Who is responsible for your business’ photocopier maintenance?
Are you satisfied with the efficiency of your office printing expenses, or does it often feel like a game of whack-a-mole? Dealing with printer malfunctions, replacing toner cartridges, and managing paper shortages can seem like an ongoing challenge, with printer maintenance often taking a backseat.
Optimal printing efficiency is achieved through a unified point of accountability for all equipment and supplies. Designating this responsibility to a specific person or department is essential to prevent confusion among employees regarding responsibilities and whom to contact when faced with printer issues.
Picking the right person: Two factors will lead to success
Who has time
While the obvious answer to “who has time” to manage copier and printer maintenance might be “no one”, one solution is to make it part of someone’s job description. Find someone who can make this an important priority. Of course, this point person will need to be at least somewhat comfortable with technology and building strong relationships with your technology partner.
Communicate who is in charge
Once you've chosen someone to take on the responsibility, the next step is to communicate their role in a number of ways — in meetings, through email and maybe even posted on a board near the printer.
Once a system is in place for communicating responsibility, you can determine an escalation system so people will know what to do if printers fail and the normal fixes don’t work.
Effective Implementation
Here are some important factors to remember as you roll out this new responsibility.
Pick the person and provide a job description that includes copier and printer maintenance.
Ensure there is room in the employee's schedule for these responsibilities.
Secure additional training for this person.
Consider changing or updating policies, especially if your print operations have been decentralized up to this point.
Again, don’t forget to communicate any changes to standard operating procedures around printing to the entire team.
Smaller Businesses
If your business isn't large enough to have a person solely responsible for your printing needs, you need someone who has a strong understanding of technology, your businesses workflow and your team’s processes.
Mid Sized Businesses
In mid-to-large businesses, a manager responsible for office technology is in the best position to assign someone to take care of printing technology. In most cases, this will be the IT department.
Large Businesses
If you are in a large businesses you may require a team of employees to manage the print technology scattered throughout various departments or office locations. This team will work closely with each other to manage your copiers and printers.
Assigning responsibility to a single person is important, but that person will often need help. Work with Mode Technology to determine the best way for your business to centralize your printing technology management responsibilities and implement a productive Managed Print Services program.
