print solution is more important now than ever – and not only because of the events we’ve all experienced since 2020. 

We’ve learned to work under difficult circumstances, testing the resilience of our businesses while adapting our processes for remote and hybrid working. And we’ve also seen further advances in the capabilities of office print devices, and the huge improvements in productivity they can provide.

As more organisations adopt these new practices and processes effectively, those who don’t will be left behind.

Why Managed Print Services are the most effective solution

By collaborating with a Managed Print Services partner, you take advantage of a purpose-built solution that combines expertise with greater visibility. A partner will:

• Identify the challenges and opportunities openly with your organisation 
• Understand the global trends and latest advancements that could work for you 
• Incorporate solutions in line with your own digitisation strategy

Different print partners have different methods for enabling productivity through your print devices. We encourage you to survey the market for one that matches your business’s values. But while you’re here…

Ricoh, your people first Managed Print Service provider

Ricoh has years of experience in understanding the vital role office print plays in an organisation. 

As a Managed Print Service provider, we specialise in analysing the needs of your business, identifying the right solutions for both you and your people, and then integrating them seamlessly into your workflows – ensuring your people know how to make the most of them.

And we don’t stop there. We offer ongoing support to make sure you get the most from our collaboration, and that your people can work happily and productively to produce their best work for your business.

Finding your perfect Managed Print Solution

Learn more about Ricoh’s office print productivity values with our ‘Finding Your Perfect Print Solution’ guide.

Click to read Finding your Perfect Office Print Solution

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Office print devices are no longer the one-dimensional products of the past. Today they have the functionality to accelerate multiple business-critical processes. They’ve become a staple part of any modern-day office and have become core IT assets in their own right. Their computing capability has grown significantly and their accessibility to both on-site and remote workers has transformed productivity and flexibility.

But this growth in use and flexibility has also increased the potential security threats. A survey by IT analyst Quocirca found that 63 per cent of companies surveyed suffered at least one printer-related security breach.

Discover some of the key security threats to your office print devices and the steps to take to ensure they are made safe and secure.

Why office print security is so important now

Organisations are still very reliant on office print in their day to day workflow. With the arrival of the digital office, many thought the need for office printing would lose relevance. But as businesses have transformed and productivity expectations have increased, office print manufacturers have embraced product innovation to facilitate new levels of interaction and communication. 

Office print devices now use cloud technology to support fully accessible workplaces. Whether that’s for individuals within the office environment or for remote users connecting to devices externally. Today’s workplaces rely on the ability for users to seamlessly connect to other users, software or services via a cloud network. In the same way, they also connect to office print devices to print, scan, send and receive mail.

Productivity software such as document management further accelerates the need to provide this level of accessibility. So the security of connected print devices is vital.

What are the potential security threats for office print?

Threats to office print security fall into the following four categories;

1. 1. Theft of printed assets from the document tray or being able to access previously scanned documents from the memory
   2. Remote cyber-attacks that aim to make the system fail by submitting phoney print jobs to using the device as a Trojan Horse to launch DDoS attacks by hackers
   3. Network vulnerability due to an unsecured print device that can leave the entire organisations network at risk
   4. Data breaches of secure information such as customer data, confidential documents and financial details caused by hackers or internal agents getting access to the printer cache

For this reason, organisations need to ensure they have a strategy to enable them to maintain a secure office print estate across their entire organisation.

Discover the four steps to securing your office print devices by reading our handy security guide.

Click to read 4 Steps to Secure Your Multifunction Printer

How the latest office print devices provide greater security

Modern office print devices use innovative technologies to provide enhanced protection against security threats. As a standard you need to ensure your print supplier can offer the following;

The ability to lock down printers

Access control, authentication, and other built-in security features ensure only authorised individuals have access to specific printers. Access can be provided and recorded via the use of individual pin codes, proximity badges, security cards and tags for individual users.

Printer and data encryption

Built-in encryption and Data Overwrite Security enhancement are incorporated to ensure all data passed from the device to the network is encrypted. Any temporary data stored on the device is overwritten.

Device management

Modern office print devices now utilise advanced technology and automatic software updates to ensure optimum protection from digital security threats. Being permanently connected allows the device to ensure it’s always running the most up to date software.

End of life cleansing and disposal

Redundant hardware requires careful management. Just as you would wipe any laptop clean before disposal, office printers must be managed in the same way. Your print partner will provide certificated end of life cleansing or hard drive removal to ensure all data is removed prior to disposal and recycling.

How to find your perfect and secure office print solution

Making sure you have secure office print devices is essential for the future security and safety of your organisation. That’s why it’s important to find a print solution that suits your organisation and a partner who understands and values the importance of security.

Different print partners have different methods for ensuring the security of your print devices. We encourage you to survey the market for one that matches your business’s values.

We value office print security

If office print is a crucial part of your business then you need to trust that it is safe, stable and secure.

Learn more about Ricoh’s office print security values with our ‘Finding Your Perfect Print Solution’ guide.

Click to read Finding your Perfect Office Print Solution

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Business has come a long way in the last few years. Now, many of the things we rely on are starting to fall behind – including our office print solutions. As workforces become more flexible, and workplaces more digital, it’s up to organisations to ensure their business-critical infrastructure keeps up.

In this article, we’ll discuss how making Ricoh Managed Print Services part of your digitisation strategy can lead to huge savings, increased productivity, greater security and a greener carbon footprint. As an example, we will use our recent project with the North East London NHS Foundation Trust (NELFT).

Who are the NELFT?

The NELFT is an NHS trust that provides an extensive range of care and mental health services to around 4.3 million people in London, Essex, Kent and Medway. They employ 6,000 staff, operating across 210 sites.

How a managed print service can lead to huge cost savings

An inefficient and in-cohesive office print solution can escalate costs in multiple ways. Firstly, there’s the cost of the devices themselves when organisations provide dedicated print devices to locations, teams or individuals.

Secondly, there’s the cost of operating and maintaining those devices, using reams and reams of paper, tonnes of toner, and increased call-out charges. Lastly, there’s the loss of productivity if devices go down.

Managed print solutions can drastically reduce the number of devices you need. Besides automating and digitising a large number of tedious tasks. Therefore, less paper, less ink and less work. Removing any loss of productivity if a device stops working altogether.

How Ricoh helped NELFT save over £200,000.

Within NELFT’s organisation were over 2,000 printers, multi-function devices, fax machines and scanners. These were supported haphazardly by six different suppliers. It was costing £645,000 a year.

Ricoh Managed Print Services reduced the print fleet size by 40%, introduced software to digitise tasks, both reduce expenditure on consumables and freeing people for more important tasks. The service also provided a 500-strong network of highly trained localised service engineers.

How managed print can increase productivity

Integrating an adaptable office print solution that can support a flexible workforce is critical for business success. We used to work in centralised locations, however, we now access our workplace remotely, or from a multitude of sites.

Switching to the latest multi-function print devices and software removes the need for localised solutions. The software enables your people to print, scan or fax easily from anywhere on your network, supporting improved productivity and efficiently completing print-based tasks securely.

How Ricoh helped NELFT increase their productivity.

Ricoh Managed Print Services reduced NELFT’s printer fleet to just 670 print devices. Introduced Streamline software which automates many simple tasks and incorporated ‘pull print’ – a tool which allows authorised users to use any device at any location.

How managed print can improve security

Security is a concern for every organisation. Therefore, it’s crucial that both your customer’s data and your people are protected. Whether that’s against cyber-attacks and potential loss of data, or against human error during business-critical tasks – after all, everyone makes mistakes.

A managed print service can go a long way to combatting these risks. The latest multi-function devices incorporate automatic software updates to ensure they have the latest security installed. They also allow for identification measures. These not only keep individual users’ documentation private across multiple devices but also allows them to safely use any device on your network.

How Ricoh helped NELFT protect their people.

Security is a huge concern for an organisation like NELFT. Therefore, a lot of their data is confidential customer data like patient letters or treatment information.

Ricoh Managed Print Service enabled NELFT to both support their own people with innovative features like Streamline and Print Insights – which manage workflows and control costs more accurately and effectively – and pull print, which lets them access their customer’s data while keeping it absolutely private.

Feature – Is your existing printer the best solution for your organisation now?

Click to read our latest advice, and discover more information and guidance.

A word from the North East London NHS Foundation Trust.

“The Ricoh MPS is important to NELFT.  It’s a fundamental part of our strategy to increase digitisation and efficient working. The Trust has managed to make significant annual savings on print, cut print volumes and minimise paper waste and energy use. The MPS has also had a big impact on our strategy to make the Trust’s people, processes and operations more agile, productive, and efficient.”

Laura Tuckley

Informatics Business and Contracts Team

North East London NHS Foundation Trust.

Click here to read the full case study

How can Ricoh help your business?

The needs of every organisation are different. Which is why the best place to start is with an audit of your current print office solution.

This way you can identify where you can make the greatest improvements to help both your business and your people.

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Printing has become far more intelligent, it is complementary to your business and part of a much wider picture. Ultimately, it ensures that your business functions efficiently. Leaving you to focus on your people, strategy and driving your organisation forward.

Staying one step ahead

Over 55% of small business owners feel that their existing technology solutions are a hindrance. Blocking the ability to incorporate or adopting new technologies.

A multi-function device will streamline your workspace when managed as part of your wider business objectives. For instance, it can provide a wealth of data on how your people work.

This means not simply looking at the benefits of an intelligent multi-function printer (MFP) in isolation. But actually understanding its place within the workspace and how it can best integrate with current and/or future technology and processes. As well as identifying the importance and purpose of its output, whether digital or print. Approaching a review in this way will assist your decision making, strategy and planning for the future.

Typically a great time to review your office print might be when moving office, introducing new software or adopting more flexible working. 

In 2025, Office Print will be at the core of business transformation.

Information, automation and communication

MFP’s are one of your key office business tools; enabling information management, automated workflow and facilitating communication throughout the business from SMEs right up to large global operations. It can also give you the ability to work towards a zero-carbon footprint by utilising the information and reporting generated from your MFP.

How else can you understand the way in which information flows through your business? The device touches every aspect of your organisation. It can help you make informed decisions to drive profitability and efficiency. In turn, making your workplace fit for your people and the way they choose to work.

In 2025, Office Print will be a management tool for greater insight into your business processes.

Scalable intelligence

90% of customers would consider taking their business elsewhere if an organisation used outdated technology. Failure to stay current can leave you uncompetitive.

Remaining current and keeping up with the pace of technology can be a challenge for organisations regardless of size and industry. But it’s not just about upgrading to the latest technology. It’s understanding of the requirements of your business and your people, remaining flexible and adapting to change.

Scalable intelligence is the key here – you need to know the technology you invest in can keep up with the growth of your business. For example, considerations such as new applications and software, security and cloud services may need to be selected, updated and adjusted as and when required. Your multi-function printer will require connectivity to cloud services and integration with 3rd party applications to do this. 

The ability to convert paper-based information to digital by scanning to services such as Dropbox or Sharepoint or direct to your corporate network is essential. It’s also about where and how this information is used from there. You need to partner with an expert that understands the nuances and challenges with this seamless integration and workflow. The result will be an optimised document management workflow that helps your people work faster, smarter and more securely.

In 2025, Office Print will be intelligent and seamlessly integrated into your business.

The case for print

As the workplace transforms to become digital, mobile and adaptable – sustainability becomes ever more important. As a result, there is still a strong case for office print:

• Office print is becoming a differentiator once more. There is a resurgence in cut-through for print and response rates from direct mail campaigns are on an upward trend. In fact, direct mail has a higher response rate than any digital direct mail medium. In a digital world, print is a very effective tangible way to stand out
• Legal requirements or compliance-related obligations will require the storage of hard copies. This may include payroll information, safety instructions or contracts
• Stakeholders, government and/or regulatory bodies may require hard copies of information. Depending on the industry within which you operate there will be requirements for printed copies of documents
• Hard copy proofing is also an important requirement for some departments, such as marketing or planning
• Printing is required to display and share information visually
• Perhaps to ensure a workshop runs smoothly or that information can be accessed at all times.

In 2025, Office Print will be paper-lite, not paperless.

Find the right MFP for your business and unlock the future.

If you‘d like to learn more about office printing and multifunction printers, feel free to drop me a line on LinkedIn

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