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Friday, July 8, 2011

Imaging of Greg_Walters - Blogging for The Imaging Channel

So the story goes a bit like this:

goofy sales guy starts blog...
he writes about what he sees, as a hobby...
somehow, people of like mind and people not so like minded find, read and follow...

Although sales guy never asked friends, family and general well to do-ers, push goofy guy to 'monotize' his hobby...

He does not...


He never 'blogs' what he had for breakfast or what stunt the neighbor's cat just performed...
He sticks to a simple plan, "Write What You Would Read...put in some music you would listen to, and sprinkle in some hotties."

He attracts good friends, colleagues, more readers and haters but really no rivals...

Three years slip by...

One day, notoriety shines in his direction; people take notice and offer to pay for his words.

He accepts, turning the paige...

Email, Text, "Les Trois Mousquetaires" are all Documents. And so is your Vodka...,


How to Program a Message on Your MEDEA Bottle from Medea Spirits on Vimeo.


Wow...

Click to email me.

Wednesday, July 6, 2011

The Three Musketeers Team - "Just 40...it was an off day..."



"There are things in this world worth fighting and dying for...

We're Warriors, its who We are...

We are surrounded by enemies...
War will engulf the entire ecosystem...
Only We can prevent the coming Apocalypse...

You want to be a Leopard?
Your chance is coming..."

Team Building -

Forty, four hundred or four, a team within a team, small, agile, aware flexible, effective.

Monday, July 4, 2011

Lyra Sees the MpS Ecosystem Through the OEM/Enterprise Kaleidoscope


It's like
we share a brain, except DOTC doesn't have a staff and was on this page 12 months ago...Yeah, I know, I have self-esteem issues.

An article posted on The Imaging Channel caught my eye, "Managed Print Services: OEM Strategies". The headline piqued but the source engaged - Lyra.

Of all the research groups I know, only two command my attention. One is Lyra. I trust their opinion, to be honest. Sometimes, I may not agree with their observations but that is okay.

If you are an MpS'r from way back, say 24 months(!), what the Big 3 say is of no surprise; if you are a steady reader of DOTC, again, no surprise.

Lyra spoke with Xerox, HP, and Ricoh during the first half of 2011. The article is a reflection of all three.

The caveat is these discussions orbit around enterprise-level MPS engagements - not that there is no value - it's just that when interviewing at this level, the information is more proactive than responsive - the OEMs projecting their view of MPS, not necessarily reflecting the real MpS.

Regardless, it is the Future.

John Adams



Happy Fourth! Enjoy The Moment...





Sunday, July 3, 2011

Saturday, July 2, 2011

"We will eliminate the position of President and CEO, Ricoh U.S..."

Ricoh US vs. Ricoh Americas: Integration or Consolidation?

Last year, Convergence 2010- April, 2010.

"...Togashi then addressed what was most likely the number one concern of the dealers in the room – the recent appointment of several senior IKON executives to high-level positions at Ricoh. Citing the need to expedite the Ricoh-IKON integration process, Togashi outlined some of the appointments. These included Matt Espe, the new chairman and CEO of Ricoh Americas Corporation (responsible for operations in North, Central and South America, including IKON); Martin Brodigan, the new executive vice president and CFO of Ricoh Americas Corporation; and, Jeffrey Hickling, the new president and CEO of Ricoh U.S..."

Most Recently:

Dear Ricoh Family Group Dealers,

Over the past two years, we have been working to integrate and align Ricoh Americas Corporation (RAC) to further strengthen Ricoh's position as an industry leader and best meet our customers̢۪ needs. This has included a focus on both our Direct distribution and Dealer channels, as well as improved collaboration between the two channels.

After careful review, I have decided to further align the RAC organization with Ricoh U.S. to leverage our synergies and the strength of the U.S. organization. With this decision, we will eliminate the position of President and CEO, Ricoh U.S. and align the U.S. sales and operational leadership under RAC through my direction. And as a result of this decision Jeff Hickling will be leaving the organization. Jeff will continue in his role through July 15 to facilitate a smooth transition of U.S. sales and operations functions.

I want to thank Jeff for his leadership with both the IKON and Ricoh organizations over the past six years. Since Ricoh̢۪s acquisition of IKON, Jeff has been instrumental in building an effective integrated leadership team in the U.S. and has had a positive impact with our Dealer community by building stronger collaborative relationships and increasing market share across all channels. We will continue to build upon these successes as we move into the next phases of our integration. I want to reassure you that we will continue our commitment to the Dealer channel as we work to strengthen the collaboration across channels.
Please join me in thanking Jeff for his many contributions to IKON, Ricoh and RFG dealers which will benefit us as we move forward, and wish him continued success in his future endeavors.

Thank you,


Kevin Togashi
Chairman and CEO
Ricoh Americas Corporation


A good view of Convergence 2011.


Friday, July 1, 2011

Thursday, June 30, 2011

MpS Moving Away from Clicks, More Power to the Machines


When you were standing in the wake of devastation
when you were waiting on the edge of the unknown
with the cataclysm raining down, insides crying save me now

Do you feel cold and lost in desperation
you build up hope, but failure's all you've known
remember all the sadness and frustration
and let it go, let it go.

And in the burst of light that blinded every angel
as if the sky had blown the heavens into stars
you felt the gravity of temper grace falling into empty space
no one there to catch you in their arms...

let it go, let it go, let it go, let it go


6/30/2011

The evolution of MpS is thick. Everybody scurrying around, grabbing all the clicks/prints/toner sales possible; Finally.

We're making a living now in MpS - even those of us settling into Stage 1 and Stage 2.  The Big Guys have taken up their purchased positions, Xerox, HP, Ricoh, have or are committing to an MpS Channel program.  Others, Konica, Kyocera, Lexmark, Dell, Okidata, Muratec, etc. stubbed their toe and are taking a second swing at Mps.

And then there is Samsung.  Mysteriously lurking just over the horizon.  Literally. Heck, it isn't MpS, but even MemJet appears to be getting off the ground!

So what is next?  Stage 3, that's what is next.  But how to go about jumping from the hardware as a service into software as a service realm.

Stage 3 incorporates software. Though S1/S2 engagements utilize some sort of software package, most of us aren't yet comfortable with the whole "EDM/Managed Services" thing.

If only there were a 'bridge' from S2 to S3, an 'on-ramp'. A platform that doesn't require a staff of specialists, installers, engineers, and training staff, yet provides actionable information.

Wouldn't that be nifty?

Let not your heart be troubled, I see that bridge. It's been in front of us all along and its mantra is "...manage the behavior, not the print..."

How intriguing...

Contact Me

Greg Walters, Incorporated
greg@grwalters.com
262.370.4193