32
PRINT.IT
01732 759725
ANALYSIS
privately hosted platform). This
enables employees to access, share
and collaborate on content, while
maintaining high levels of control,
privacy and protection. Access
control is typically a key feature,
along with detailed monitoring,
search and reporting. Most
advanced MFPs offer this capability
directly from the user panel.
n
Improved visual collaboration.
As travel budgets are cut and the
workforce simultaneously becomes
more mobile and distributed,
interactive meeting rooms are
becoming a critical business
tool for employee collaboration.
Sophisticated meeting room
solutions can combine touch-enabled
displays with an HD video camera,
microphones and speakers to
enable rich audio, video and data
collaboration and integration with
cost-effective VOIP (voice over IP)
systems. Interactive whiteboards or
large format touchscreen displays
ensure everyone can see the
information being presented and
make notes on each other’s displays.
Employees can write in digital ink
over any application and save work
as a PDF or Microsoft Office file.
Phase 3: Information output
In the third phase, information
is distributed by an organisation
in a variety of digital and hard
copy formats. Two examples
are personalised cross-media
communications and digital signage:
n
Personalised communications.
In today’s multichannel world, it’s
vital that an organisation can create
and deliver communications to staff,
customers, suppliers and partners
any time via their channel of choice
– be that print or digital media.
This can lead to faster decision-
making and better engagement
with employees, customers and
partners. Based on defined
rules, customer communications
management (CCM) solutions
enable organisations to create
and distribute communications
across multiple channels. Printed
communications can be made
dynamic and interactive through the
use of QR codes, pURLs (personal
URLs) or augmented reality (AR),
driving customers to online and
mobile channels. For example,
adding a pURL to a statement or
invoice provides an opportunity to
cross-sell other financial services or
products.
...continued
n
Digital signage.
Technologies
such as LCD or plasma display
panels, electronic billboards
and projection screens provide
organisations with a flexible tool
for conveying timely and targeted
messages to key audiences.
Intelligent digital signage systems
can provide a robust platform
for collecting, aggregating and
displaying information in meaningful,
actionable ways.
Conclusion
By providing a range of services
that cover the complete information
lifecycle, an integrated IMS can lay
the foundation for an immersive
collaborative experience.
Intelligent information capture
can unlock the value of paper
documents and make them
more accessible for sharing
and collaboration; cloud sharing
platforms can connect a dispersed
workforce and enhance productivity
and decision-making; and interactive
meeting room technology – be it
video conferencing or interactive
whiteboards – can overcome the
challenges of traditional face-to-face
meetings and eliminate the need to
share physical documents.
The best information managed
service providers will offer the
right combination of document
management, audio-visual and IT
skills and may leverage third party
partnerships to offer limitless
solutions. Ultimately, the providers
best placed to help drive innovation
in the digital workplace will be those
that can offer broader and longer-
term information management
support for their customers.
Louella Fernandes is Associate
Director, Print Services and Solutions
at research company Quocirca. This
is an abbreviated version of a new
white paper produced in association
with Sharp Business Solutions. The
full length report, including graphics
and additional research findings,
can be downloaded from Quocirca’s
website or from
co.uk.
Sharp Optimised Managed Services
(OMS) is a tailored information
management solution designed
from the ground up to make office
printing, scanning, document
workflow, collaboration and staff
interaction easier, more cost-effective
and more efficient. Based upon
Sharp’s proprietary technology, it
gives clients a one-stop solution
for the management of digital and
physical assets throughout their
lifecycle. OMS is based on the simple
theory that once you can control
an Information Management stage,
you can consolidate the process
behind it; and that once you have
consolidated this process, you can
optimise how it works and build a
full Information Management System
that delivers value back into the
organisation.
1 The Deloitte Millennial Survey, January 2014
2 Capitalizing on Content: A Compelling ROI for
Change by AIIM, 2011 © AIIM 2011
.
org / © OpenText 2011
The visual and interactive
meeting room
Changes in enterprise mobility strategies, bring your
own device (BYOD) trends, interoperability and the
benefits of the cloud (such as subscription-based,
pay-as-you-grow models) have paved the way for
broader adoption of visual collaboration.
Traditional offices and meeting rooms are giving
way to open, team and mobile spaces, as well as
huddle rooms, all of which drive the need for better
collaboration. Visual collaboration solutions address
these needs, covering a range of technologies
that can be used in a meeting room environment,
including interactive whiteboards and digital signage.
Visual collaboration can bring a whole team
together, even if part of the team is located on
the other side of the world. With screen sharing,
document sharing and other collaboration tools, back
and forth emailing is avoided and the financial costs
are minimal compared to the time and expense of
travel.
Sharp’s large format interactive touchscreen, BIG
PAD, enables interactive meetings in which multiple
devices in different locations can be connected
together. The same content can be shared across all
devices and then saved and distributed later. On a
BIG PAD you can write, draw and edit with your finger
or a touch pen.
It offers businesses a far more interactive and
engaging solution than flipcharts and PowerPoint
presentations via a projector. For example, in a
construction project, instead of using paper and
pen to sketch where everything will be on a building
site, meeting participants can work in teams to draw
directly onto the BIG PAD display.
