Stargel Office Solutions In response to reader requests, ENX will periodically feature a dealership that has successfully transitioned into a full service MPS and Document Solution dealer. Stargel Office Solutions in Houston, Texas has a 23 year history of doing things right. I had the pleasure of speaking with T.J. DeBello, VP of Sales and Marketing, about Stargel’s transition into Managed Print Services and Document Solution sales. I was immediately taken in by DeBello’s warm southern accent and candid answers to each of my questions. T. J. made a believer out of me. Toshiba America has recognized the Stargel sales team for their top sales in the Southeastern United States for seven consecutive years. (from left )T.J. DeBello,Jack Stargel, David Redd Tell me about your MPS program. T.J DeBello: Stargel prefers to call it our Customer for Life Program. This better explains our concept. We do not force our customers to fit into any pre-designed program. It’s more than a CPC, MA, MPS, or billable calls. Our goal is to have each Customer for Life. Stargel has always been flexible with its programs, making sure the ultimate goal of doing what is best for the customer is achieved. We first expanded our traditional copier CPC program to include printers when one of our largest customers requested that we expand our business relationship. At the time, we were successfully servicing their large fleet of copiers. During a regularly scheduled meeting with their Stargel sales rep, the hospital administrator mentioned their displeasure with their current printer vendor. The administrator inquired if we could take over the service and supplies on their 600+ HP and Lexmark printer fleet. We said, ‘YES’. Then we figured out how we were going to do it. It took a couple years to get our program figured out. There is a lot more to MPS than meets the eye. It helped us because we started with a large customer that already knew and trusted us. They sold us. We just had to figure out how to make it happen. Along the way we slowly figured out how to identify appropriate customers, commission our sales reps, acquire and process appropriate meter clicks, figure out profitability, expand the servicing ability of our field techs, become authorized vendors on printers, start identifying, buying and using compatible parts and supplies, train our sales reps, and organize and bill meter clicks on over 1000 pieces of equipment on one invoice. Stargel Management Team It was a double-edged sword. We started with a satisfied customer before we understood exactly what we were selling. It took a couple of years to really get our Customer for Life program running smoothly. Five years later, it was the best thing Stargel could have done. By being open to new business opportunities, the entire Stargel staff worked together to create a new business model. Who within your company suffered the most during the transition? T. J.: The biggest strain was put on the service department. VP of Service David Redd and Stargel’s service department were able to step up to the plate and accomplish miracles on a daily basis. The Stargel Service Department has a history of service perfection, including receiving the prestigious Toshiba ProMaster Award for the past 10 years. Additionally, they have earned Toshiba’s Top Achievement for the Southeast Region for the last 7 years. David Redd is one of the few Dealer Authorized Training and Education instructors sanctioned by Toshiba to hold factory training classes at Stargel. This strong history of achievement was severely tested during the first few years. Somehow, no matter what new piece of equipment was included in our Customer for Life program, David and his group were able to rise to the occasion. Did you have to change OEM’s or add new vendors? T. J.: Stargel has a 20 year history as an authorized Toshiba dealer. Toshiba remains the backbone of the hardware offered by Stargel. Additionally, we use Toshiba’s Encompass™ Managed Print Services for tracking clicks, service contracts and consumable costs. The PageSmart and PrintSmart components create a single point of accountability for our customer’s service, supplies and billing. PageSmart offers a fixed cost-per-page payment plan and PrintSmart allows for purchasing toner cartridges as needed. Stargel upgraded their computer operating system to Digital Gateway’s e-automate in 2009. Together with Toshiba’s Encompass and a group of other software offerings, Stargel has created a world class automated office equipment dealership over the past five years. In each case, we added vendors to fulfill our customer’s need. Our customer’s requirements dictated what products we brought on board. During the past five years, Stargel became an Authorized Lexmark Business Solution Dealer and an Authorized HP Office Product Elite Business Partner to help provide the service, parts and supplies for our clients’ printers. Additionally we partnered with several software solution offerings including: • Captaris RightFax - a market leader in fax servers, document delivery and fax software • DocuWare -offers integrated document management, processes electronic documents safely, securely indexes and retrieves onward processed documents • eCopy - provides a standard document imaging platform securely transforming paper documents into business value • Print Audit - offers a comprehensive suite of print tracking products, including Analysis, Reduction and Recovery  • Prism Software - provides a suite of software for electronic and print document creation, personalization, workflow, routing, correction, modification, and archiving • Questys Solutions - provides content management, document management, and paperless office software How have you kept the required momentum of change from overwhelming your staff? T.J.: The gradual five year implementation allowed for easing in and out of programs and software applications that did or did not work. We were fortunate to have a secure, loyal customer base to help grow our program. We never put a minimum or maximum amount of clicks required to take part in our Customer for Life Program. Our average employee tenure is over 6 years. We have a Can Do work ethic. Each department greeted the challenges of change as an opportunity to do more for our customers. We gradually changed our sales compensation program to include annuity type monthly payments, built around the number of clicks generated. The sales rep, making the original sale, was incentivized to keep in close touch with each of his or her clients. This creates an entirely different mindset and work schedule for Stargel’s Document Management Consultants (DMC). The ongoing stream of commission, from every recorded click, is added to their base pay and commission earned on sold/leased equipment. The DMC no longer has to depend on 30 day wind-sprint selling. After 2 years of using the annuity based payments, most of our DMCs are receiving $3,000 - $4,000 a month in click based commission. This program helps lock in our selling reps from moving to another company that offers a high 6 month guarantee as a recruiting bonus. It also pays the DMC to keep close watch on previously sold clients. For the first time, the traditional copier sales rep has the opportunity to receive stability in their compensation plan. During the five year transition, we have had some real challenges. Every department has had to stretch their creativity. Admin, sales, service, training, purchasing, IT, warehousing, and management have all faced challenges and road blocks. Our single focus has always been on what we can do for our customers to better meet their needs. How has your Customer for Life Program been able to adjust to the current downturn in the economy? T. J.: In 2009, our equipment sales were down 24%. Stargel’s overall revenue and profitability were up. We continue to grow clicks and number of people employed. Stargel’s Customer for Life Program continues to expand. Stargel has a proud history of always fine tuning our processes. We will continue to listen to the needs of our customers. It seems to be working well for all of us. ENX Magazine thanks Jack Stargel, President and Owner of Stargel Office Products and Vice President of Sales and Marketing T. J. DeBello for sharing the Stargel business philosophy with our readers. More of the Stargel story can be viewed at www.stargel.com .