Managed Print Services (MPS) are services offered by a third party to help manage a company’s document output requirements. This includes an assessment of needs along with an analysis to optimize the organization’s print process. MPS vendors also provide hardware, software, parts, supplies, and security measures to their clients.

Managing your document output needs often utilizes significant time and resources. As a result, many law offices are increasingly turning to MPS providers to assist them with the management of the high volume of documents processed by their firms daily. MPS providers can also help secure the highly sensitive information law offices frequently handle. That’s why so many firms find partnering with an MPS provider helps them to more productively–and safely–run their daily operations by optimizing their document output.

MPS Provides Oversight & Analytics

Documents are the heart of any law firm. Between communication, court documents, billing, contracts, depositions, and other important paper output items, it’s a lot of information to keep track of. Many firms don’t know how much printing is occurring within their office and have challenges with recordable billing. Not to mention, they spend an excess of hours trying to juggle the multiple vendors they partner with. Thankfully, Managed Print Services will effectively solve this problem on several levels. MPS:

  • Quantifies printing that should be billable to clients
  • Tracks all printing that takes place
  • Manages your entire document output in one singular place with one vendor
  • Ensures the firm complies with regulatory mandates
  • Helps firms meet their sustainability goals by eliminating excess equipment and waste
  • Improves upon and strengthens document security
  • Relieve burdens placed on in-house IT staff, enabling them to focus on other priorities

Furthermore, an MPS solution enables firms to automatically schedule reports, allowing them to manage costs and workflow. Analytics reports also help firms to generate accurate billing and clients can see exactly what they are being charged for because any services performed are clearly outlined.

MPS Secures Your Data & Maintains Compliance    

Compliance is a huge component of law firm operations and it’s one they cannot afford to ignore or push aside to deal with later. Security must be a priority because of the regulations associated with protecting sensitive or confidential information–the type of data law firms are routinely required to process and store. Managed Print Services enable them to:

  • Act in compliance with federal, state, and even global data privacy legislation
  • Monitor and provide authorization to users so that documents won’t be printed unless the authorized person is present to retrieve the copy immediately
  • Configure security protocols to restrict entry points for viruses, trojans, or other types of malware from printing devices
  • Prevent hackers from using law offices as “back doors” to access the valuable data of corporate clients
  • Generate reports on compliance-related data to help firms carefully monitor document output activity

Compliance and cybersecurity are important issues for all businesses, but especially ones that handle confidential data. A data breach can prove to be disastrous for any firm. Managed Print Services ensure compliance on all levels and makes document security is as strong as it can be.

MPS Reduces Costs

Partnering with a Managed Print Services provider helps law firms lower costs. This enables them to reallocate wasted money to other important aspects of their operations. The ways Managed Print Services can save money include:

  • Visibility. Firms gain a clear knowledge of what documents are printed and who initiates print requests. This means they see if any unnecessary documents or those unrelated to firm business are being printed by employees–ensuring wasteful prints are eliminated.
  • Transparency. Every print job is tracked, which means the customer billing process is both transparent and accurate. No more customer disputes overcharges or lost revenue due to legitimate prints not being accurately tracked. Everything is tracked and clearly documented for all parties to see.
  • Replaces inefficient machines. Many older machines not only use outdated parts (more expensive to replace), but they are prone to break down more often and negatively affect productivity. MPS ensures your printing equipment is up to date and running optimally.
  • Decreased downtime. In any law firm time is money. And when a court-ordered deadline is fast approaching, time is of the utmost importance. It’s critical for your print resources to be available at all times. A Managed Print Services engagement will ensure little to no downtime for your devices.
  • Reduced costs on supplies. The analytics and assessments performed through Managed Print Services can predict usage and allocate supplies accordingly. No more “use it or lose it” budgets or wasted supplies that go unused as consumables become outdated.
  • Consistent budgets. MPS enables technology upgrades to occur periodically, so there are no more worries about unexpected capital expenditures (e.g. with breakdowns of owned equipment) or the other types of costs involved with upgrading office technology equipment. Service charges are also bundled into one budget line.
  • A more organized workspace. Multifunction printers provide an “all-in-one” solution within one piece of equipment to manage all of your print functions. This enables firms to streamline printer placement and help them to reduce office clutter as they establish a more optimized workspace.
  • Networked printing. Remote and mobile printing eliminates the need for employees to walk back and forth throughout the day to handle their print, scan, copy, and fax needs. Everything is connected and tasks can be performed with minimal effort from the comfort of one’s workspace.

Overall, MPS can help law firms reduce costs in many ways. This provides them with a good ROI, which ultimately improves a firm’s productivity and profitability. 

Even as the world goes digital, it’s clear paper documents still play an important role in the legal world and will continue to do so for the long-term. Managed Print Services can ensure your firm’s printing is done as affordably, efficiently, and securely as possible.

To learn more about how your Ohio law firm can improve upon your document output processes, strengthen your data and document security, and ensure compliance to global, federal, and state data privacy laws, contact us today for an evaluation. We’ll show you how MPS can help you to save money while increasing your productivity and profitability levels.