Challenger 25 years Ago - And you think Cold Calls are Difficult

Here in America, one can fail, over and over - we don't pity those failures, we don't tolerate quitting and we do not give up.

Pearl Harbor, 911, Challenger - we're still standing. Its who we are, its what we do.

When sadness strikes, when we trip, stumble and fall - we do not hide our failure.

Because we know there is a tomorrow. Another day. Another way.

And we walk.

I use to think Managed Print Services would be a sub-set of MSP, but maybe it will end up the other way around.

1/2011

Sorta a "shoe on the other foot" paradigm.

Consider this:

CPI/CPC/MPS AND Managed Services engagements include dispatch out of a dispatch desk - fine. Simple enough.

In our world, the world of output devices, our technicians, in addition to mechanical aptitude, carry something called "trunk stock".

In our world, the same technicians rarely complete a time and materials call.

In our world, technicians can be needed at a "drop of a hat" with SLAs in terms of hours, not days. Our technicians generally do not work on billable projects, their schedules need to be flexible and dispatchers aware.

The "M" in Managed Print Services refers to a bit more than management by NOC.

I have been banging the drum, sounding the alarm warning about the impending invasion of IT guys into our little niche and The End of Days.

They are huge. They are systematic. They are a collective.

Perhaps we shouldn't fight directly.

Maybe there is something better.

Friday Fun Day - Green Hornet is Back

Bruce Lee was Kato.

The car flipped over - Black Beauty.

It has green headlights.

Cool as shit, back in the 60's.

Photizo - "MPS Trendsetter : Ten Must-Know Trends From Around the Globe"

Chelsea, over at Photizo put together this nice little Prezi illustrating 10 MPS Global Trends.

Great insight and good quotes from pure, MPS, insiders.

Eat it up.

Samsung Snags World's Largest ElectroWetting Company. What about the Silver Nanoparticles?

In the "...Not that we here at DOTC are prophetic, or anything..." category.

Mentioned on TheDeathOfTheCopier, November 26, 2010 in "What is ElectroWetting: Dipping a Toe into the future of "Print"? we pondered moving images on everyday paper.

"...With the right paper, the right process and the right device fabrication technique, you can get results that are as good as you would get on glass, and our results are good enough for a video-style e-reader..."

At the time, it seemed more a movie than reality.

It seems Samsung may have an idea or two about this - they just bought the company.

Achieve Managed Print Services Immortality "...Simply By Doing One...Great...Thing..." - Keep Walking

1/2011

I am faster than you 

I'm stronger than you 

certainly I will last much longer than you 

you may think I am the future but you're wrong 

you are 

if I had a wish I'd wish to be human 

to know how it feels to feel 

to hope 

to despair 

to wonder 

to love 

I can achieve immortality by not wearing out 

you can achieve immortality simply by doing one great thing...

There is a great deal of "automation" in our little niche; auto - fulfillment, remote monitoring, M2M communication, auto-generated assessments, proposals, SOW's, Twitter-bots, RSS, on and on.

CIO's: What to Look for In A Managed Print Services Company. The Perfect 10.

2011 -

The pressure is on.  The role of a CIO is, or should, be evolving into "...one of managing relationships rather than managing technology and getting lost in the detail..."

Your refresh project has been delayed for two years now, server upgrades lagging, storage running low, your DC is over heating.

Meanwhile, the number of open, output related tickets is approaching 40% - wow -  and to top it off, printers just aren't sexy.

And now your role is "evolving"? Wonderful.

Managed Print Services to the rescue.

By now, you have heard about this new, Managed Print Services thing.  It sounds like something that would benefit your team, reduce some costs and make your users happy.

Before you google-tize "managed print services" consider this: What is MPS?

More importantly, what is your flavor of MPS and what should you look for in an MPS partner?

Here are 10 simply aspects to reflect upon. Arguably, there are hundreds of angles, processes and actions to consider.

But these are a good start.

1. Define your Managed Print Services.  MPS is an IT initiative, not a printer/refresh project.  MPS is also a process that simply begins with the roll-out.
2. Define the "M" in Managed Print Services and be prepared to understand exactly how your prospective MPS partner manages your engagement. (PM,SOW, Milestones, Benchmarks, etc.)
3. Take control of the entire fleet.  Yes, this means the copiers.  Wrest control from Purchasing.