Since Adventures in Office Imaging started, one key component in the mission of the blog has been to raise peoples awareness to the fact that aside from the "big boys" (Xerox, Ikon, Canon, HP, etc.) there are small companies all over the country/world that have been doing managed print services far longer than any of these aforementioned uber-giants.
This is important to me because I believe in supporting small/local businesses/companies. It should be important to you if you plan on signing a contract with an MPS provider to manage your fleet of office equipment.
So in the spirit of enlightenment this will be the first in a series of interviews with representatives from companies like Expert Laser Services, who although do not have global accounts like the "big boys" have far greater experience within the creation, development and evolution of managed print services than any of these monsters of the office imaging industry.
First up is Print Management Coordinator and Blogger Chad Anguilm (Kraft Care Blog)
AIOI: What company do you work for?
Chad: Kraft Business Systems, Grand Rapids, Mi.
AIOI: How many employees does your company have?
Chad: 25-30
AIOI: How do you personally define "Managed Print services"
Chad: Managed Print Services is a program designed to optimize your output budget with an evolving plan for the future. By first assessing the current environment and then making recommendations based on improving efficiencies a plan can be created and followed. Quarterly visits with a dedicated PMS rep helps keep IT Directors in the loop without investing any of their valuable time in the actual maintaining of the devices or supplies. Finally, to be a true Print Managed Services plan there must be the ability to make changes for the better of the organization. Gone are the days of base rates which lock companies into a minimum amount of images for a certain period of time. PMS is about eliminating images not capturing them!
AIOI: How long have you been involved with Managed Print Services?
Chad: Personally, 3 Years. Kraft Business Systems introduced KraftCare™ PMS in 2003.
AIOI: What benefits does your MPS program offer your customers?
Chad: The compelling reason for Kraft Business Systems to offer Print Managed Services is our customer’s frustration with the inability to control and manage print costs. Customers are unhappy with the inability to monitor and track a variety of products and vendors for service, supplies and billing. Many clients have an uncontrolled deployment of a variety of print and imaging products in a very Print/Copy-Centric Work Environment vs. Workflow-Centric Environment. None of our competitors talk about decreasing the amount of printed images since that is their life-blood. Finally, time is a huge concern for most IT Directors. Many are working more hours, for less pay. If we are effectively controlling their output devices, they don’t have to!
AIOI: What are some of your major successes?
Chad: I’d say one of my major successes thus far has been taking IT Directors that were not at all interested in the thought of Print Managed Services and showing them the value of a program capable of taking the onus off them to create a plan for the future and allowing them to utilize their experience and knowledge on network related issues and projects rather than fixing and maintaining printers.
Along with that, I have thoroughly enjoyed working with staff members to show how much more efficient they can become by replacing desktop printers with departmental multi-function units. By showing the value of the additional features I have been able to get buy-in from individuals that IT directors had feared for years.
What separates your MPS program from your competitors?
Chad: Kraft Business Systems is a complete systems integrator, something none of our competitors can compete with. Kraft also has a diversified & open product portfolio. This includes IT Management, Document / Forms / Workflow Management, Print Management, Voice / Data Management, and Imaging Equipment Management. Kraft is locally owned/operated in Grand Rapids, Michigan. Something that really sets Kraft apart is its ability to add/adjust product offerings and services quickly when most businesses either are forced to change or take a long time to do so. The flexibility to create a new program without going through a long, drawn out process is unique to Kraft Business. Last but not least we focus on true sustainability, no longer can it just be about capturing clicks and reducing the amount of devices. At Kraft we focus on limiting the amount of printed images through document routing and workflow managed services. The ability to take your business through the process and educate staff, through quarterly training visits, on the importance of an efficient office sets Kraft Business Systems apart from the rest here in Michigan.
No comments:
Post a Comment