Published on the 12/12/2013 | Written by Newsdesk

Ricoh is realigning its business to the digital era, planning to grow its IT services and consulting divisions to a projected 50 percent of its overall business by 2015…

Ricoh is best known for specialising in office imaging equipment and production print solutions, but today its IT services and consulting divisions make up about 25 percent of its business.

Ricoh has gradually been shifting its business model to combine traditional imaging solutions with consulting services around business process improvement. The move is a reaction to digitisation which has steadily driven down traditional print volumes in most offices that have digitised their workflows.

The publication of Ricoh’s fifth sustainability report this week shows that the shift in emphasis has paid dividends, giving the company another year of “solid profits”. The report said Ricoh is on an “ambitious growth plan”, with a target for 2015’s revenue to reach $150 million. The IT services division is a key part of this growth plan and supports the company’s long-term view of creating ongoing revenues despite the decline in traditional print volumes.

The IT services division has already experienced significant growth due to the acquisition of three existing IT service companies – Dunedin’s SCL, Christchurch’s Trinity Systems and Auckland’s Zero Down. Management hopes the IT services and consulting divisions will account for in excess of 40-50 percent of its business in the next two years.

Ricoh New Zealand managing director Mike Pollok said there has been a decline in traditional print volumes, a step-change in what is being printed and greater demand for digital solutions. “These days, our customers want to talk to us about their back-office functions and how much they can automate and digitise. Ironically, more often than not, they’re looking for us to assist them to reduce the number of paper documents in their organisation and through digitisation, provide access to critical information to all parties involved in their business on a day-to-day basis.

That’s where Ricoh’s IT services division can step in.”

The introduction and growth of the consulting and IT service arms is what Ricoh believes is helping it to transform for a digital age and stand apart from its competitors.

“We are ahead of this curve and have actively moved into ‘business process improvement’ – enabling organisations to automate workflows, leading to increased productivity and flexibility to meet their own customers’ requirements,” explained Pollok.

“We believe we are operating in a completely different area than any of our traditional competitors,” he said, referring to Canon and Konica Minolta.

Despite this and the continued growth of its IT services and consulting divisions, Pollok admits that Ricoh continues to be perceived as being primarily about machines.

“Educating the market about the breadth of our services is critical because we are so much more than copiers,” he said.

FOR MORE INFORMATION//

RICOH CONSULTING SERVICES
www.ricoh.co.nz

AUCKLAND
Kris Hyman
+64 9 368 6089

WELLINGTON
Duncan Ashenhurst
+64 4 381 7605

CHRISTCHURCH
Alex Power
+64 3 374 8397

DUNEDIN
Paul Proctor
+64 27 706 4054