Ricoh's $300M Investment in Managed Document Services Goes Beyond MPS
Ricoh recently announced a $300 million USD investment over three years in managed document services. This continues the trend of OEMs acknowledging the importance of managing the entire document lifecycle rather than only the printed output. Following their acquisition of ACS, Xerox is attempting to transform their business into a wide-ranging services company. Similarly, Ricoh wants to be known for more than hardware, and for more than managed print services. While Ricoh's acquisition of IKON has helped them achieve a larger footprint in the market and grow their service capabilities, I expect to see Ricoh acquire additional services companies in the future to enhance their MDS strategy.
The following viral video from Ricoh sets the tone for their new strategy: MDS is about distributing the right document, in the right form, at the right time, for the right price. More than simply determining how much is being printed and what equipment is needed to print, MDS manages documents in all forms—electronic or hardcopy—and helps to make sure information is being delivered in the most efficient and effective manner.
There are three key aspects to Ricoh's MDS strategy that I think are important differentiators:
- Change management. Software technology, combined with the knowledge of MPS professionals, can determine the current state of an organization's printing environment and what should be done to optimize it. Some optimization can occur without significantly interfering with the end-users' daily activities: replacing hardware, changing default print settings, using software to configure automated print rules. Further optimization that involves changing what documents are delivered, in what form, and at what time, requires more involved change management. Ricoh's change management services are based on Prosci's ADKAR change management methodology.
- Vendor-agnostic approach. Across the board in the MPS space, companies are realizing that it is unrealistic to expect customers to get rid of the printing assets they already have and replace them with new ones. To continue to be successful in MPS, you must be willing to support printing devices from other vendors. Ricoh will service HP and Lexmark printers, and they also offer to manage additional vendor relationships for the customer so they can have a single point of contact. Although hardware sales will continue to be a significant portion of Ricoh's business, it is critical for them to be able to manage devices from other vendors.
- Standardized sales and service training. Consistency in direct sales and service, worldwide, makes sense from a brand standpoint. But what about Ricoh's channel partners?
Ricoh claims to have one of the industry's largest direct sales and services workforces, including 30,000 services professionals. At the same time, Jeffrey Hickling, president and CEO of Ricoh U.S., called their dealer channel "extremely important" in a recent interview with CRN. He said they increased their investment in dealer support by 50 percent in 2010, and that channel partners who moved away from Ricoh after the IKON acquisition are encouraged to take another look at their channel offerings. Are you a current or former Ricoh channel partner? What is your take on this latest announcement and the state of their channel offerings? I think Ricoh's new strategy is headed in the right direction—we can only hope that their investment in MDS will trickle down to the channel.
Posted by Emily Offshack on 02/02/2011