Mission Possible: Optimize Output Management, Printing Processes & Printing Costs

Oddly enough, 90% of companies are unaware of the costs related to document output management printing tasks. Many of them allocate between 1 and 3% of their budget to produce documents for internal use only, and the latest studies reveal that optimizing printing processes may entail savings of up to 30%. This latter figure is critical for CIOs.

"Optimize". That sounds very good, doesn't it? But how can you do it? The entire process could be divided into six steps.

Steps to optimize document output management printing costs and processes

Step 1. Find a provider that renders comprehensive services and, apart from supplying document output management printing solutions, also makes it possible to improve printing processes and reduce paper and toner consumption (and consequently printing costs), and offers other services focused on achieving an end-to-end optimization. It is of utmost importance to count on an experienced provider that offers creative solutions going beyond the simple reduction in the number of printouts.

Step 2. Carry out an audit of the current systems and identify the main document output printing processes that should be improved. This is done through several interviews with key people in the company and adding the crucial input of the CIO. Thanks to this audit, the company's needs and objectives are identified. For example, more and more employees hold positions that require them to travel or make trips frequently. Until now, getting a file printed through a secure connection from any mobile device was very problematic. However, now there are document output management solutions that reduce and compress the files that are sent to remote printers. Another process that can be clearly enhanced is the passive security of the documents that are printed. With the new smart printers, confidentiality problems get solved, i.e. employees have to authorize the printing using a personal card or code and, besides, have to be in front of the printer. And if they send a document to the printer by mistake, they can cancel it on the equipment itself, thus considerably reducing toner consumption.

Step 3. After identifying the changes that have to be undertaken to streamline the document output management and printing processes, it would be advisable to standardize the brand of the printers in order to obtain better prices and negotiate volume-based contracts through increased scale. Likewise, it is necessary to reduce the number of physical printers, but increasing their production capacity and the equipment's 'intelligence'. By 'intelligence' we mean the ability that nowadays some printers have to approve invoices, keep the information they contain secure and start critical processes, such as digitizing a document to upload it into the company's intranet. The rest of changes and improvements will have to be prioritized according to the budget, but bear in mind that the end-result will be significant printing cost savings, hence don't delay your printing process optimization project. But most importantly, the printer fleet should include the latest technological advances, which ultimately results in a higher respect for the environment.

Step 4. It is essential that the document output management provider selected be actively involved in the project, from the beginning to the end, i.e. they should be present during the contract's term, since the company's needs may vary.

Step 5. Now it is up to us to tackle the far from negligible task of implementing the changes. For this purpose, we need to design a roadmap that allows managing changes to the printing processes adequately and count on the support of the company's top management. This is absolutely vital, since a project of this magnitude implies between three and four weeks of changes that are going to affect the main departments, which will have to do without the printer they had in their office to that date. That is why it is fundamental to make employees aware of the fact that they have to print 'using their head' and that this will provide multiple advantages on several fronts.

Advantages of optimizing output management printing processes

· Printing Cost control: It helps know how users employ printers and their paper consumption, improves the use of consumables and allows implementing printing policies.

· Higher internal productivity: It frees up time in day-to-day tasks and streamlines printing control and management processes. It allows printing remotely and get documents ready when you arrive in the office.

· Energy savings and respect for the environment: It reduces electricity consumption, CO2 emissions, paper consumption and, therefore, tree-cutting.

· Security: It helps authenticate user identity and codify confidential information.

Step 6. Last but not least, we have to monitor the printing process change plan and report on progress or setbacks of the document output management project. There is no point in making the changes mentioned if there is no way of monitoring, measuring and validating them in order to present them to the top management, that will want to see the ROI achieved though the printing cost savings project, and although not all may be directly measurable in terms of money (i.e. employee satisfaction and improved efficiency), the results should be communicated to the participants in the pilot and later to the rest of the company.

If companies follow these steps thoroughly and do not stray from their roadmap, they will achieve something that seemed to be an impossible mission some years ago. Although we tend to create a 'green office', it is clear that it will still be necessary to print documents. It is about streamlining and optimizing the printing processes with the help of top-notch document software solutions and manufacturers of state-of-the-art printers.

André Klein
Freelance Consultant for DocPath
docpath.com
A step ahead in document software