Recap of IPMA Conference Sessions

With nearly 30 educational sessions taking place during the four-day span of last week's In-Plant Printing and Mailing Association (IPMA) conference, managers had a busy week indeed. To help catch you up on what you may have missed, here's a brief recap of some of the sessions that took place in Charleston, S.C. (Video interviews of many of these speakers are at www.InPlantGraphics.com under the video tab.)

• Dr. Jairy Hunter Jr., president of Charleston Southern University, discussed effective leadership skills. Visionary leaders, he said, are direction setters—mission oriented and focused; they are change agents, setting high expectations and thinking strategically; they act as a spokesperson, generating trust and developing consensus; and they act as a coach, helping others to achieve peak performance.
• To succeed in getting the equipment you need, Charlotte "Charlie" Holden, of the Houston Idepeendent School District suggested managers structure their proposal with the Bottom Line Up Front (BLUF). Your return on investment (ROI) and payback period must be in the first paragraph.
• The winner of IPMA's Promotional Excellence Award, University of Texas at Austin Document Solutions, explained why they market their in-plant internally. "To me it's an investment," remarked Director Richard Beto. Among other things, the shop has created vehicle wraps to distinguish its vehicles from others, and it holds classes, luncheons, barbecues and other social events to bring customers into the shop.
• Ricoh's Mike Loyd noted that the demand for color printing continues to climb, with studies showing it will grow exponentially in the next decade. "This is where you need to focus your effort," he said.
• Marianne Morrison, of InfoTrends, noted that personalizing printed pieces is no longer enough. Print needs to be married to social and mobile media. QR codes on printed pieces will drive engagement and interaction.
• Michael Luzzo, of Fidelity Investments, described how his team consolidated four printing operations into one, getting leaner in the process. He noted that the three most important metrics to focus on are the number of late jobs, turnaround time and process cycle efficiency.
• Xerox's Tricia Bhattacharya gave an entertaining and informative talk on how Ben Franklin's "13 Virtues" can be interpreted to help today's in-plants achieve success.
• Burr Millsap, associate vice president for Administrative Affairs at the University of Oklahoma (and IPMA President John Sarantakos' boss) stated that, by letting departments bypass their in-plant and shop around for deals, the institution sacrifices flexibility and control. "They support the institution's mission," he said of in-plants, and for this reason the competition should be unfair.
• Fresh from seeing his in-plant spared from the government's chopping block, Jean-Luc Devis, Washington State Printer, described how his in-plant saves the state money by offering managed print services for agencies. With up to 50 percent cost reductions possible, he called his a gold mine of savings.
• Kodak's Mark Egeling discussed variable data campaign planning and how to use marketing science and testing to get the best results.