Konica Minolta Named a Market Leader for Managed Print Services by Quocirca

Langenhagen, Germany, 11 May 2021

Managed print services (MPS) are a catalyst for digitalisation. They help businesses save time and money and allow IT departments to focus on business-critical tasks. MPS is therefore becoming an increasingly essential cornerstone of secure, cloud-based digital workflows that empower flexible and remote working. At the heart of this paradigm shift, Konica Minolta has helped businesses large and small transform into Intelligent Connected Workplaces. This pioneering role has been recognised by global market insight and research company Quocirca: In its latest “MPS Vendor Landscape, 2021” report[1], Quocirca re-affirmed Konica Minolta as market leader for the scope and breadth of its portfolio. It notes that the Konica Minolta offering is “comprehensive, spanning digital print, IoT, artificial intelligence and augmented reality solutions”. Konica Minolta’s investments, particularly in IT services, “enabled it to deliver on its strategy to provide integrated IT services and become a reliable partner for digital workplaces.”

Subtitled “Transforming the hybrid workplace”, Quocirca’s report notes that the MPS market has become more mature and businesses are demanding more from suppliers in the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic. With 47 percent of workers now working remotely, organisations are seeking to adapt office capacity using satellite offices and flexible working. The report finds that “56 percent of organisations rank workplace services in their top three selection criteria that would make them more likely to choose a specific MPS agreement: This is followed by Cloud Print Services (45 percent) […] sustainability services (30 percent) and managed security services (29 percent).”

The need for a cloud printing partner

The report describes an increase in organisations transitioning print infrastructure to the cloud to help achieve cost efficiencies: 39 percent have implemented a cloud print management platform, while 37 percent intend to do so. While the majority of companies are managing print jobs on-premises, Quocirca found that three quarters of organisations expect to see greater use of cloud print management by 2025.

With regard to Konica Minolta’s offering, the report highlights the customer benefits of Konica Minolta’s cloud print services, which has options for private cloud or hybrid solutions and converts an existing on-premise print environment to a cloud-based service. Konica Minolta offers users the flexibility of location-independent printing, while at the same time unburdening IT from the complexity of managing printers, servers, drivers, applications and networks. This ensures the infrastructure is always up to date and meets the latest security standards. Customers benefit from the usual as-a-service advantages like consumption-based pricing and the ability to easily scale the solution up or down as needs change.

An integrated security approach is essential

With regard to the overarching importance of security for organisations mentioned in its report, Quocirca also noted that Konica Minolta’s scalable security services were “an integral element in all of its Intelligent Connected Workplace services and built in to all of its solutions for digital workplaces”. The company “has developed scalable solutions to meet the IT security needs of organisations of all sizes, and address a wide array of threats – from harmful email attachments to third-party intruders attempting to gain access to customer data. Additionally, Konica Minolta provides vulnerability management to assess and monitor a customer’s critical IT systems”.

Depth of MPS offering and services make a vendor a market leader

Konica Minolta’s managed print services are aligned to meet emerging workplace needs and requirements. As a vendor, it empowers customers with a holistic offering that includes consultancy services, hardware and software implementation, and workflow management. Quocirca categorises market leaders, such as Konica Minolta, as vendors that have “both strategic vision and depth of service offering”. Such leaders have made “significant investments in their service portfolio and infrastructure”, which “are supported by strong delivery capabilities”. The report further explains that Konica Minolta “is taking a holistic approach that enables its solutions to be seamlessly integrated with each other to optimise customer workflows and processes – both digital and in print”.

“We are proud to have been re-affirmed as a leader in the exciting and fast-moving MPS segment,” says Olaf Lorenz, Senior General Manager Digital Transformation Division, Konica Minolta Business Solutions Europe. Konica Minolta has maintained its leading position in previous reports since 2017. “From small- and medium-sized businesses to global enterprises, we help our customers navigate digital transformation with effective solutions that bring together managed print, secure IT infrastructure and cutting-edge cloud services. Being named a market leader is a testament that our vision and commitment is fully aligned to our customers’ evolving needs”.

About Konica Minolta Business Solutions Europe

Konica Minolta Business Solutions Europe GmbH, based in Langenhagen, Germany, is a wholly owned subsidiary of Konica Minolta Inc., Tokyo, Japan. Konica Minolta enables its clients to champion the digital era: with its unique imaging expertise and data processing capabilities, Konica Minolta creates relevant solutions for its customers and solves issues faced by society. As a provider of comprehensive IT services, Konica Minolta delivers consultancy and services to optimise business processes with workflow automation. The company further offers its customers solutions and managed services in the field of IT infrastructure and IT security as well as cloud environments. With regard to its office printing solutions, ‘IDC MarketScape: Worldwide Print Transformation 2020 Vendor Assessment’ stated that Konica Minolta is ‘recognised globally as a leader in print transformation’. As a strong partner for the professional printing market, Konica Minolta offers business consulting, state-of-the-art technology and software and has established itself as the production printing market leader for more than a decade in Europe (InfoSource). Its Business Innovation Centre in London and four R & D laboratories in Europe enable Konica Minolta to bring innovation forward by collaborating with its customers as well as academic, industrial and entrepreneurial partners. For its innovative service approach that complements their devices perfectly, Konica Minolta was awarded the prestigious ‘Buyers Lab PaceSetter Award for Serviceability and Support 2020/2021’ from Keypoint Intelligence. Konica Minolta Business Solutions Europe is represented by subsidiaries and distributors in more than 80 countries in Europe, Central Asia, the Middle East and Africa. With approximately 10,000 employees (as of April 2020), Konica Minolta Europe earned net sales of over 2.34 billion in financial year 2019/2020.

For more information, please visit http://newsroom.konicaminolta.eu/ and follow Konica Minolta on Facebook, YouTube and Twitter @KonicaMinoltaEU.

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Contact

Melanie Olbrich
Konica Minolta
Business Solutions Europe GmbH
Phone: +49 (0)511 7404-5337
melanie.olbrich@konicaminolta.eu
[1] Managed Print Services, 2021, Transforming the hybrid workplace, Quocirca, 2021, https://print2025.com/reports/quocirca-mps-landscape-2021/

SOURCE Konica Minolta