The evolution of printing with remote and hybrid working

How has print evolved with the rise of remote and hybrid working?

Remote and hybrid working has always been an option for businesses. However, it wasn ‘t clear how much of an option this was until the pandemic demanded it. Since 2020, we have lived in a much more flexible world where hybrid and remote working practices are the norm. Digital transformation has been used to drive this, and paperless environments are often championed as the goal. And yet, one survey by Adobe found that 30% of organisations had actually increased their print budget since the pandemic. So, how is printing evolving in remote and hybrid working?

The impact on employees

While more people have worked from home than ever in recent years, the need to print documents has not faded with that transition. It ‘s still the case that employees need printers – in fact, many found themselves printing longer documents while working from home. Over the past couple of years, we have seen individuals investing more in their own home office set-up and businesses looking for solutions that meet the need for reliable printing for remote and hybrid workers. In some situations, this has involved buying equipment for home workers, and in others, it has meant looking for print management solutions. Now that coworking spaces have reopened, this is also where many people go to print. As a result of the quest for more agility, seamless printing experiences are the priority for individuals today, with driverless and cloud printing adoption more in demand than ever before.

How printing is evolving in businesses

Budgets were blown during the pandemic as a chaotic approach to ensuring that employees still had access to resources like printing meant that overspending was common. Today, most businesses are looking for ways to streamline this – to provide effective, seamless printing options for remote and hybrid workers without blowing the budget. Given that workers today are often sending printing from multiple locations and multiple devices, network-agnostic printing is also becoming vital, and cloud printing is necessary to support the myriad of devices that are involved. Print management solutions that deliver options for any configuration of remote and hybrid working are increasingly popular, both in terms of efficiency and cost. Cloud printing solutions are increasingly becoming the norm – 69% of organisations already provide cloud printing workflows to staff – and it ‘s likely that businesses will invest in options that guarantee higher quality printing than can be achieved with a simple home printer. With this transition will also come the need for greater security. It will become the norm for businesses to look for solutions that deliver great printing and security, and device monitoring.

Print remains a vital resource for businesses, which isn ‘t going to change any time soon, despite the transition to remote working that many organisations have experienced. Instead, we will see companies look for smarter print management solutions that offer an evolution in service, security, monitoring and cost, such as CDP.

CDP is a leading provider of efficient, secure and cost-effective print management solutions with offices in Liverpool and London. If you’re looking for a more a better print management solution, CDP is your first choice.

Contact us today to speak to a member of our dedicated team; we’re happy to help you with any of your enquiries.