In a world where workplace and employee experience are key factors for business success, Sodexo, an integrated facilities management company, had to find the right transformation partner to deliver solutions that met its unique needs. With operations in 45 countries, over 430,000 employees, and  80 million consumers served daily, Sodexo understood the importance of providing an enhanced experience for employees in their London office.

In this conversation, Sodexo’s Julie Ennis outlined the challenges they faced, the partnership provided by Ricoh, and how Sodexo elevated their digital maturity to create a thriving work environment.

“Our people are benefiting from the outcomes of this transformation, and in turn our business benefits through increased wellbeing, productivity and collaboration, I look forward to continuing the journey and partnership.”

Julie Ennis – Sodexo’s CEO of Corporate Services UK and Ireland

Sodexo and Ricoh’s people-first ethos

Julie recognised that where people work affects their productivity and well-being. Global changes to workplace culture demand a people-first digital strategy — one that’s both flexible and agile. As such, Julie’s team identified early the need to adapt their workplace for the ‘new normal’ — and, more importantly, for the future. Attracting and retaining talent was becoming increasingly costly and challenging, so Sodexo needed to differentiate itself with environments and digital experiences that fostered creativity and well-being.

Julie went on to explain how she was first drawn to Ricoh as a complementary partner for Sodexo, as both organisations shared a similar, people-first belief system. Ricoh’s emphasis on Fulfilment through Work empowers teams to work smarter and enhance their quality of life. The founding principles set out in Ricoh’s Three Loves — “Love your neighbour, Love your country, Love your work” —  align perfectly with Sodexo’s core tenets of loyalty, transparency, integrity, and respect.

Furthermore, both Sodexo and Ricoh see digital maturity as a step further than a ‘one-and-done’ project, and agree that digital transformation is an ongoing process; it’s critical that organisations prioritise and grow their digital maturity to enhance the experience of employees, suppliers, and customers.

Read the Raconteur article on Digital Maturity: Transformation Comes of Age

How to roll out successful transformation

At the tail end of the pandemic, Ricoh worked quickly to implement a virtual receptionist system to greet visitors. The reception area now also has drop-down audio-visual and digital signage equipment for town hall meetings. Adjacent areas have Ricoh smart lockers, hot desks, and work pods for informal meetings and individual working.

The single-floor office has been split into three zones. A highlight is the open-plan collaborative area that also functions as a town hall. Employees can enjoy solo working desks, smaller meeting rooms, and a showcase area with larger meeting rooms.

Similarly, there are meeting rooms for two, five, and ten people equipped with Microsoft Teams Room solutions and conferencing equipment. One feature Sodexo particularly appreciates is the smart hubs that instantly connect laptops to conferencing equipment. Now, people no longer need to scrabble around for leads.

Leverage data insights for transformation success

In the background, IoT sensors collect data on people’s flow and facility use. The sensors measure air quality (better air increases productivity), time at a desk, and number of people in a meeting. This data can show that in one month, a room was used 73% of the time at 60% occupancy. The figures can be analysed to help make decisions on fine-tuning spaces to meet employees’ needs. Future innovations include an app to book desks and meeting rooms using a live, real-time, 3D view of the workspace.

Sodexo combined its existing resources with Ricoh’s specialist input and technical integration skills for long-term success. They ensured people were central to every decision. Ricoh’s installation expertise, project management, and problem-solving helped deliver the new workspace on time and budget. This was possible because they understood their existing digital maturity and used that to inform and set tangible goals.

“For organisations with ambitions for similar transformation projects, I strongly recommend having quantifiable KPIs in place, in order to measure your success and see how far you’ve come.”

Julie Ennis – Sodexo’s CEO of Corporate Services UK and Ireland

Knowing your goal, and how you will measure success, is critical to successful digital workplace transformation. It’s also necessary to understand your current digital maturity, as this provides a valuable starting point when calibrating your goals and gives you a frame of reference to see the extent of your success at the end of your project.

Measurable success

Sodexo has an existing workplace services team (who are tasked with implementing workplace strategies), and a corporate services team. They worked closely with Ricoh’s consultants, facilitators, installation experts, and project managers. This ensured the technology and solutions implemented would help Sodexo achieve its goal of creating a welcoming space. Now, employees can drop in and connect with colleagues and have a showcase space for clients. The redesign has saved 400m2, reducing the office size from 1200m2 to 800m2, but still supporting the same staff numbers.

“Ricoh has delivered what we wanted, within budget and without cutting corners.”

Harpreet Cheema – Senior Director Digital Development & Data, Sodexo USA

By implementing innovative technologies and streamlining processes, Sodexo enhanced its workplace and employee experience, ultimately driving business success. Sodexo’s London HQ is now an innovative workspace powered by technology solutions. Data backs up these solutions. This improves employee well-being, maximises space use, and makes their technology as efficient and effective as possible. Sodexo has managed to decrease desk numbers from 200 to just 22, while simultaneously increasing office occupancy from 35% to 50%. The workspace now achieves a 4.8 out of 5-star employee satisfaction rating.

Read more about Sodexo’s digital workplace transformation in our eBook.

Click to read Sodexo Case Study

The post Creating a Thriving Work Environment: Sodexo’s Digital Maturity Journey appeared first on Insights - Empowering Digital Workplaces.

The recent past has caused big problems for business. Not just in terms of finance or stability, but also in added pressure from customers to meet higher and higher expectations: a pressure that is rising all the time. So the commercial print business adapted, introducing more efficient workflows and automation to reduce costs and new innovations in colours, finishes and textures to create more engaging print solutions.

So, as we turn towards 2022, we can see the glow of opportunity and optimism that’s there for anyone willing to grasp it. By continuing to think boldly and imaginatively about what you want to achieve, it’s possible to create a positive digital print future.

This article will help you develop these future planning strategies – and make the most of your chance to grow your digital print business.

What makes 2022 a vital turning point for print?

We’re coming to a major sink-or-swim moment in the print industry. After a tumultuous 18 months for individuals and businesses, now is the time for printers to seize the moment. To take the initiative and move forward with big and bold plans for their digital print future.

We must take positive action in the faith 2022 will be kinder to us and Brexit complications will be overcome. Covid will be conquered. And structural shifts across our economy, society and industry will continue to develop. 

This is happening now, and will only accelerate. Make sure your digital print business is seizing the moment.

How are structural shifts affecting the digital print industry?

We’re all aware of how fast technology is advancing in our everyday lives. The same is true for the print industry. Digital transformation has been on the agenda of leading businesses for a long time now, but in reality, it’s a process that’s affecting every facet of life and society.

This has coincided with a growth in digital and mobile marcomms channels, and the accelerated growth of online shopping caused by the pandemic. Now, brands and retailers must fundamentally change the way they operate so they can respond to these new customer demands. The print sector is no different.

How are leading digital print businesses planning their digital future?

The most successful digital print businesses have realised that their most valuable commodity is their customers. In short, the lynch-pin of everything they want to achieve. As a result, they are making decisions focused on their customer’s evolving needs, learning those needs through research and in-depth discussions with those customers.

Once they have discovered the requirements of their audience, they meet them with imagination, creativity, innovation and an enterprising spirit. They’re investing in technology, people and skills that will enable them to meet these demands, grow their business and capitalise on a digital print future that will provide significant growth. And perhaps most importantly, they’re viewing competitors and suppliers as collaborative partners rather than rivals.

Listen to Ricoh’s ‘Nurturing the next generation in print’ Podcast 

Why working with a partner could be the key to your digital print future

We must all face it, the industry is changing.

Instead of outputs, we now work in a new digital print industry that is motivated by valuable outcomes. Hushed conversations about data and deliverables take place in front of clean machines that unobtrusively hum and click. Strategy is discussed and applied using a suite of smart solutions, all directed towards achieving the customer’s purpose most effectively and most economically.

But to make it work effectively and efficiently, this new digital print future needs fresh industry perspectives. Therefore there is no better way to get those perspectives than by collaborating with the right partner.

Introducing Ricoh, your collaborative, people-first partner

Ricoh has years of experience at the cutting edge of print devices and techniques. Specialising in working alongside your business to develop the right strategy for you, your people and your customers – and integrating effective digital print solutions for your organisation.

We can never be sure what is around the corner. But we do know that trends such as digital transformation are only going to accelerate. Ricoh has recently undergone its own digital transformation. Now, we’re perfectly placed to help our digital print partners – not just with technology, but with strategic consultancy and digital services that enable them to reposition successfully. Indeed, many of our print customers are coming to us for help with IT infrastructure, cyber security or workplace audits.

Article originally published in Printweek October 18th 2021.

The post Plan for a positive digital print future in 2022 and beyond appeared first on Insights - Empowering Digital Workplaces.

To help drive your business forward Ricoh has partnered with Microsoft to provide you with useful insights, knowledge, and services to help you with your digital implementation strategy.

With a greater emphasis on agility and flexibility, virtual and physical workplace requirements continue to evolve. Therefore, to help you overcome the challenges you face we are able to deliver bespoke consultancy, technologies, and tools.

A people-centric approach to a digital implementation

In our recent “The Conscious Workplace” research, we discovered that keeping staff motivated, happy, and productive is the biggest challenge for 45% of managers. However, there is no one-size-fits-all answer for harnessing technology that will help employees be more productive. With significant experience across many industries, we have developed expertise in fitting solutions to bespoke requirements for digital implementations.

Our teams are working alongside customers at all levels helping them understand where they are in terms of creating a digital workplace. For instance, this means working directly with CEOs, CIOs, and CTOs, as well as staff at all other levels. So, by recommending technologies and services, we help them improve company performance, productivity and the wellbeing of their people.

To bring the latest innovations, seamless integration and an even wider scope, we now work closely with Microsoft. Therefore, This enables us to provide hardware, software, and business process services facilitating smarter ways of working in the modern workplace.

Partnership with Microsoft

Watch this short video to understand how our partnership with Microsoft can benefit your business.

In addition, you will see how we have helped organisations;

• Define a people-centric digital implementation strategy
• Meet the challenge of sharing and communicating data more effectively
• Enhance processes and the flow of information in today’s agile business environment
• Achieve effective digital implementation

Discover the latest research on remote working trends and unique employee behaviour insights by reading The Conscious Workplace Report.

Meanwhile, why not learn more about how we can help your digital implementation strategy read our latest guide – Implementing a Conscious Workplace. It is a practical guide on how to implement effective digital transformation that addresses new workplace behaviours.

Work Together, Anywhere – Helping business succeed in a changed world

The post How Ricoh and Microsoft help organisations and their people with digital implementation appeared first on Insights - Empowering Digital Workplaces.