Implementing Managed Print Services (MPS)

Deteriorating market conditions have led to a renewed focus on office equipment optimization to save costs. Yet transition from the purchasing department's copier and fleet purchasing procedures to those required for managed print services (MPS) is not easy. To help, Forrester gathered data from more than 30 professionals across facilities, sourcing, IT, and six leading MPS providers and consolidated feedback from our MPS workshops. From this, we recommend five steps for MPS success: 1) assemble the right team and communicate goals broadly; 2) don't scrimp on the assessment phase of the MPS life cycle; 3) balance device capability with multivendor management tools, the ability to scale up or down with business change, security, change management, governance, and process improvement; 4) get ahead of compliance and security; and 5) push environmental goals and print policies that reduce paper. MPS, especially during a period of economic uncertainty, can help cut costs, fill gaps in compliance and security, improve office workflow, and even help push green IT forward.