{"id":36453,"date":"2019-10-10T13:20:10","date_gmt":"2019-10-10T20:20:10","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.enxmag.com\/twii\/?p=36453"},"modified":"2019-10-10T13:20:14","modified_gmt":"2019-10-10T20:20:14","slug":"sharp-smart-office-tools-highlight-opening-day-of-dealer-meetings-in-las-vegas","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.enxmag.com\/twii\/feature-articles\/2019\/10\/sharp-smart-office-tools-highlight-opening-day-of-dealer-meetings-in-las-vegas\/","title":{"rendered":"Sharp Smart Office Tools Highlight Opening Day of Dealer Meetings in Las Vegas"},"content":{"rendered":"\n
\"\"
Smart office technologies were among the highlights at the product fair during Sharp’s dealer meetings in Las Vegas last week<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

Our friends at Wikipedia tell us that a synapse is a\nstructure that permits a neuron (or nerve cell) to pass an electrical or\nchemical signal to another neuron or to the target effector cell. Our friends\nat Sharp, meanwhile, tell us that its Synappx platform enhances a workspace\u2019s\nability to connect office technology and collaborative systems in response to\nthe growing movement toward mobile work. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

And while it might not work as quickly as a nerve impulse,\nthe Synappx can trigger all the operating platforms necessary to connect\non-site and remote individuals into a collaborative environment, a sometimes\nclunky process that takes, on average, 12 minutes to complete.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The Synappx and Windows collaboration display (WCD) were\narguably the cornerstone pieces of Sharp\u2019s dealer meeting, which took place\nOct. 2-3 at the Wynn Hotel in Las Vegas. More than 1,000 dealers, vendor\npartners, press and analysts converged on Sharp\u2019s showcase event, which carried\nthe theme \u201cOwn It.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"\"
John Sheehan, senior vice president of B2B sales for Sharp<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

The \u201cOwn It\u201d philosophy was driven home repeatedly during\nthe opening remarks of several Sharp executives. John Sheehan, the company\u2019s\nrecently-minted senior vice president of B2B channel sales, recalled how the\nmanufacturer talked about its plans for the smart office two years ago at the\ndealer meetings in Phoenix, and outlined its goals. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

At that time, Sharp pledged to listen to customers and its\ndealer council. The manufacturer went on trips and did a number of road shows.\nAnd despite an extremely tough market, Sharp enjoyed tremendous growth. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Now, with the Synappx and WCD at their disposal, Sheehan\ncharged dealers with the task of leveraging these technologies in a\nthree-pronged approach: own the technology transformation, own the growth from\nthat technology and own the customer relationship.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cThe technology transformation is approaching and everybody\nneeds to take part in it,\u201d Sheehan advised.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Changing Fortunes<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"\"
Mike Marusic, president and CEO, SIICA<\/figcaption><\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n\n

The past two years have offered contrasting financial\nfortunes for the venerable manufacturer. Mike Marusic, president and CEO of\nSharp Imaging and Information Company of America (SIICA), pointed out that at\nthe Phoenix meeting, the company had endured 10 consecutive quarters of\nrecording a loss. On this day, however, he was happy to report the company is\nriding an 11-quarter profitability streak. In fact, the last two years have\nbeen among Sharp\u2019s most profitable during the last 20 years.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

In 2018, while the market declined 2% in unit placements, Sharp\nexperienced 12% year-over-year growth. And through the first six months of\n2019, although the market declined 4 \u00bd%, Sharp was up 9%. A4 products\nexperienced a 66% boost, while the Sharp AQUOS BOARD reaped a 12% increase. In\nSeptember, the company notched 116% year-over-year growth.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cThe market is tough, but in any difficult time, there is great\nopportunity,\u201d Marusic observed.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The success Sharp has enjoyed is due in no small part to its\nrelationship with Foxconn Technology Group, a $150 billion Taiwan-based\nelectronics behemoth whose considerable relationships with many technology\nheavyweights, including Microsoft, helped facilitate the development of the\nWCD. It has helped foster and further Sharp\u2019s vision for the smart office and a\ngrowing circle of technology the manufacturer will continue to roll out to\ncustomers.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

And not that Sharp is disavowing itself from the MFP\ntheater; in fact, it touted along a wide variety of A3 and A4 machines in its\nproduct showcase. But Marusic wants dealers to think about the smart office big\npicture and the many ways in which dealers can engage their clients.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cThe value is not in the price of a click, but how you can\nown their business,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"\"
From left, Bob Madaio, Allison Holmes and Shane Coffey<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

Sharp made a concerted effort to bring in the perspectives\nof a wide variety of its executives. Bob Madaio, vice president of marketing,\nand Shane Coffey, vice president, product management, were joined by Allison\nHolmes, product management specialist, as they discussed the company\u2019s\nrecognitions by The Cannata Report (Best Copier Manufacturer, Best in Class)\nand Buyers Lab (2019 Copier MFP Line of the Year). They also discussed Sharp\u2019s\ncommitment to IT and security features.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"\"
Mehryn Corrigan, Sharp<\/figcaption><\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n\n

Mehryn Corrigan, associate director, Alliance Partner\nMarketing, talked about the company\u2019s burgeoning display platform. The market\ncertainly has a thirst for display; she quoted a statistic that 70% of meetings\nin the future will be held remotely. She added that 62% of businesses use\nthree-plus collaboration platforms, with a total of 8 billion online meeting\nminutes per day.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

That dovetailed into a discussion on the WCD, which had a\ncoming-out party of sorts this past June during InfoComm 2019. The WCD is a 70\u201d\ninteractive 4K display with built-in microphone, 4K camera and IoT sensor hub.\nBacked by the company\u2019s experience and success with the AQUOS BOARD, the WCD\nleverages Microsoft\u2019s 365, Teams and the Azure Cloud platform and provides\ninsight to meeting room conditions (such as temperature) and usage.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"\"
The latop line on display in the product showcase<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

Tony Titone, senior marketing manager at Sharp Electronics,\ngave an overview of the company\u2019s laptop and monitor offerings. Sharp acquired\nthe Dynabook line, a fixture in laptop development since 1985, from Toshiba.\nThe product showcase had a sampling of the four models exclusive to the dealer\nchannel, along with 18 standard models. On the monitor side, Toshiba has 22\u201d,\n24\u201d and 27\u201d models for diverse customer needs.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Phone Power<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Vince Janelli, associate vice president, software product\nmanagement, and Michelle Redmond, product manager\u2014applications and platform,\nhad the pleasure of introducing the Synappx platform for the smart office. It\nconsists of three apps: Meeting, Go and Workspaces. Meeting includes a calendar\nfunction and Alexa voice to pare down and simplify the traditional 12-minute\nprocess to start the meeting. Go enables users to scale content easily to a\nlarge display, scan documents and release print jobs from an MFP, completely\nfrom a mobile device. WorkSpaces allows for the tracking of meeting room\nutilization and gauges atmospheric conditions (such as temperature) and\nprovides actionable analytics.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cThe question is, how do we make it easier for people to use\nthe device from their mobile phone as they\u2019re moving around the office?\u201d\nJanelli told ENX Magazine<\/em>. \u201cThat was\nthe genesis behind it. The phone is the one piece of technology people always\nhave with them, so why not be able to share something directly on the board\nwithout having to log into something? From my phone, I can open a browser, go\nto a website, access my Dropbox, my OneDrive, whatever file and get my content.\nBut nobody wants to enter their password and credentials on the board. One,\nit\u2019s a little clumsy, and two, it\u2019s not the best kind of security. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"\"
Vince Janelli and Michelle Redmond discuss Synappx <\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

\u201cThat\u2019s what we\u2019re thinking, based on how customers use our\ndevices and the feedback that we\u2019re getting. How do we make it easy for users\nto work with them? The same thing goes with the printer; it\u2019s about moving\nthrough the office and what I can do with my mobile phone. Why can\u2019t I release\na job, why do I have to log in at the device? We\u2019re making it easier to do\nthings both for the user and the service provider.\u201d <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Users should not be focused on the mechanics of the meeting,\nhe added, but rather the substance of the collaboration. \u201cThe technology should\nnot get in the way of the things I want to do,\u201d Janelli remarked. \u201cAnd we need\nto offer different modalities, different ways for people to interact with our\ntechnology. You can do it manually, from the UI of the device\/copier, you can\ndo it from your mobile phone. You can also do it using voice. So there\u2019s\nsomething in there for everybody.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"\"
The Space Cowboy himself, Steve Miller, performed in concert at the Wynn Hotel<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

While it will take a while to get a broader perspective on\nhow the platform will be received, Janelli noted that customers have shown\nstrong interest in the early stages of the release. \u201cThere\u2019s a lot of\nexcitement about it and dealers are really spending the time here at the\nproduct fair as well as in the seminars to really understand how they can\ninternalize this into their own selling process,\u201d he said. \u201cThe dealers see\nthis as a logical next step to adding value to the spaces that they\u2019re already\nin.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Back to the Future:<\/strong> Another eye-grabber in the product showcase was the Sharp See-Through Display. It is truly the essence of WYSIWYG technology; when inactive, the display is essentially a clear window into a meeting room. When activated, the display flashed various images. At first blush, the display looks like an even better fit for a retailer\u2019s window, such as a mall store. It will carry a price tag of roughly $1,000.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Next week:<\/strong> More on day two of the Sharp dealer meeting.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Our friends at Wikipedia tell us that a synapse is a structure that permits a neuron (or nerve cell) to pass an electrical or chemical signal to another neuron or to the target effector cell. Our friends at Sharp, meanwhile, tell us that its Synappx platform enhances a workspace\u2019s ability to connect office technology and collaborative systems in response to the growing movement toward mobile work. And while it might not work as quickly as a nerve impulse, the Synappx can trigger all the operating platforms necessary to connect on-site and remote individuals into a collaborative environment, a sometimes clunky process that takes, on average, 12 minutes to complete. The Synappx and Windows collaboration display (WCD) were arguably the cornerstone pieces of Sharp\u2019s dealer meeting, which took place Oct. 2-3 at the Wynn Hotel in Las Vegas. More than 1,000 dealers, vendor partners, press and analysts converged on Sharp\u2019s showcase event, which carried the theme \u201cOwn It.\u201d The \u201cOwn It\u201d philosophy was driven home repeatedly during the opening remarks of several Sharp executives. John Sheehan, the company\u2019s recently-minted senior vice president of B2B channel sales, recalled how the manufacturer talked about its plans for the smart office two years ago at the dealer meetings in Phoenix, and outlined its goals. At that time, Sharp pledged to listen to customers and its dealer council. The manufacturer went on trips and did a number of road shows. And despite an extremely tough market, Sharp enjoyed tremendous growth. Now, with the Synappx and WCD at their disposal, Sheehan charged dealers with the task of leveraging these technologies in a three-pronged approach: own the technology transformation, own the growth from that technology and own the customer relationship. \u201cThe technology transformation is approaching and everybody needs to take part in it,\u201d Sheehan advised. Changing Fortunes The past two years have offered contrasting financial fortunes for the venerable manufacturer. Mike Marusic, president and CEO of Sharp Imaging and Information Company of America (SIICA), pointed out that at the Phoenix meeting, the company had endured 10 consecutive quarters of recording a loss. On this day, however, he was happy to report the company is riding an 11-quarter profitability streak. In fact, the last two years have been among Sharp\u2019s most profitable during the last 20 years. In 2018, while the market declined 2% in unit placements, Sharp experienced 12% year-over-year growth. And through the first six months of 2019, although the market declined 4 \u00bd%, Sharp was up 9%. A4 products experienced a 66% boost, while the Sharp AQUOS BOARD reaped a 12% increase. In September, the company notched 116% year-over-year growth. \u201cThe market is tough, but in any difficult time, there is great opportunity,\u201d Marusic observed. The success Sharp has enjoyed is due in no small part to its relationship with Foxconn Technology Group, a $150 billion Taiwan-based electronics behemoth whose considerable relationships with many technology heavyweights, including Microsoft, helped facilitate the development of the WCD. It has helped foster and further Sharp\u2019s vision for the smart office and a growing circle of technology the manufacturer will continue to roll out to customers. And not that Sharp is disavowing itself from the MFP theater; in fact, it touted along a wide variety of A3 and A4 machines in its product showcase. But Marusic wants dealers to think about the smart office big picture and the many ways in which dealers can engage their clients. \u201cThe value is not in the price of a click, but how you can own their business,\u201d he said. Sharp made a concerted effort to bring in the perspectives of a wide variety of its executives. Bob Madaio, vice president of marketing, and Shane Coffey, vice president, product management, were joined by Allison Holmes, product management specialist, as they discussed the company\u2019s recognitions by The Cannata Report (Best Copier Manufacturer, Best in Class) and Buyers Lab (2019 Copier MFP Line of the Year). They also discussed Sharp\u2019s commitment to IT and security features. Mehryn Corrigan, associate director, Alliance Partner Marketing, talked about the company\u2019s burgeoning display platform. The market certainly has a thirst for display; she quoted a statistic that 70% of meetings in the future will be held remotely. She added that 62% of businesses use three-plus collaboration platforms, with a total of 8 billion online meeting minutes per day. That dovetailed into a discussion on the WCD, which had a coming-out party of sorts this past June during InfoComm 2019. The WCD is a 70\u201d interactive 4K display with built-in microphone, 4K camera and IoT sensor hub. Backed by the company\u2019s experience and success with the AQUOS BOARD, the WCD leverages Microsoft\u2019s 365, Teams and the Azure Cloud platform and provides insight to meeting room conditions (such as temperature) and usage. Tony Titone, senior marketing manager at Sharp Electronics, gave an overview of the company\u2019s laptop and monitor offerings. Sharp acquired the Dynabook line, a fixture in laptop development since 1985, from Toshiba. The product showcase had a sampling of the four models exclusive to the dealer channel, along with 18 standard models. On the monitor side, Toshiba has 22\u201d, 24\u201d and 27\u201d models for diverse customer needs. Phone Power Vince Janelli, associate vice president, software product management, and Michelle Redmond, product manager\u2014applications and platform, had the pleasure of introducing the Synappx platform for the smart office. It consists of three apps: Meeting, Go and Workspaces. Meeting includes a calendar function and Alexa voice to pare down and simplify the traditional 12-minute process to start the meeting. Go enables users to scale content easily to a large display, scan documents and release print jobs from an MFP, completely from a mobile device. WorkSpaces allows for the tracking of meeting room utilization and gauges atmospheric conditions (such as temperature) and provides actionable analytics. \u201cThe question is, how do we make it easier for people to use the device from their mobile phone as they\u2019re moving around the office?\u201d Janelli told ENX Magazine. \u201cThat was the genesis behind it. The phone is […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":166,"featured_media":36454,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":[],"categories":[1650,82],"tags":[333,1975],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.enxmag.com\/twii\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/36453"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.enxmag.com\/twii\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.enxmag.com\/twii\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.enxmag.com\/twii\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/166"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.enxmag.com\/twii\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=36453"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/www.enxmag.com\/twii\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/36453\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":36465,"href":"https:\/\/www.enxmag.com\/twii\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/36453\/revisions\/36465"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.enxmag.com\/twii\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/36454"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.enxmag.com\/twii\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=36453"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.enxmag.com\/twii\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=36453"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.enxmag.com\/twii\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=36453"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}