The MPS objective strategy

A Managed Print Services strategy requires a clear definition of the objectives to be achieved from both parties.

The Organisation

One of the key steps in any MPS project is to identify the key stakeholders and information holders that need to be involved. Typically you will need to include IT, Purchasing, Legal, Finance, Facilities, Users groups and maybe HR but you need to make sure you are covering and including the following.

• Who owns the budgets for funding an MPS 
• Who will benefit from the savings of an MPS 
• Who will be involved in implementing an MPS 
• Who will be affected by the installation of an MPS 
• Who will be the Sponsor for the project. 

Most vendors view that the objective is simply to replace the existing devices on your network with their (newer) devices. That is not an MPS strategy. From your point of view, a managed print services strategy should include discussion of some or all of these points:


Identify your clients objectives

• How will the MPS provide improved access to information  
• Improve quality of customer-facing documents  
• Cost effectively incorporate color in business documents  
• limit unnecessary colour usage 
• Ensure Compliance, Regulatory, Security  
• Streamline document and business processes and increase user efficiency 
• Develop processes that are concurrent instead of linear  
• Right-size and right-purpose the output fleet  
• Control supply costs  
• Control supply inventory-provide just in time supply  
• Automate meter reporting of devices with audit trail 
• Contain provisions for proactive service to reduce or eliminate downtime  
• Manage the lifecycle of output devices  
• Provide for business changes (department downsizing or relocation, new projects, new feature requirements, device types not already in vendors portfolio) 
• Reduce or eliminate desktop printing  
• Provide cost effective print output based upon rules and permissions  
• Decrease waste/environmental impact  
• Develop an ongoing review schedule to measure, manage, and improve

The next part of the process is to measure actual hard costs involved in the output of documents. This baseline assessment is used as the starting point for developing your document print strategy and the eventual vendor’s savings proposal. Information gathered during this step should include:

Measure your current status

• Page counts from the various output devices (covering mono pages, colour pages, mono pages on colour devices, average coverage and use of duplex and multi-up printing) 
• Number of users using each of the devices 
• Waking time to and from printers based on daily document printing 
• Print volumes by departments or user groups. 
• Document (print jobs) page lengths as percentages 
• Application print volume 
• Print time peaks and lows 
• Reliability or single points of failures in existing system
• Waste prints left on machines (never collected print outs) 
• Current practices on toner ordering, stocking and changing. 
• Specifics of device maintenance (handled internally, outsourced)  
• Purchase Order and Invoice process  
• Document output trends within the business  
• Help desk calls relevant to print issues (order by severity and repetition) 
• Determine monthly down time by device

According to Gartner Research, only 30% of office document costs relate to equipment, supplies and service. For every 100 Kr spent on equipment, supplies and service, another 333 Kr is spent on overhead costs such as IT and helpdesk support, infrastructure, procurement, end user time, and management expense. Analyzing the data collected requires a high degree of understanding how print works. Without this knowledge the print assessment will likely focus on the hardware technology and not your business needs. After collecting the data, the following areas should be examined:

Analyse the data

• Determine the average monthly volume on the various devices 
• Determine the average monthly volume on the various devices by user 
• Determine the average monthly volume on the various devices by application 
• Define the supply and maintenance costs using factors determined during the measurement process  
• Determine current service needs  
• Obtain input from end users through use of a survey to determine their satisfaction with current products and process.  
• Obtain input from end users through use of a survey to determine their print requirements for their business processes and document types. 
• Locate areas for process improvement by meeting with departmental managers and end users of the devices  
• Present a facts based analysis of the current environment

Based upon the print services strategy defined above, use the data to determine ways that processes can be improved. Some of the improvements that could become a part of the recommendations are:

Explore document management (imaging) as a method of increasing customer service as well as meeting compliance, regulatory, or security needs and as a way to reduce print output and waste

Improve your print structure

• Define departmental print needs and device requirements 
• Place all print devices in an all-inclusive management program 
• Define supplies, service and support processes  
• Identify and retire legacy or problem prone devices
• Develop a process to manage color output, moving output to networked and managed devices that can also incorporate color control capabilities  
• Define any requirement exceptions that cannot be handled under or should be excluded from an MPS 
• Optimize the total number of devices, models, vendors, etc.  
• Increase device utilization by right-sizing and right-purposing the fleet  
• Define user rights of access to device by distance, availability, features and cost 

Continuous monitoring and ongoing measurement is required to ensure that services, products and processes are meeting the defined benchmarks. The goals of Managed Print Services should be to reduce total costs, reduce the amount of printing, reduce the number of devices, reduce the number of manufacturers and models, and to reduce the number of vendors. All of this results in control of costs and continuous improvement of processes. Some of the items to be considered:

Review and control

• Service Level Agreements (measurement of uptime, first call effectiveness, etc.)  
• Automated measurement and reporting (agreed reports at agreed time spans) 
• Scheduled meetings between the partners to discuss challenges and opportunities to explore latest trends  
• A commitment to education programs (could include device function, document management, management software, new technologies, document flow etc,) 
• Continuous development of the partnership