Category: Managed Print Services

Welcome back! In the first installment of this two-part series we looked at the principles of print optimization from a reliability and security perspective in a traditional healthcare environment and how optimizing the print environment in a healthcare setting is a unique challenge. It was seen that a traditional hospital, for example, is a complex environment where content flows throughout the organization in various formats. Data is sent, received and stored by sophisticated systems that are layered on top of each other. Print is a primary output point for that data.  Making sure that the print environment is secure, reliable, cost-effective, and integrated will help in delivering quality patient care consistently.

In part two we’ll focus on integrating the printer fleet with other systems to drive value and efficiency, and why streamlining print costs isn’t as simple as it sounds.

Digital transformation in healthcare – understand end user needs first

As an MPS Consultant that focuses heavily on the healthcare vertical, I’ve personally seen increased adoption of solutions like secure print tools, fax over IP (FOIP) systems, and capture/route workflow tools.  Hospitals in Ontario have also made large investments in upgrading their core health information systems.  This digital transformation is the perfect opportunity to optimize the print fleet while integrating these new solutions and systems with each other.

Let’s take a health information system like Epic, for example.  Epic requires hospitals to map out all of their network endpoints as a part of the project’s architecture.  Introducing a secure print tool also requires a comprehensive inventory of printer locations and related data to run the project correctly.  If your secure print project plan is to put copiers in the middle of hallways and expect users to hand over their personal desktop printers – think again!  Here’s an opportunity to kill two birds with one stone – use your print partner to map out the printers and collect the same data that the Epic team requires.  It will lighten the load for the Epic team and give them a chance to verify the printer data and minimize blips in workflow printing when you go live.   From an integration perspective though, secure print and a new HIS requires expertise.  I recently had a call with a hospital that had rolled out a new HIS but already had a secure print tool.  The secure print tool was “compatible” with their new HIS, but shared workstations posed a problem.  The hospital found some workarounds, but it caused headaches for users and IT helpdesk staff.  Fortunately, we had already solved this problem during a proof of concept for an existing client and were able to replicate the fix.

Remove analog fax lines

Now that you have secure print running in your environment, it’s time to get rid of those legacy analog fax lines that phone line companies love billing you for.  Fax over IP is a solution that often pays for itself while driving real productivity gains and improving document security.  First, when a user authenticates using their badge or PIN, the device knows who’s using it.  When they send a fax, they don’t need to wait for a fax confirmation – it just hits their email.  Less paper is printed and there’s no chance that confirmation pages get lost in the shuffle.  Further, you have an audit trail if you ever need it.  From a budget perspective, you can do the math.  A fax line is anywhere from $45-$65 per month per line.  The ROI is quick, and when you pair it with a secure print tool your users will be more secure and efficient.

Understand explicit and implicit costs

Now let’s move on to cost optimization.  There is no vertical in which cost optimization for print is so complex.  You have your explicit print costs like hardware acquisition (purchase or lease), and your support costs which are typically billed on a cost per page.  Where most organizations get lost is the implicit costs.  There’s user productivity, document/data/device security, electricity to run the devices, costs related to downtime and poor device performance, resources allocated to supporting print devices, and a multitude of other indirect costs that are tough to quantify.  Even trying to understand these implicit costs is a cost on its own.  With recent cuts to healthcare budgets in Ontario and more expected down the road, print cost control and reduction is a stone that shouldn’t be left unturned.   

The key is to engage with a print partner that can run the project for you.  Give them what they need (a PDF map, costs, inventory of printers, and coffee!) and they should be able to do the heavy lifting if they are experienced.  If the vendor’s device consolidation plan is to remove all personal printers and install copiers in every wing, you’re not working with a healthcare specialist.  How do you convince users in a fast-paced environment to surrender their personal printer?  Users will go to great lengths to hold onto that precious printer and the last thing IT needs to deal with is end-user revolt.  An MPS specialist with deep knowledge of the healthcare space will have the tools to help you understand the explicit and implicit costs of your organization’s current print environment.  Understanding the current state will help you identify opportunities to reduce total cost without hampering other key principles of optimization. 

Print optimization in healthcare is more than just replacing old hardware.  The process is a balancing act but isn’t a project that you should overlook. The end result could mean newfound budget for other projects on your roadmap and more resources to allocate to those projects.  Identifying what hardware platform to standardize on is a small piece of the puzzle.   Partnering with an MPS specialist that understands the space can save you a lot of time and effort down the road and will minimize bumps when integrating with your new HIMS, FOIP or secure print tool.

Are you interested in learning more about how you can optimize your healthcare print environment? If so, please reach out.

We’ve all heard the expression “if all you have is a hammer, everything looks like a nail”.  In many cases, traditional copier companies and healthcare buying groups approach print environment optimization with a hammer.  Their intent is to drive cost savings through device consolidation, perhaps introduce a proprietary secure print tool, and maybe automate toner replenishment.  But, is that an optimized print environment?

What is an optimized print environment for a hospital or ancillary healthcare organization?

The real questions are, what is an optimized print environment for a hospital or ancillary healthcare organization?  There is no single cookie-cutter approach because every organization is different.  However, the core principles remain the same. The key to optimization is working with a managed print services provider that understands the principles of print optimization in this unique space.

In healthcare, an optimized print environment is reliable, secure, cost-effective, and integrated.  In part one of this two-part series, we’ll tackle reliability and security.

Take your typical hospital.  It’s an extremely fast-paced environment.  There is no time to spare, and the last thing that should be holding up patient care is a printer that keeps jamming, is having image quality issues, or needs to reboot to release a print job.  A nurse can’t be expected to print a chart, wait at a printer, clear a jam, resend the print job, and hope it comes out properly the second time.  The result in that scenario is a delay in patient care which could have a critical impact on the health of that patient.

IT budgets is a challenge

Allocating annual IT budgets is a challenge unto itself, and replacing printers almost never makes the cut.  If the printer is still laying toner down on that page relatively effectively, there isn’t an obviously strong business case to budget for a replacement. Right?  Afterall budgets are tight and there are seemingly more critical areas of the infrastructure to update.  Well, how many times does the scenario noted in the previous paragraph occur in your environment? Do you have the tools and resources to track this data?  The soft-cost of having that 15-year-old printer in a nursing station could be exponentially higher than that low cost per page you like so much.  Even when the budget is assigned for a printer refresh, is that refresh done strategically? Or are printers being replaced on a one in, one out basis?  If that’s the strategy you have, you need a new print partner!

Being PIPEDA compliant is important

Protecting data is not unique to healthcare, but the pressure to remain PIPEDA compliant is certainly magnified.  Publicly funded healthcare organizations are subject to more regular and increasingly stringent security audits.  One area that is almost always overlooked is the network printer.  Printer security hygiene is about more than changing the password on the embedded web server that allows an administrator to change device settings. 

Ensure your print infrastructure is secure

A typical network printer has over 250 settings that affect the security of that device.  According to IDC, only about 2% of the world’s network printers are properly secured. Why is that important? Because hackers who used to try to find holes in firewalls are now exploiting users who use printers to gain access to the network. In a truly optimized environment, those 250 settings are managed autonomously, devices should be equipped with malware detection, a self-healing BIOS, and firmware verification tools to ensure that no part of the device is compromised. Oh, and that 15-year-old printer with that low cost per page – when was the last time a firmware update with a security patch was released? 

Create a digital audit trail

Often, print devices are in common areas and shared between departments.  Introducing a secure print tool will ensure no abandoned print jobs will end up in the wrong hands, and devices can’t be accessed by unauthorized individuals.  Secure print tools also create a digital audit trail, improve inter-departmental workflow, and make cost allocation a breeze! But there are so many different tools out there – what is the best fit?

At SmartPrint, we typically recommend a vendor-neutral solution that will support any enterprise level device in the market, regardless of brand.  Even then there are so many options out there and many factors to consider determining the best solution for your environment.  Your print partner should be able to help navigate this decision with you so that you don’t have to do it all over again 5 years from now. Your partner should also be able to implement and manage the application moving forward so your team doesn’t have to learn how to use a new tool that requires focused expertise.

Are you interested in learning more about how you can optimize your healthcare print environment? If so, please reach out.

[Toronto, ON, Canada] – [May 1, 2019] – The economic impact of Canada’s top 100 solution providers is approaching the $10 billion dollar mark, according to a new study released April 24 at the CDN Top 100 Solution Providers Gala in Woodbridge.

“Total revenue for the Top 100 companies on the new CDN ranking totals $9.7 billion, up 5.5 per cent from last year,” said Alex Coop, Associate Editor of CDN, summarizing the finds of the ITWC/IDC Benchmark survey. “Although we had nine newcomers make it to the Top 100 rankings, the growth is largely fuelled by the top 10 companies, up 14 per cent over last year and representing 60 per cent of the total revenue.”

SmartPrint climbed 6 places this year to #69 in the Computer Dealer News (CDN) Top 100 Solution Providers List. 2018 was another great year of growth for SmartPrint’s Managed Print Services business.

“In 2018 we added a significant number of clients that are global companies with Canadian headquarters that has expanded our service and support reach. We are leveraging our Print as a Service, SmartPrint 360 offering to completely simplify office printing for these clients. We have also seen a lot of traction with our solutions around Document Lifecycle Management that differentiates our end to end Managed Print Services offering.” said Rob Farrell, Vice President of Sales & Marketing.

About SmartPrint:

SmartPrint is the leading Managed Print Services (MPS) firm in Canada working with large corporate clients with 100+ employees to enable them to outsource the management of their office printing and imaging devices. The goal of our managed print services program is to drive down cost, maximize efficiency and secure the print infrastructure within our clients’ organizations. Our vertically focused expertise provides custom-tailored solutions to each of our client’s unique challenges.

To find out more about SmartPrint, please explore our website: www.smartprint.com.

For Press or Analyst inquiries please contact:

Rob Farrell

rob.farrell[@]smartprint.com

905.475.6177 x234

How important is your company’s data (customer information, intellectual property, employee information, etc.)? If you could easily secure that information with a cost-effective solution, would you?

We are often talking about the cybercrime and theft of company information through the world wide web. There is another side to protecting your data internally. Most employees will do the right thing, but some of the biggest challenges are from internal information leaks or theft. One of our financial clients recently successfully stopped an employee who had resigned and then tried to steal intellectual property and a customer list. They were able to catch this and take action with the help of a software solution that we architected and implemented for them. We also manage and support the software solution for them to ensure it is always running and ready for the next issue.

The fact is that paper can’t report unauthorized access if an employee or visitor has access to sensitive information and they print, copy or take a picture of it they can typically take that information out of the office and it’s gone. Some solutions track what document are being printed by the name of the document; this easily can be changed.  Securing your print devices with Secure Access software ensures nothing is printed without the owner of the document being at the device to retrieve it.  But how do you know if sensitive information was printed, scanned or copied?

Data loss detection (DLD) – identifying the transfer of sensitive data

Data loss prevention (DLP) – ensuring sensitive or critical information does not get shared

Here’s how a simple Data Loss Prevention and Detection system can work.

With SmartPrint recommended solutions, at the print stream level: 

Monitor and secure paper documents to prevent the loss of valuable or confidential information. Dynamically discover, monitor and protect documents and print jobs in motion or at rest, throughout the printing process to mitigate data loss of sensitive information.

Simplified Paper Data Loss Prevention (DLP)

Discover – analyze meta data of documents and print jobs to discover sensitive information, using dictionary and pattern matching content analysis

                      Monitor – transparent monitoring avoids user interaction, enforcing compliance and enabling auditing and                reporting

                     Prevent – stop printing of restricted documents to stop breaches before they happen, with the ability to notify or archive content where required.

This covers the printed document but how do you ensure confidential information is not copied or scanned?

We recently deployed and integrated a system, using HP Enterprise Multi-function print devices because of their open architecture and self healing security capabilities, securing access of the users by having them tap their security badge to use any of the capabilities of the multi-function devices, even to make a simple copy. If a user needs to make a copy, they tap their badge, which authenticates them against active directory. The system does a real time scan of the document and looks for key words or document numbers that are logged in the DLD system.  If the system detects an issue IT Security is automatically notified and can act.  

If locking down your intellectual property is important, reach out to get in touch with an MPS Consultant who can help you learn more.

Security is top of mind for IT departments in Canada for good reason. We had recently supported a situation where a client had escalated a service issue because of multiple service calls on a single print device. In this case, we found that a new HP Enterprise MFP that had recently been installed was in a constant reboot cycle, at some points of the day users could print to it, at other times it would constantly reboot on its own. Our client’s IT team thought that the device had a serious issue with the firmware or internal system because it was a new device. After further investigation, we found that a hacker had targeted the devices IP with a denial-of-service (DoS) attack which is an attack designed to bring a network to its knees by flooding it with useless traffic. Their standard device configuration left some holes that we helped them close, and the problem was gone.

We had another client that had an older large workgroup multi-function print device that seemed to be running slow on the network, taking forever to wake up for users to scan or copy and printing slow, which of course was frustrating the users. After some testing, we found there was malware loaded onto the hard drive of the device waiting to exploit or possibly shut down their network. The cybercriminal had most likely already done some damage or stolen some information. Many Canadian companies have been targeted by malware that locks down their network and the only way to get it back is to pay a hefty ransom to cybercriminals.

We can’t stress enough that it’s time to take a serious look at your print infrastructure, the security capabilities of your current print devices and firmware and how to manage the environment moving forward to stay current on the best.

We have helped many of our clients upgrade their equipment to HP Enterprise print devices that can protect themselves against cyber attacks, and we have layered on HP JetAdvantage Security Manager as the print security console to manage device configurations and reporting. Watch this quick video to see an overview of the self-healing security features. Even with the investment in hardware and software to mitigate risk the business case from their current state costs to the future state has always been positive. More security protection with a lower cost of operation and better user experience is great management win.

Reach out for a free print fleet assessment and we will educate you on your risk and provide a simple plan to close the gap. With your MPS experts at your side, updating and securing the print infrastructure can all be accomplished with a simple as a service model, leaving your IT team to focus on other critical areas of the organization.

Is it time to look at investing in your print environment to protect your business?

Here are six questions to think about:

1. Does it matter that you have print devices on your network that are more than 7 or 8 years old?
2. Are all manufacturers the same when it comes to security?
3. How important is it to have hardened print endpoints to protect your organization from cybercrime and ransomware?
4. Are your data and intellectual property safe?
5. Do you know the gaps/risks of your print environments current state?
6. How much would you have to invest, or would you actually save money if you closed the risk gap of your print environment?

Print security is a bit of a murky space and frankly, most manufacturers will tell you they have it covered, and you have nothing to worry about. We’ll try and provide some of the answers and direction if protecting your company from cybercrime is important.

In this space, HP has recently been acknowledged as having the most secure print devices in the world. The industry analysts that we keep in touch with say they are well ahead of the rest and are continuing to increase their lead in technology. HP has technology in their enterprise level print devices to protect you below, at, and above the operating system so that hackers have no way in. They are focused on staying ahead of the game by providing software tools to automate locking down or hardening your print devices. The software also provides reporting which gives visibility to the potential areas of risk in your print infrastructure. This is really positive and helpful, but the fact is, if you have devices that don’t have the smarts in them (old print/copy devices, some brands of hardware) on your network, you may have some serious openings that put your organization at risk.

Without closing all the ports and protocols that aren’t required and consistently keeping the firmware up to date with the latest patches, you may be at risk.

Many organizations we talk to think that they won’t be a target of cybercrime and ransomware. We hear things like, “Why would we be a target?; Our data isn’t that important”.

The reality of the situation is that what we’re talking about here is cheap. It doesn’t even have to be a capital investment! Protect your company’s data and ensure that malware or ransomware doesn’t shut the doors of your business. I’m not trying to scare you here but many companies that get attacked and lose their data and systems can’t come back from a full shutdown fast enough and are at risk of going out of business or taking a major hit to their financials. Again, the opportunity cost of not future proofing your print infrastructure may save you money from your current state, and the opportunity cost of doing nothing could be significant. Further, according to IBM Security and Ponemon Institute in the 2017 Cost of Data Breach Study: Canada, for 27 Canadian companies that participated in the study incurred an average total loss of $5.78 million.

Reach out for a free print fleet assessment and we will educate you on your risk and provide a simple plan to close the gap. With your MPS experts at your side, updating and securing the print infrastructure can all be accomplished with a simple as a service model, leaving your IT team to focus on other critical areas of the organization.

Request your no-obligation print infrastructure security assessment

4 Reasons to Take Vendor Consolidation to the Next Level with MPS (Managed Print Services) and ECM (Enterprise Content Management).

I find that more and more, our clients are asking us to expand our offering to support more functions around office printing, scanning, and digital workflow/content management, as part of their strategy to consolidate IT vendors. At first glance, some may think, it’s just office printing, document storage, simple document workflow etc.; however, to integrate the technologies and make it all work takes knowledge and expertise that is not found inside of an IT team. SmartPrint has partnered with HP Inc. to provide best in breed HP printers and copiers to support integration with open architecture to enable an integrated complete document workflow, digitized solution to be always on and highly scalable. There are some compelling reasons to look at taking vendor consolidation to the next level in this space beyond obvious cost saving.

To provide a high-level example, we have a manufacturing client that relies on SmartPrint to manage all of their print devices at 7 locations across Canada. We have integrated a workflow engine that enables users to capture and categories important structured and unstructured documents in a simple document management system with the ability to search and quickly find them again in the future. This sounds simple; however, it was very important for this client to have their data and intellectual property safe and secure, while the integrated solution is drastically reducing the time their employees spend searching for important documents in their customer service and finance departments. Prior to implementation, they estimated 100’s of employee hours monthly spent searching through file cabinets, boxes of paper and uncategorized digital documents. All hardware, software, MPS, solution support and professional services are integrated into a SmartPrint 360 program with an as a service flat monthly fee.

Top 4 reasons to look to your trusted MPS experts for vendor consolidation beyond basic MPS offerings

1. Don’t get stuck with a print infrastructure that won’t support your vision.

• Work with experts to ensure success for your future projects. Your MPS experts should have the experience to recommend agnostic hardware and software solutions to be sure you have the foundation in place to build on. With the right foundation (printing and imaging infrastructure) in place, you can ensure that your organization continues to successfully develop and implement digitization of business processes and automated workflow. It is amazing how many times we engage with a company with a great vision for solutions and have to indicate that they need to invest heavily in the foundation due to bad technology decisions.

      2. Change from how it’s always been done.

• Automating workflow for users and departments can be embedded long term if the electronic content management system is integrated into the users’ work processes, whether paper-based or digital. If your trusted MPS experts are working to implement and support the print infrastructure and integrations to the related software (print security software, workflow engine, document management, and content management systems) you will have the support you need when there is an issue with any of the solution components. When these solutions are architected, implemented, and supported long-term by the experts that also support all connected devices, your partner is in place to ensure that the system stays in place with consistent training, support and future development.

      3. More productive employees

• Your organization can rely on your MPS partner to help make the correct decisions on best in breed hardware and software for the future with expertise that cannot be insourced. An MPS expert partner that is in control of the whole printing and imaging infrastructure and workflow is the best choice.

     4. Simplify IT Helpdesk processes

• With one partner responsible, no finger pointing will occur and the expertise and responsibility to deal with issues lie with your dedicated partner. The IT Help Desk is simplified, and user uptime is managed at an optimal level.

If it’s time to simplify your business and look at the next level of vendor consolidation we recommended that you work with an independent MPS expert that provides recommendations of agnostic hardware and software solutions to ensure scalability and flexibility to future proof your print infrastructure.

Contact us if you would like to learn more.

Using the Upland AccuRoute solution, users can flow important business documents of all types internally and externally to support automating business processes. The AccuRoute Web Apps allows users to build new business process automated workflows quickly and efficiently. Workflows can easily be integrated to support the distribution of content through to business applications like ERP software, Document Management, and Records Management software, as well as simple working groups or destinations like network folders, printer devices, fax, email and basically any other destination you can imagine.

Working with an AccuRoute Integrator

When working with an AccuRoute integrator, the application can be integrated with your existing network office printing devices to enable a distributed content capture strategy so the solution can be pervasive across the departments and location of your organization. AccuRoute allows you to capture the content from paper-based documents, convert to digital and flow through to complex workflows. With smart consulting to transform workflow, a user can place paper-based documents in a scanning device or use a multi-functional printer,  touch the screen to select the appropriate workflow and they are done. The automated business process takes over and finishes all of the tasks.

All of your business content can become available across your organization. Documents can be converted into your required format, the file size is compressed, metadata can be extracted, the solution can work with and read barcodes, and all workflows can be integrated into your back office software. The solution can scale to support the largest enterprise, but also works well in mid-sized organizations. Once implemented it provides a bullet-proof business workflow platform.

This solution can enable workflow of any file format with complete security. It integrates with all leading document/content management and archive systems and when the document gets to its destination,  we can ensure that it is fully searchable so no content is lost.

Three key values of the AccuRoute solution

1. Extract content easily
   Convert business content from any source, whether the current format is digital documents, paper, digital data streams like fax, email, or other applications into secure and useful business content.

2. Automated workflow getting your content to the right place

   All documents are captured, analyzed, and delivered to the correct destination and/or recipients.

3. Searchable and safe content storage

   Ensure compliance requirements are met and secure your content with logging, backup and data loss prevention.

How does this all come together?  Your office printing devices are the on-ramps and off-ramps of your organizations content. Your Managed Print Services experts can be the integrator to help build a digital workflow that makes your business more efficient and more organized. On another very important note, given that your content can be sensitive client information, intellectual property, critical business information etc., ensuring that your print devices are secure is extremely important. A lot of sensitive data is flowing through the print devices. Also, scanning capabilities and open architecture to support simple integrations are important. We recommend HP enterprise print devices because of their superior security and scan workflow capabilities with their patented Flow MFP and scanning devices.

SmartPrint has helped companies in all verticals implement simple integrated scalable and powerful business process workflow solutions to make the business go faster.

Reach out to talk to an expert about content workflow solutions.