Going Green -
Bring Down the High Cost of Desktop Printing

Going “green” has become a higher priority in today’s financial services environment.  Look at the recent launch of TechWeb's Financial Technology Network EcoTech, new online resources dedicated to green initiatives for business and IT decision makers at financial institutions.  In addition, many retail banks across the country have green initiative projects to ensure they’re making sensible green choices that yield cost savings and contribute to a healthier workplace and a less-polluted world.

And it’s not just about incorporating energy efficient lighting in the workplace or having an active recycling program.  The opportunities for environmental improvement extend to so many more facets of operations throughout the financial services industry.  Emerging demand from customers and employees is helping push financial institutions to forge a strategy around incorporating products, services and business practices that are environmentally friendly.

Paperless – or NOT?
Certainly, document management is one area that merits close scrutiny.   Desktop printing, for example, plays a significant role in the inner-workings of financial services providers today.  Applications, forms, summaries, spreadsheets, letters and even printed e-mail – the list of documents printed at the desktop or routed to a nearby printer is substantial. 

Already representing the largest share of printing done in financial services organizations, desktop printing continues to be expensive, wasteful and a drain on the time and resources of financial services organizations.   

An Inconvenient Truth
As in any office, desktop printing is driven by the need for immediate turnaround of documents. Generally produced in low volume, these documents vary in complexity.  Because they fuel the inner workings of any financial services organization, documents can range from simple, one-color sheets to more specialized documents, such as loan applications or investment strategy spreadsheets.

But while nearly 90 percent of respondents to the 2008 IBT Market Pulse Survey: A Different Shade of Green report having paper avoidance programs like electronic billing, statements and online applications in place for their customers, few have taken steps to analyze their fleet of desktop printing devices, their related cost of ownership, utilization and workflow.

The Inescapable Costs of Desktop Printing
From a business perspective, desktop printing is no small expense. International Data Corporation (IDC) reports that U.S. companies spend $100 billion annually to print and manage documents from the desktop.  

In spite of the financial impact, however, most organizations do not have a clear understanding of the amount they spend on desktop printing. In general, IT directors are not aware of how many printers reside in their enterprises, how many pages are printed each month, or the paper and supply costs associated with their printer fleets.

Typically, financial services providers have loosely-controlled methodologies for acquiring and managing office printers.  Few have an effective means to monitor utilization or track expense.  Moreover, without an enterprise placement philosophy, printer fleets often grow by default.

In addition to the direct printing costs, technicians and network administrators testify that they spend 15 percent of their time on printing-related issues. Printer installation and driver management are their top two issues for support. Over 55 percent of network traffic is related to printing. Likewise, 50 to 60 percent of all help desk calls are printer-related, according to Hewlett-Packard.

A Greener Approach to Document Output
As financial services providers begin to leverage desktop printing investments and ensure “least-cost print” through rules-based routing, they need to map a parallel strategy for enterprise print management. Only by evaluating all aspects of their print supply chain -- from desktop to internal print shop and external printing -- can they develop an efficient means of managing both paper and digital documents to address compliance requirements, reduce costs and lighten the environmental burden. 

Certainly, from a desktop printing perspective, financial services providers will need to re-examine their current configuration of printers --desktop, network, copiers and multi-functional devices.  The goal is to reduce the total cost of ownership while ensuring that critical documents are available when needed. 
The fleet assessment should identify and analyze the fleet’s costs, utilization and workflow as well as the special and critical needs that are unique to each unit.  Then align the fleet with those needs. 

Finally, steps need to be taken to provide users with adequate information and education in order to optimize the quality, availability and cost of printed documents while balancing environmental concerns.

Standard Register recognizes its responsibility and commitment to the environment and to the communities in which we work and serve.  Our “less paper strategy” for managing our customers’ document flow has had a significant impact on reducing total paper consumption in organizations throughout North America. At the same time, SMARTworks®, our Web-based document management platform, provides our customers with an eco-friendly way to procure, manage and track document cost and usage, so they can make responsible choices.

If you’re looking for ways to clean-up your business processes, as well as lessening their environmental impact, contact us today.  Together we can share responsibility for reducing the environmental impacts of daily operations.