Konica Minolta Champions SMBs by Providing Tools to Compete

May 1, 2018

Small Business Record Growth Predicted

The news is positive for SMBs with the approach of National Small Business Month. Enthusiasm among small business owners is at an all-time high, and there is no doubt that SMBs are the cornerstone of the country’s economy.

 

The numbers tell it all. According to the SBA Office of Advocacy, small businesses make up 99.9 percent of U.S. employer firms. They supply 61.8 percent of net new private-sector jobs. And what’s really impressive is that SMBs employ almost 50 percent of the private-sector workforce and account for 47.8 percent of the private GDP.

Celebrated every May since 1963, National Small Business Month honors the nation’s 30 million SMBs and the people who run them. The Small Business Association (SBA) kicks off this year’s event with National Small Business Week from April 29 to May 5, combining live events in Washington, D.C. with a free, three-day virtual conference.

Konica Minolta is passionate in our support of small businesses. In fact, almost 60 percent of our clients are SMBs. We are acutely tuned in to their ever-evolving needs. We strive not only to meet their most vital challenges in today’s technology-driven marketplace, but we continue to develop innovative solutions and services to prepare them for whatever the future brings.

Helping SMBs Compete in a Complex Environment

We realize that for small business owners, competing or even coexisting in the highly technological world of power players can seem daunting. IT costs alone make it difficult for the SMBs to keep up. That’s why at Konica Minolta, we’re committed to developing intelligent tools to help keep SMBs on equal footing, without overextending personnel or other resources.

We’re currently in the process of rolling out a revolutionary portfolio of cost-effective solutions to create what we proudly call The Workplace of the Future™.

These solutions include ALICE (the interactive receptionist), Double 2 (the iPad-based tele-presence robot), Managed Voice, and other technological marvels, designed to boost productivity, collaboration and efficiency…and all within reach of SMBs.

The first offering from our new Workplace Hub Portfolio, Workplace Hub (Hub) will empower small businesses with its centralized and scalable IT ecosystem to orchestrate their physical and digital resources. Specifically, the Hub will provide 360-degree visibility of IT usage platforms across the user’s entire business. This forward-thinking platform reduces overall IT management and gives SMBs the ability to future-proof themselves.

More Support for SMBs

Konica Minolta’s print management services enable small business owners to identify and control printing costs without having to manage the print environment themselves. Our intelligent printers and scanners boast faster speeds and the latest technology to significantly increase efficiency and productivity.

Additionally, having acquired a majority stake in MOBOTIX, the maker of cutting-edge security surveillance systems, Konica Minolta is also able to provide SMBs with next-generation network security solutions.

Add other IT maintenance services from our All Covered division, consulting, and information management to the mix, and Konica Minolta is positioned to help SMBs meet nearly all of their major challenges, allowing them to continue to prove that they are indeed the backbone of the American economy.

Stacey Sujeebun
Marketing Communications Director - North America and Global Research and Development

Stacey Sujeebun is the Marketing Communications Director at Konica Minolta for North America and Global Research and Development. On joining the business almost 10 years ago, she was faced with the challenge of repositioning the organisation’s reputation to rival that of well-established IT companies, through brand extension. Following a lengthy transformative brand development programme, the Workplace Hub category was unveiled to the world’s press at the ‘Spotlight’ event in Berlin in March 2017. The brand and activation went on to win 13 awards globally. Stacey is responsible for consolidating Konica Minolta’s IT Services reputation by harnessing the organisation’s IT division, All Covered, with the goal of paving the way for Konica Minolta’s future IoT / AI business – currently under exploration by Research and Development. She has been named as a “2019 Young Influencer” within the Imaging Industry by The Cannata Report, NJBIZ’s ‘2020 40 Under 40,’ and as a ‘2021 Woman Influencer’ by The Cannata Report. Before joining Konica Minolta, Stacey worked as a consultant within brand communication and media agencies in London, providing advice on rebranding, repositioning and stakeholder engagement initiatives. She is also a CIM qualified marketing professional, with an MSc in Social Anthropology from University College London (UCL).