01732 759725 46 Q: How do you see the print and IT reseller sector evolving over the next five years – any disruptors or opportunities on your radar? A: The sector will continue to consolidate, and we’ll see a shift towards more service-led, subscription-based models. Print-as-a-service is a good example – bundling hardware, software, consumables, analytics, and support into a single, outcome-focused offering. At the same time, AI, security, and sustainability will increasingly be treated as inter-connected priorities rather than standalone initiatives. The opportunity lies with resellers who can position themselves as strategic advisors, helping customers navigate complexity, build resilience, and link technology decisions directly to business performance. Q: What advice would you give a young person starting a career in the industry? A: Be curious and think beyond traditional job titles. The print and IT sector is evolving rapidly, and the most successful people are those who understand how technology, data, sustainability, and customer experience intersect. Don’t view print as a legacy industry, it’s a platform for innovation when combined with automation, software, and services. Building strong relationships, being open to continuous learning, and understanding the commercial realities of customers’ businesses will set you apart far more than technical knowledge alone. Q: What excites you most about the future? A: What excites me most is the shift in how our industry is perceived and how we can shape that narrative. We’re moving away from conversations about hardware volumes and towards discussions at board level about growth, resilience, and long-term value. Print’s role is becoming clearer: trusted, effective, and increasingly powerful when integrated with digital. Being part of an organisation like Ricoh, which can bring together print, IT, automation, security, and sustainability into cohesive solutions, puts us in a strong position to help partners thrive in what’s next. where we co-design solutions with partners based on their specific challenges and growth ambitions. That approach takes more time and investment upfront, but it positions us as a genuine extension of our customers’ businesses. Over the long-term, that level of trust, alignment, and shared accountability will be far more valuable than chasing quick wins. Q: What role do partnerships and collaboration play in driving innovation and growth in your sector? A: Partnerships are fundamental. Innovation in print no longer happens in isolation; it’s shaped by real-world usage, evolving customer expectations, and increasingly complex operating environments. The most effective solutions emerge when suppliers and partners share insight openly, whether that’s market intelligence, performance data, or direct feedback from the shop floor. Collaboration allows us to prototype, refine, and scale ideas that genuinely work in practice, not just in theory. It’s also how we ensure innovation stays commercially relevant, sustainable, and aligned with long-term business outcomes. Q: What do you see as the key challenges or pain points businesses are facing in today’s hybrid working model and how can you help your partners/customers to address these? A: Hybrid working has amplified several long-standing challenges, such as, fragmented workflows, inconsistent security standards, and a lack of visibility over how information moves through an organisation. Print, digital, and IT systems are often still managed separately, which creates inefficiencies and risk. Our role is to help partners bring those elements together using automation, cloud-native platforms, and secure integrations to simplify document processes, protect data, and turn information into something actionable. When done well, this reduces friction for employees while improving control and resilience for the business. Q: What’s currently having the greatest impact on your business? A: Right now, the biggest impact is coming from a convergence of pressures rather than a single factor. Rising operational costs, heightened expectations around sustainability, and the accelerating pace of automation are all reshaping how our partners think about investment and growth. At the same time, we’re seeing a trend towards customers looking for clearer proof of value, particularly when it comes to print’s role alongside digital. This will push the industry to focus less on individual products and more on how we help partners build resilient, future-ready businesses through smarter workflows, reduced manual intervention, and stronger data-driven decision-making. Q: What’s one strategic decision your business made recently that you believe will pay off long-term? A: A key strategic shift has been our decision to double down on long-term partnership over short-term sales. At Ricoh, we’ve always believed in deeper collaboration over transactional engagement and forming a partnership Rowan Jeffreys-Hoar, Director of Partner Channel, Ricoh UK Industry insight ONE-TO-ONE Rowan Jeffreys-Hoar
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