Obama Taps Ursula: Go Science!

President Barack Obama today named Ursula Burns , chief executive officer of Xerox Corporation (NYSE: XRX), to help lead a national program aimed at honing students’ skills in science, technology, engineering and math (STEM).

The education initiative is expected to help the country sharpen its competitive edge in innovation and regain dominance in the technological revolution sweeping the globe.

The project will be led by Burns; Craig Barrett, former chief executive officer and chairman of Intel Corporation; Glenn Britt, chief executive officer of Time Warner Cable and Sally Ride, former astronaut and president and chief operating officer of Sally Ride Science, in conjunction with the Carnegie Corporation of New York, and the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation.

"Companies like Xerox succeed through innovation, collaboration and the fresh ideas of our people. If we inspire young people today, we secure our ability to innovate tomorrow. Innovation is central to our nation’s overall growth, to our quality of life and to our success in the global marketplace" said Burns, whose own personal journey from the classroom to the C-suite reflects the benefits and opportunities of a STEM education. Burns is a mechanical engineer who joined Xerox as student intern nearly 30 years ago and progressed through the company in a variety of engineering, product development and management roles. She was named president of Xerox in 2007 and became chief executive officer of the company on July 1.

An important first national step to improve math and science achievement, the initiative plans to broaden job opportunities and quality of life for more Americans. The team is expected to work at a rapid pace similar to the space race 50 years ago and focus on mobilizing the resources needed to raise the level of math and science learning for all students. The program will explore how new technologies, social networks and other resources can be used to connect teachers with professionals and companies and improve student performance in science, technology, engineering and math education.

Burns serves on the board and works with a number of institutions and organizations that are advancing STEM initiatives. Among them are the National Academy Foundation, MIT, and the University of Rochester. Burns is also a member of the advisory board for FIRST - (For Inspiration and Recognition of Science and Technology), an organization that, through robotic competitions, fosters student interest in innovation and engineering. Xerox was a founding member of FIRST and continues to support the organization today.

In addition to FIRST, Xerox traces a 50-year commitment to the power of education, investing in a number of programs. The Xerox Science Consultant Program is one of the longest running industry-education partnerships in the country. For the past 40 years, Xerox scientists and engineers have worked in the class room to make science fun for hundreds of thousands of elementary students.

Xerox has also invested several hundred million dollars in educational grants to fund programs and scholarships at universities and science centers throughout North America. Thousands of students have received educational assistance through Xerox’s Technical Minority Scholarship Program.

Happy Thanksgiving: Here's The Waiver Your Guests Should Sign.

Happy Turkey Day.

Be thankful.

And have your guests sign off on this document, before they enter your abode.




Click to email me.

The Game Continues - Big Copier Players Battle for 3 Point Business: Sign on To Be Premier Purchasing Partners' Whipping Boy

You're perched in a crowded lobby waiting for the appointment you landed two weeks ago.

Next to you is your Sales Manager, on your lap, your Pitch Book.

Across the lobby, a large, disheveled man is torturing the circa 1950's plastic chair; a desperate example of the ultimate carpet sales person.

Next to him, a hot little number with what appears to be floor covering samples by her side.(resilient)

A thought flashes through your mind as the receptionist calls your name, "thank goodness I sell output solutions and not floor wax..."

The dirty secret?

You are all waiting to pitch the same person.

Good Luck with that.

Announcements, from the "wire":

CHARLOTTE, N.C. - (Business Wire) Premier Purchasing Partners, LP, today announced new agreements for flooring carpet and resilient.

New agreements for carpet have been awarded to J+J/Invision of Dalton, Ga.; Mannington Commercial of Calhoun, Ga.; Masland Commercial Inc. of Mobile, Ala.; Mohawk Industries of Marietta, Ga.; Shaw Industries Inc. of Dalton, Ga.; and Tandus US Inc. of Dalton, Ga.

New agreements for resilient have been awarded to Amtico International of Atlanta; Armstrong World Industries Inc. of Lancaster, Pa.; Mannington Commercial of Calhoun, Ga.; Mohawk Industries of Marietta, Ga.; and Shaw Industries Inc. of Dalton, Ga.

Premier Purchasing Partners has signed supply contracts with Konica Minolta Business Solutions U.S.A. Inc. and Ricoh Americas Corp., both of New Jersey, and Connecticut-based Xerox Corp.

Under the agreements, the companies will supply printers, copiers and facsimile machines to members of the Premier health-care alliance.

Premier Purchasing Partners is a unit of Premier Inc., the largest health-care purchasing alliance in the United States. The parent company recently announced it would make Charlotte its corporate home, moving its headquarters from San Diego and adding 300 jobs here over the next five years.

Premier currently employs 750 in Charlotte.

The company represents 2,200 nonprofit hospitals, including Carolinas HealthCare System, Gaston Memorial Hospital and Stanly Regional Medical Cente.

Go Copiers!
----------------------

You and I both know that somewhere in the bowels of Konica Minolta, Ricoh or Xerox, some poor schmoe is "high five'n" another schmoe, congratulating each other on "landing the Premier deal" - you just know it.

Pity the newbie-rep who gets to respond to the RFP.

HP Profits UP 14%, IPG Revenues Decline 15% but Profit Remains Steady

Fresh after last weeks stunning numbers, Canon Down 54%, Ricoh Down 69%, Xerox Down 50% - Profits? We Don't Need No Stinkin Profits..., HP and IPG, make the scene in a relatively rosey manner.

If by "rosey", you mean a 15% decline in revenue...


From the transcript, Catherine A. Lesjak - HP Executive Vice President and Chief Financial Officer:

"...Turning to imaging and printing, IPG continues to deliver over $4 billion in operating profit annually with Q4 operating profit totalling $1.2 billion or 18.1% of revenue. In Q4, revenue improved 14% sequentially to $6.5 billion as printer demand begins to pick up. We are reinvigorating the core business by driving adoption in high page output areas such as wireless printing, office jet pro, and multi-function printers.

In addition, we are driving growth in long-term, high value annuity businesses such as managed print services and retail publishing. We have been expanding our retail publishing pilot with Walmart. We have begun to deploy our self-service photo kiosks at Walmart and this win, coupled with other major retail publishing wins such as Kesko, Duane Reid and K-Mart Australia represents a significant proof point in IPG's scaling of its contractual businesses.

Operationally, IPG is in much shape as it enters 2010.

It has made significant progress in its cost structure, inventory management, and overall operational rigor. These improvements give us capacity to invest in unit placements while maintaining industry leading profitability. Going forward into Q1, we expect to have double-digit unit growth while at the same time delivering operating profit in the range of 15% to 17% as we outlined at our analyst meeting in September..."
-------

Imaging and Printing Group (IPG) revenue declined 15% to $6.5 billion.

Supplies revenue was down 8% while Commercial hardware revenue and Consumer hardware revenue declined 32% and 17%, respectively.

Printer unit shipments decreased 20%, with Commercial printer hardware units down 38%and Consumer printer hardware units down 14%.

Operating profit was $1.2 billion, or 18.1% of revenue, versus $1.2 billion, or 15.3%of revenue, in the prior-year period.

So, it looks like even with a 32% decrease in revenu(Commercial hardware), Operating profit remained steady at $1.2b compared to $1.2b last year.

Further investigation reveals that HP experienced a 8% increase in services revenue and HP Financial increased 5%.


Good review here.

DeathOfTheCopier Name the Fishies, First winner: Gazpacho

Ok, now honestly, we really do have too much time on our hands, don't we?

"Gazpacho" - a red, Spanish soup. Perfect!

The fishies are red, the name fits.

Nathan Dube thank you for your participation and continued patronage.

Expert Laser Services provides the full range of office imaging solutions from single laser printer repair through comprehensive printer fleet management for clients all across southeastern New England. From Nashua, NH south to Springfield, MA and Providence, RI over to Hartford and the Northeast corner of Connecticut, from metropolitan Boston west and across Worcester County we offer...


Expert printer service with a fleet of fully equipped technician vans on the road daily to provide on-site convenience as well as F-A-S-T response! Laser printer repair and copier service requests can be submitted 24-7 via our printer service page.

Digital black & white and full color copiers from Konica Minolta.

Top-of-the-line laser printers from Hewlett-Packard, Konica Minolta Printing Solutions ( Formerly QMS ) and Xante.

Cutting-edge Muratec fax and multifuntional.

Entry-level and enterprise-wide document management and document capture software.

Copier Crime Update: John Buonomo jailed for stealing coins from copiers

This guy ran for Mayor of a small town. Twice.

I first talked about this back in August of 2008. The cops got him stealing coins from copiers on video - 18 times.

He has been sentenced to 30 months behind bars.

Buonomo will be eligible for parole in 15 months and could 10 years of prohibition.


Article here.

MPS Conference 2010: Oki In The House. Print Audit in The House. RICOH in the House.

And by Ricoh, do I mean IKON?

The list of sponsors continues to grow for the 2010 MPS Conference in San Antonio, May 3-5, 2010.

Mirroring the European version, this session will hold a pre-conference workshop providing the basics of Managed Print Services for folks who have less background in the Managed Print Services Ecosystem.

These tracks are golden.

One track is dedicated to decision makers responsible for implementing MPS engagements in their companies. The other track is specifically for dealers who are developing MPS offerings for their companies.

This conference is specifically geared toward Managed Print Services - the MPS that goes beyond CPC, assessments, Scope documents, etc.

Last year's conference was full of exuberance and mirth, most the advice and back room chatter rolled along the "this is what you SHOULD do" talk track.

This year, I image there will be more of the "this is what you SHOULD NOT DO, because I tried and it didn't work..." conversations; over adult beverages, served up by scantily clad, college coeds, at Coyote Ugly.

Not that there's anything wrong with that.



Lexington, KY – November 18, 2009 – Signaling strong interest in the second annual North American MPS Conference, industry leaders OKI Printing Solutions and Ricoh have signed on as Platinum Sponsors for the 2010 event. Print Audit has joined as a Silver Sponsor for the conference scheduled for May 3-5 in San Antonio, TX.

“The MPS market has only begun to take off, and as the opportunity grows, so does the need for real information and ideas to make the most of it. The success of the inaugural 2009 conference in San Antonio and the European MPS Conference in Amsterdam validated the need for ongoing educational forums dedicated to the MPS marketplace. The early commitment of these high-profile sponsors shows the industry is ready to support professional learning venues like the MPS Conference,” said Ed Crowley, founder and president of the Photizo Group.

Photizo Group, leading research firm specializing in the analysis of the printing and imaging industry, hosts the series of MPS Conferences dedicated to decision makers and providers.

About 150 MPS decision makers and providers from as far away as Dubai and India attended the 2009 North American conference to gain insight to the developing trends in managed print services and document output management as strategies for sustainable business practices and organizational cost reduction.

“We are proud to be a Platinum Sponsor and view this conference as a substantial opportunity to listen, learn and enhance our services to meet the needs of MPS Customers world-wide,” said Mark Boelhouwer, Vice President of Strategic Marketing, Ricoh Americas Corporation.

Return of Popular Pre-Conference Workshop for MPS Novices

The 2010 MPS Conference will feature the popular pre-conference workshop providing the basics of Managed Print Services for decision makers and dealers who have less background in the world of managed print.

These sessions will concentrate on providing a solid foundation of the subject and offering practical strategies when selecting an appropriate MPS partner or provider for first-time MPS engagements. A two-track format offers targeted educational opportunities for MPS professionals. One track is dedicated to decision makers responsible for implementing MPS engagements in their companies. The other track is specifically for dealers who are developing MPS offerings for their companies.

The conference also features two tracks, with the first for end users (CIOs, CFOs, IT Managers, Facilities Managers and Purchasing Departments) who have implemented MPS or are looking to implement MPS in the future. This track offers best practices, case studies, how-to guides and more. The second track is targeted at vendors, resellers and infrastructure providers, with information on the emerging hybrid channel, guides on infrastructure, best practices, research data supporting MPS beyond typical anecdotal evidence, projections about the market and more.

“We are delighted to take part in the conference again this year,” said Dena Bernard, Director, Customer Satisfaction and Services for OKI Data Americas. “As a Platinum sponsor, we are able to contribute to a valuable, informative event that will continue to have a positive impact on the MPS industry now and in the future.”

Conference Focused on MPS Success

The Photizo Group estimates that the MPS market is worth over $25 billion globally this year and projects it will be a $60 billion market by 2013. The MPS Conferences address the urgent need for information about this fast-growing managed print services market. Conference content features case studies, panels, exhibitions and interactive sessions that highlight successful approaches and practical ideas from actual MPS engagements. MPS decision makers, vendors and channel partners benefit from a rich agenda of relevant topics.

Registrants can take advantage of the Early Bird rate, with special discounts off the pre-conference workshop and conference, as well as a package price for both events. Details and other conference information are available at http://www.mpsconference.com.