Executive Corner
Interview with Greg Greenwell, TotalPrint
- By Laura Kittner
- 06/01/2010
Based in Nashville, Tenn., TotalPrint is one of the fastest growing businesses who specialize in managed print services. The company helps businesses reduce their printing costs through page volume reduction and asset optimization, while relieving IT organizations of the burden of supporting document output devices.
Greg Greenwell is the president of TotalPrint.
What is your current state of mind?
Cluttered. My head is overflowing with Google alerts, LinkedIn posts, and tweets.
What is the greatest challenge you face today?
Staying focused on our core business model. It's easy to chase the bright, shiny objects surrounding me every day.
What do you see as your biggest opportunity?
Orchestrating a large-scale consolidation play in a highly fragmented, high-growth industry.
What is the quality you like most in a sales manager?
The ability to hire the best sales producers the first time.
What would you consider your greatest achievement?
Marrying my wife and raising our three children, although the latter has just begun.
If your customers were to describe your company in three words, what would they be?
I actually asked real customers and the most common response was "dependable." My favorite response was from an IT Director who said "Makes problems disappear."
Managed print services or managed service provider?
MSPs can easily diversify into MPS but it's more difficult for MPS providers to become MSPs. If I'm responsible for an IT organization, having one hand to shake is nice but I would prefer specialists who can deliver expertise and value.
Where are you investing the most within your company this year?
Infrastructure—people and IT systems. We're a sales focused company but now it's time to make the necessary operational investments.
What is your greatest concern for this industry?
Continued decline in hardware purchases will create aggressive behavior within the services model. Most competitive industries experience natural price compression but given the players in this industry, it has the potential to become hyper-competitive.
How would your employees/coworkers describe you?
Analytical.
Who are your favorite writers?
Seth Godin and Jim Collins.
Which words or phrases do you most overuse?
Optimization, pipeline and tools.
Why do you hold your current (business) position today?
It's been a goal of mine since college but I didn't "jump off the cliff" until I was faced with the decision of relocating.
Who is your next hire?
Mark Hurd. He would help us justify every dollar we spend.
What is your favorite quote?
"Begin with the end in mind."—Stephen Covey
This article originally appeared in the June 2010 issue of The Imaging Channel.
About the Author
As the Editorial Director of The Imaging Channel, Laura has 10 years experience with the print and imaging industry. Prior to launching The Imaging Channel, Laura was a founding member and the Vice President of Marketing and Global Business Development at PrintFleet Inc. She has also held various executive level marketing and communications positions, and is a Professor in the School of Business, at St. Lawrence College. Laura holds diplomas in Advertising and Public Relations and Integrated Marketing Communications.