A multi-function printer may not be the first thing that comes to mind when you’re embarking on a digital transformation but having the right one can streamline workflows and improve the overall performance of your business.

Just as the large, bulky cellphone became a sleek smartphone that put the digital office in your hand, today’s printers, scanners and imaging devices are more than just a device that copies paper and spews more paper out. All-in-one devices can now digitize documents as part of a broader knowledge management plan, allow you to print in formats and colours that previously required a specialized printing house, and simplify document management without taking up too much real estate.

Productivity Powers Digital Transformation

Today’s smart printers are also much lower maintenance with toner that lasts longer. Even when it needs changing, it doesn’t require a technician with an advanced engineering degree to figure out. You can print faster, more reliably with nearly no downtime because of printer supply shortages and paper jams. Gone are the days of starting your print job days in advance of a big presentation meeting—you can quickly produce a high-quality document to impress visiting executives on demand.

This kind of productivity that also delivers better results is what digital transformation is all about, and that’s before you even delve into the even smarter features of today’s multi-function devices. For one thing, they’re all on the same network as your other devices. You can route a document sitting on your laptop while in a board meeting to a colleague on another floor—even another office location! And one of the reasons you don’t have to worry about running out of toner is because the printer will tell you well in advance when it’s going to run out.

If time is money, then reducing the time your team spends futzing around with printers and copiers is money saved, and the productivity gains translate into better profits.

This is all well and good, you say, but how do I make sure I have the right of fleet of multi-function printers to support my digital transformation?

Figure Out the Features You Need in a Multi-Function Printer

Cost-per-page is always the best metric when grading your print infrastructure. You want to print more while doing the least amount of work, whether it’s the steps your employees must take to scan, copy or print a document, or amount of effort needed to maintain the equipment.

In terms of features, however, you should look for a printer that is in fact multi-function—it can scan, print and copy, with all the variations those primary functions entail. A truly smart device will even refuse to complete a task if the user isn’t providing it with right inputs. It will warn you if you’re trying to scan the blank side of a document, for example, while at the same time offer output features that makes sure documents are in a print-ready format regardless of their source.

Smart, all-in-one printers are easily networked too. This enables people to print easily from any device and location—even a coffee shop down the street via their smartphone. They should also be easily able to scan a document on a multi-function device and route it to any destination, including their laptop or a network folder.

It’s not just your employees you want to think about either. Your IT team doesn’t want to get bogged down with printer maintenance and monitoring, so you want to make sure any multi-function printer isn’t prone to downtime and can go a long time without having the toner replaced. You also want to have the ability to audit your printing activities from a central location. And most importantly, a smart, multi-function printer should be easy to secure as with any other endpoint in your organization, and should come standard with connection monitoring, run-time intrusion detection, user authentication support, data encryption and document workflow security for privacy and compliance.

At first blush, your printing infrastructure may seem like a small part of your organization, but smart devices that boost productivity and enable security can go a long way in supporting your digital transformation efforts.

Learn more about how PrinterLogix mps360 can equip you with the smartest multi-function printers available so you can streamline workflows and boost overall productivity.