Quocirca Predicts: Trend #3: Analytics will remain an untapped opportunity
November 21, 2019
Article, Channel, Digital Transformation, Managed Print Services, Trends
In 2020 market consolidation will continue as the global print industry landscape continues to face the forces of digital disruption. Erosion of legacy revenue streams driven by hardware commoditisation and the ongoing transition to digitisation are forcing industry players to consider new ways of remaining relevant to enterprise customers. While many have embarked on journeys to become digital workplace service providers, the market remains vulnerable to rapid shifts in digital technology, competitor activity and customer needs.
To remain relevant in the rapidly changing digital workplace, manufacturers and their partners should capitalise on five key trends in the coming year. This is the third article in Quocirca’s Print Predictions series.
Trend #3: Analytics will remain an untapped opportunity for many industry players
Businesses today want better insights into their workflows and increasingly expect such insights in real (or close to real) time. This shift is being fuelled by machine learning and AI, yet such capabilities are still relatively nascent in the office print industry. While many print manufacturers leverage predictive analytics for proactive maintenance purposes, next generation MPS will be driven by deeper actionable insights on how to better automate existing business processes. Meanwhile, analysis of content, using techniques such as data loss prevention (DLP), can help in ensuring that an organisation’s information security policies are adhered to.
Manufacturers have a wealth of product, network and customer data at their disposal. Ultimately, for new subscription and operating models to be effective, they must be underpinned by increasingly advanced analytics. This means looking beyond traditional print infrastructure analytics to develop customer insight and identifying how to integrate analytics into new service propositions.
Data visualisation along with contextual and interactive dashboards will become a key differentiator for next generation print management solutions. Building deeper process analytics capabilities will enable MPS providers to offer broader business process optimisation services. While some MPS providers have developed their own process analytics offerings, their are significant opportunities to partner in this space. Kofax, for instance, has a broad range of solutions for both advanced print management (Kofax ControlSuite) and process intelligence.
Channel partners who can leverage analytics as part of their broader MPS engagements will be best positioned to monetise new products and services. Quocirca expects to see both print manufacturers and ISVs enhance the analytics and reporting features of their cloud MPS platforms to improve channel engagement. Such cost-effective and flexible platforms could be a key sales enabler for channel partners in 2020 as they look to build competitive advantage.
- 74% of IT decision makers report that improved analytics are an important benefit of MPS deployment in their organisation, (source: Quocirca MPS survey 2019)
- Predictive analytics and data visualisation will differentiate next generation MPS engagements
Read Quocirca’s 2020 Predictions here:
Quocirca Predicts Trend #1 Cloud MPS Evolves
Quocirca Predicts Trend #2 Smart MFP as a Digital Enabler
To register for an Executive Summary of Quocirca’s Global Print 2025 Second Edition Report please sign up at www.print2025.com
