For my observations, I have been chastised, rebuffed, chortled at, poo-pooed, and mocked.
Heck, the first time I took, TheDeathOfTheCopier "out in public" (Lyra, 2009), some guy looked at my name badge, cocked his head, and practically yelled, "...Death of the copier? Do you know who we are? We're all dealers!" Like I knew his sister, biblically or something. Yikes.
Well, it doesn't make me all that happy to report the name of this blog is starting to look more prophetic than humorous. The Fourth Horseman is soon upon us.
From the very beginning, I was uncomfortable with the "P" in Managed Print Services" - it is restrictive and a bit misleading.
But, in the beginning, the word "print" seemed a bit more familiar and approachable. Your prospect knows what you mean when you say "print".
The definition simply rolled off your tongue whenever asked, "What does MPS mean?"
"I manage all your print devices..." - You.
"Oh, okay, I understand..." - Prospect.
But wait...how much about Managed Print Services can you honestly identify with?
How familiar are you, personally, with the real-world benefits of MPS?
Sure, you can perform an assessment. And you put together quotes and proposals. Maybe you can even speak to a C-level, peer.
But do you know how it feels when a cartridge doesn't show up?
Do you experience the pain of attempting to de-code an invoice?
One of YOUR INVOICES?
Have you witnessed the positive results of replacing personal, desktop printers with a second monitor?
Specifically, does your place of employment have your MPS Engagement in place?
Are you monitoring your, internal fleet?
What, you don't eat your own dog food?
The cobbler's kids have no shoes?
If so, scamper up to the owner's ivory tower and call Bullshit.
While at IKON, we sold all the best, top-drawer EDM solutions - all of them.
Yup - you guessed it. The order entry pack was a collection of spreadsheets. At times, we actually faxed out meter read sheets.
We printed 45-page proposals - 42 pages of marketing fluff, 1 cover, 1 letter, and a price list. (gasp!)
Now, I won't mention any names but there is an IT VAR, out on the Best Coast who has a small MPS practice.
In 2009, this 145-employee VAR spent $19,000.00 on toner and supplies for MFPs.
Before implementing their MPS, those who could guess estimated an internal fleet size of 19 printers/MFPs. In the end, it was discovered that 43 devices populated the organization.
Most of these, are locally connected.
At the close of 2010, invoice analysis revealed a yearly supply spend of $4,500.00.
Why don't we get residuals on the traditional, Cost Per Copy, service agreements for copiers?
If an MPS rep gets a cut of the volume, why shouldn't a straight copier rep get residuals on the service agreements?
And by 'copiers' I mean standalone or connected, copiers, printers, fax, MFPs, MFDs or whatever the heck else you call them.
Are you selling Konica Minolta copiers?
Kyocera copiers?
Ricoh's for an independent? Canon?
Or how about all my peeps @ RiKON?
When you sell a copier, how much flexibility do you have in adjusting the CPC sell price? Are you forced to "move the jello" by shifting some of your hardware profit over to make up for the service rate discount? (Even though you need to slash your margin to "stay competitive", forget all those back-end rebates. The ones you never see.)
How easy is it to sell a straight machine, WITHOUT a service agreement?
Why haven't we ever compensated the rep on the number of copies/images produced on the copiers they sell?
Ever wonder why you haven't been paid on service agreements?
One of the best stories Lawton will ever share is the one about him sitting on his couch, at 3AM, in a leopard thong(that is not true, but it paints a picture) remotely configuring dozens of devices all over the country.
Lovin that WebJet Admin!
I am guessing, thong aside, that Printelligent recognizes expertise as well as the MPSA - so much so, they bought them.
I a very interesting move, Printelligent purchases DirectPointe's(an integrator)MPS division.
A sign that integrators are getting out of MPS?
Combine this with all the copier dealers failing, I mean, "getting out of" MPS and perhaps there is something to this.
Too bad there aren't any MPS consultants out there helping both sides get their heads around MPS Purity.
MPS isn't going away - the future of copier manufacturers, hardware dealers and printed business workflow is.
*** THE DOMAIN NAME IN QUESTION, HAS BEEN PARKED...first noticed, January 12, 2011. ***
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There has been something on my mind, bugging me for a few months - well not bugging me.
More like lurking.
You see, my livelihood is tied directly to Managed Print Services as an MPS Practice Manager.
Interesting little tidbit, 12 months ago I was selling MPS - today I am responsible for the full P/L.
Everything from hiring technicians, hiring MPS Selling Professionals, forging and maintaining MPS partnerships, and building an MPS team. Continuously, every single day, selling MPS internally to other practice managers, Business Development Managers, Executive Management, and Ownership.
And as I continue on this particular odyssey, it is my responsibility to evaluate all things MPS; new and interesting Data Collection software, EAutomate Add-ons, supplies fulfillment programs, devices, OEM MPS Programs, etc.
I attend as many MPS Webinars and read/consume every article I can find - from MPS to Change Management to EDM to ECM to BPO.
I try to get as much exposure to every MPS Selling webinar, class, or program I can find.
The results of this analysis can fill a dozen manuals - perhaps someday I will put my findings into "print".
All this accumulated information, I apply was relevant to my little MPS practice.
My point here is simple - although I know a good deal about MPS and the internal MPS programs, I do not make a living pontificating or selling training classes.
I do not compete with the likes of Water or Print Management Solutions Group. And even though I feel I have an above-average understanding of the global MPS market, my research does not go toe to toe with the likes of InfoTrends, IDC, or Photizo.
Am I opinionated? Yes.
Is this blog followed by many people of like opinions? Yes.
Do I see bad training, stunted vision, and archaic selling techniques? Yes.
Will I continue to point out blaring inadequacies in our industry? Yes.
With this in mind, do me a favor...open a browser and type in www.deathofthecopier.com - just promise to come back...and read on...
##### THIS POST WAS FIRST PUBLISHED ON 12/29/2010. ON 1/21/2011, THE DEATH OF THE COPIER FIRST NOTICE, DEATHOFTHECOPIER.COM HAS BEEN PARKED AND NO LONGER POINTS TO STRATEGY DEVELOPMENT'S SITE #####
After what the weather casters out here are calling the "Biblical Event" - referring to 5 days of as much rain that usually falls in a year - Laguna Beach is acting more like it should be.
For all our readers east of the Mississippi, enjoy...
Why paint MPS all black? Why kill MPS after just three short years? Why blacken the Sun?
I've said it before. Change releases fear and fear motivates.
Contrary to what the Imaging Intelligentsia bloviate, we are not witnessing the beginning of the End Managed Print Services - we are seeing the last gasp of "Print Services"(it's the "M" - stupid)
Interestingly, many clients are increasingly contemplating Remanufactured (Reman) vs. Original Equipment Manufacturer (OEM) toner cartridges. According to an InfoTrends webinar from September 2009 here, the trend is showing a lean towards Reman.
Really? Who wants used...anything?
Um...everyone. It's the new Green.
Let's take a look across the vast sea of possibilities.
Before having sex with older women, possibly a teacher, was considered a bad thing, and when being touched by a sports gear sales person was criminal, yet could still make it into a movie - Vision Quest.
The music was great.
The visuals familiar. The theme, every red blooded American boy's dream(wet or not)
I had, yet another, epiphany the other day while sitting in front of a prospect, reviewing his fleet over my 8-page "Approach Document", poking through the pain, and proposing an MPS S1 Engagement.
I realized that this and every, single, assessment have had one thing in common - overcapacity.
11x17 at 1% of volume; duplex at 4% of volume; fax machines physically next to MFPs with fax capability next to laser printers; 5-year leases; fuser assemblies and toner sitting next to oh so many client's Canon/Xerox/Ricoh/Konica/Copier-De-Jour.
I thought to myself,
"What's going to happen when everybody realizes they don't need a copier?"
Last week I sat in on a Lexmark MPS webinar - the OEM doesn't matter as much as the customer (always) - Columbia.
As a matter of fact, 60 seconds into the show, I felt I wasn't going to make it past five minutes. I mean, I expect to be "pitched" but a read speech? I swear it was pre-recorded. OMG.
Toughing it out, my staying power was rewarded.
Mike Leeper, Global IT, Columbia, presented a frank, honest, and downright refreshing story of his MPS implementation. Two years into a successful MPS Engagement breaking 10 years of status quo.
Now, I am familiar with the DOW Chemical MPS and Nationwide MPS Project, so I have a good framework for comparison. Both DOW and Nationwide are successful, cost-reducing examples.
I won't bore you with the many details except these:
1. Moved decision process out of Facilities
2. Past decision process was very hardware-centric
3. Print Vendors were just like "...used car salespeople..."
4. Printing was considered boring
5. Success hinged on selling internally and continually communicating
6. Network-only devices considered
7. Project reduced costs by 37%
8. Reduced printed output by 1 million images
9. Effectively "killed" all the previous copiers(DOTC) - zero remained
The last two should send chills up the spine of every OEM and induce the booted, incumbent to hurl - through his nose.
MPS engagements like these are the Pure MPS - how can you commoditize this?
But wait, commoditizing is exactly what the manufacturers want - get all this MPS stuff boiled down to the most basic, simplistic, lowest common denominator. Make it easy enough for a monkey or copier rep(jk!)to sell.
Create tools that kill the art of MPS, and stifle creativity and growth by automatically creating proposals and QBR marketing slicks. Just press F7.
Cram MPS into the old, "slay it and move on" sales model. As long as that MPS engagement includes 11x17, an unused duplex, and a fax machine with every copier.
Back to my prospect.
As happens with like-minded folks, conversations travel the spectrum of technical subjects, tangents really. Some would say, tangents get in the way of the close. Yeah, right.
So we talked about the Agile methodology, Google, SaaS, dual-monitors, MPS(reducing output), CIOtalkRadio.com, and the new control end-users share via social networking.
How, today, the ultimate buyer has more choices and how everybody is collaborating. I told him MPS really expanded around the world because of the new social media - the buzz started online.
I expressed my belief that finally, in my little world of copiers/output devices, the shift from Supply (copier OEM) to Demand-driven(ultimate end-user)is taking place.
The party may not be over but fewer and fewer will be attending...
I think he was being polite when he agreed with me.
Either way, we decided to move forward with an MPS S1 Engagement.
So, now that I have a close, I guess I should strike out and "slay" another one, right?
This MPS universe teems with interesting folks and unique stories. Straight-laced suits, drunk service technicians, leaders with vision, Sales Managers who don't know Steve Schiffman.
In general, I have met great personalities and people out here - sales people, owners, CEO's and shipping clerks.
All with one common thread: we didn't grow up telling our mothers we wanted to be copier or MPS Sales people.
European Managed Print Services Industry Shows Its Vitality at Major Industry Conference
Record attendance indicates Europe on track to become largest MPS market
Lexington, KY – December 6, 2010 – The success of the recent European MPS Conference signals strong and growing interest in managed print services, the business model sweeping the imaging industry. The European event drew 162 attendees to Barcelona, Spain from November 10-12. Germany, the Netherlands, Spain and the United Kingdom were among the most represented markets, with participants traveling from 18 different countries as far as South Africa and the United States. HP, Ricoh, FMAudit and DocuAudit Europe were Platinum Sponsors of the 2010 European MPS Conference.
Archived footage of the European MPS Conference Webcast can be found at http://www.mpsconference.com/wrapup/ondemand.html.
“We keep hearing from our attendees that the MPS Conferences hosted by Photizo Group are becoming a watering hole for the industry--a true source of education and networking with peers and experts. That is so important, because with organized, focused resources like these, MPS professionals and users increase their chance of success,” said Photizo founder and CEO, Ed Crowley. The highly acclaimed Barcelona keynote and presentations inspired attendees with stimulating insights and ideas:
It is the hottest thing going on our little industry.
Secular, paradigm shifting, and a defining moment inhabited by both players and posers - there is plenty of room.
Who in the world would NOT get into this?
How could anybody rationalize not having a Managed Print Service offering with a statement like, "...I don't think we can be that bullish, I think we have to react to what the market wants..."
The newly wed couple fresh from the states live in a one bedroom house.
They share the shower, and toilet with 2 other couples. He a Naval corpsmen, his beautiful young bride the homemaker.
After being married a few months and living with family in a small, cramped California house, they journey thousands of miles and half an ocean's distance to finally live together alone.
Together in Paradise.
This is Oahu, April of 1941. Cane fields surround the lazy, sleepy town of Honolulu. Soft, tropical breezes stir through the palms drying out remnants of morning showers. The island was home to 50,000 service men but it still had jsut one traffic light.
Hawaii a US Territory, statehood nearly two decades away. The town has one road in and out; no skyscrapers, mega-resorts, or miles of lights, to wash out the stars of the night sky.
A time as foreign to us contemporaries as the surface of Mars.
On the morning of December 7th, eight months after arriving in Paradise, and a mere 30 minutes before "all hell breaks loose", a sailor gives his new bride a kiss on the cheek and heads of to another day doing whatever a corpsman does. She expects to greet her husband at day's end, with a home cooked dinner.
At work, a line of gray battleships - the might and power of the United States Navy - are tied off - "Battleship Row". They carry names of honor; Nevada, California, Tennessee, Maryland, West Virginia, Oklahoma, Utah and Arizona.
Focuses Supporters on New Challenges Facing Dynamic Marketplace
Leadership and volunteers recalibrate assignments to evolve with fast-growing association
December 6, 2010 -- Key volunteers and leaders within the Managed Print Services Association executive committee and board of directors have realigned their roles to focus their experience on other areas of the MPSA. This will help keep fresh ideas and new perspectives flowing across all aspects of the association.
“In an effort to improve our effectiveness and support the ideas of our volunteer leadership team, the MPSA Board has approved these changes,” noted Joe Barganier, who was elected Interim President of the MPSA. “This coordinated transition ensures members can benefit from the diversity of experience we have to offer at the leadership level. We are all very excited about taking on our new challenges.”
“An office worker at Memorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer Center is accused of stealing as much as $3.8 million from the hospital by ordering toner-ink cartridges in bulk, diverting their delivery and then selling them elsewhere, authorities said Wednesday…” - The Wall Street Journal, Digital Network
There must be at least 2 dozen motivators for implementing a Managed Print Services program – but fear should not be one of them. As a matter of fact, fear should rarely be a motivator.
