Print.IT Reseller - issue 83

01732 759725 44 VOX POP ...continued useful ideas and information) is not totally lost. “One thing that has been clear ever since the first lockdown is that the move to cloud-based solutions has been accelerated. The overall market trend was already moving in that direction, but the need to operate remotely and still easily access client data has definitely driven more people to go down the SaaS route, which is, obviously, a road that we already know very well indeed. “Many of our customers are also looking at alternative offerings and revenue streams outside the confines of the traditional copy/print activity. Quite logically, they are working on the old, but still highly relevant, adage that it is easier to sell more things to an existing client than to sell anything to a new client. So, we are seeing increased demand for use of our solutions to service, maintain and invoice for complementary offerings including IT services, office coffee, digital signage, telecoms and a myriad of workflow and productivity software solutions. For some, this is a completely new venture, while for others it is an expansion of an existing line of business. In both cases, it is just as important for us to help them to measure the success of these activities as it is to enable them to manage them day-to-day. This means that they will have the data on which to judge viability and profitability of these various ventures and the tools to deal with management of contracts and invoicing made up of an increasingly complex array of offerings. “It is also interesting to see that we are now working with a growing number of new clients who are acting as service providers to the traditional dealers. Sometimes, this is for complete outsourcing of support and maintenance, while in others it is a case of offering additional resource on an on-demand basis. Again, flexibility is the key driver behind this trend.” www.asolvi.com Steve Holmes, EMEA Regional Director, PaperCut “There’s an element of speculation as to what happens next. Some companies will insist that staff are largely office based with some flexible working options; some may offer a 50:50 split, while others may be happy with their staff being 100 per cent remote. Even amid that, there may be variations from sector to sector depending on that sector’s specific needs. Whatever model they choose, I think organisations will need to make the workplace a more alluring place to be, or to come to, if staff are going to willingly give up the comforts of home. “It’ll be another six months before we get a real idea of who’s doing what and why when it comes to flexible working. In the meantime, we think that businesses will need to proactively set expectations of what they want and also be flexible with enforcement. For example, like many tech companies, PaperCut is looking at 60/40 split, with an understanding that time in the office is for collaborative work, and time at home is for deep focus work that requires the sort of concentration that you can’t always get when working in the office. Whatever decisions they make, the pandemic has taught us that flexibility, compassion, and technology are very important to our well-being, and they are going to play key roles in determining how and where we work in the future.” www.papercut.com Chris Strammiello, Senior Vice President, Channel Sales, Kofax “Like many other people, I’ve adjusted to turning my home into a work office. Recently, I evaluated how much time I’ve saved avoiding work commutes and waiting in lines for check-outs. By reinvesting all this saved time in higher value ‘quality time’ activities, I’ve become stronger. Businesses are realising the same benefits. When we look at what enabled this shift, it’s clearly technology. “The pandemic forced many businesses to transition to remote work almost overnight, but automation and artificial intelligence have made the adjustment easier than many expected. The technology enabling this shift continues to pick up steam among businesses, begging the question: What’s the long-term prognosis? “Today’s business leaders understand decades of industry experience alone aren’t enough to win. Success requires a willingness to balance traditional experience and futuristic innovation. CEOs are placing automation investment themes at the centre of many corporate digital transformation strategies. Content-aware print and capture enabled companies to quickly adapt to remote work, and it will continue to play a key role as all signs point to a long-term hybrid model. This way, hybrid becomes a simple transition rather than a disruption. “When looking to the future, we’re left to ask if leaders are going to be bold and nimble enough to blend diverse perspectives and make risk-adjusted modernisation decisions to position to win. As the adoption of automation and AI continues to accelerate in 2021, more organisations will find themselves working like the digitally enabled companies of tomorrow.” www.kofax.com Phil Jones MBE, Managing Director, Brother UK “The sudden onset of lockdown in March last year forced companies to embrace remote working and many firms are re- evaluating their relationship and reliance on offices long-term as a result. We count ourselves among those businesses that are changing the way they work for CEOs are placing automation investment themes at the centre of many corporate digital transformation strategies Steve Holmes Chris Strammiello