Everyone knows the expression “talk is cheap,” and people encounter numerous examples of this in their daily lives. It’s hard not to be cynical at times. Likewise, people understand that “walking the talk” is much harder to do and represents some level of real achievement. It separates the sales rhetoric and marketing campaigns from the real world, where theory meets the cold shoulder of reality.
IT organizations know this all too well since they serve as de facto guinea pigs for vendors’ products and solutions. In the end, they know whether a vendor’s product really delivers the value proposition that was promised during the sales cycle. This also explains why customer references are so highly valued, both by customers and vendors. Nothing is more compelling than when a passionate customer becomes an evangelist for a vendor’s product!
Recently, IDC interviewed IT organizations from 13 businesses that use LRS’ Enterprise Output Management software to support their printing and document delivery requirements. These businesses represent a diverse set of industries, including Healthcare, Chemical Production/Distribution, Financial Services, Manufacturing, Retail, and the Public Sector. They also represent different countries, with company headquarters in the United States, Canada, Germany, Switzerland and Sweden.
IDC’s objective was to understand the real business value that these businesses obtained from the LRS solution. Although LRS sponsored the survey, LRS was neither involved in the interviews nor in the analysis of the data/feedback that the customers provided to IDC. To encourage open discussion during the interviews, it was important that the information exchanged remained confidential between company personnel and IDC.
IDC published their findings in a white paper, “Business Value of LRS EOM,” released in February of this year. You can download it from the LRS website here. Although it is worth reading through all of the details and commentary in IDC’s white paper, I’ll share a few key highlights here:
- 492% five-year ROI
- 10 month breakeven time
- 41% more efficient print management
- 80% less staff time to support their printer users when problems occur
- 99% less unplanned printer downtime
- $33,780 in annual business benefits per 100 LRS-managed printers
These findings lend credibility to LRS’ approach of providing a holistic solution for enterprise output management. Take some time to study this white paper to learn how these customers’ experiences could be replicated in your IT organization. You too could realize similar savings and benefits, and avoid becoming some vendor’s experimental guinea pig. And the next time you talk with someone from LRS, you’ll already have proof they can “walk the talk.”