Ricoh's hands-free collaboration tool for its field technicians earns company a spot on IDG's CIO 100 List for 2019

MALVERN, Pa., May 2, 2019 /PRNewswire/ -- IDG's CIO has announced Ricoh USA, Inc. as a recipient of a 2019 CIO 100 award for Smart Hands, a hands-free way for field technicians to connect directly, immediately with cloud-hosted knowledge repositories and subject matter experts (SMEs), helping to improve first-time fix rate and customer satisfaction. The 32nd annual award program recognizes organizations around the world that exemplify the highest level of operational and strategic excellence in information technology (IT).

"Across the business landscape, companies everywhere recognize the vital role that an innovative, value-driven approach to information technology plays in their success," said Maryfran Johnson, Executive Director, CIO Programs, IDG. "This year's CIO 100 winning companies are inspiring examples of how IT leadership, business collaboration and digital transformation will drive future growth."

Smart Hands enables Ricoh's 4,500 field technicians to have instant, hands-free contact with the company's resources, including the product knowledgebase and live support from SMEs. Ricoh technicians are trained across all of the company's 300-plus product lines and have certifications including A+, Net+, MCSE, Security+, Mobility+ and ITIL. Keeping that volume of information straight can be difficult, especially at the level of depth and breadth required for troubleshooting and repair. Smart Hands places the information within easy reach, while keeping technicians' hands free, so collaboration and research can continue in parallel with repair. A voice-controlled, head-mounted device allows technicians to both provide a live feed of what they see and access information or collaborate in real time. By enhancing collaboration in this way, Ricoh is able to promote technology uptime and decrease the need for multiple site visits, driving down median time to repair (MTTR) and driving up first-time fix rate (FTFR), both of which contribute to customer productivity and satisfaction.

"Smart Hands is a natural evolution of Ricoh's strong focus on customer outcomes, including uptime, productivity and service satisfaction," said Kris Rao, Vice President and Head of Information Technology, Ricoh USA, Inc. "As part of Ricoh's business transformation, we have emphasized empowering digital workplaces, which means connecting people to information faster and more conveniently than ever before. We help customers improve employee productivity, grow their business effectiveness and efficiency, and better serve their own customers. Businesses seek more advanced, cost-efficient delivery models and Smart Hands is just that. It empowers Ricoh's technical services to 'practice what they preach,' by creating a shared knowledge platform that enables an immediate access to the information required to solve complex customer issues."

Executives from the winning companies will be recognized at The CIO 100 Symposium & Awards Ceremony, to be held Wednesday evening, August 21, at the Broadmoor Resort in Colorado Springs, Colorado.

To learn more about Ricoh, visit Ricoh's website or follow the company's social media channels on Twitter, Facebook and LinkedIn. 

About the CIO 100 AwardsThe annual CIO 100 Awards celebrate 100 organizations and the teams within them that are using IT in innovative ways to deliver business value, whether by creating competitive advantage, optimizing business processes, enabling growth or improving relationships with customers. The award is an acknowledged mark of enterprise excellence. Recipients are selected through a three-step process. First, companies fill out an online application form detailing an innovative IT and business initiative. Next, a team of external judges (many of them former CIOs) reviews the applications in depth, looking for leading-edge IT practices and measurable results. Finally, CIO editors review the judges' recommendations and select the final 100.

Coverage of the 2019 CIO 100 Awards will be available online at CIO.com in August 2019 and in the summer issue of CIO's digital magazine.

About CIOCIO focuses on attracting the highest concentration of enterprise CIOs and business technology executives with unparalleled peer insight and expertise on business strategy, innovation, and leadership. As organizations grow with digital transformation, CIO provides its readers with key insights on career development, including certifications, hiring practices and skills development. The award-winning CIO portfolio — CIO.com, CIO Events, CIO Strategic Marketing Services, CIO Forum on LinkedIn, CIO Executive Council and CIO primary research — provides business technology leaders with analysis and insight on information technology trends and a keen understanding of IT's role in achieving business goals. CIO is published by IDG Communications, Inc. Company information is available at www.idg.com.

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| About Ricoh |

Ricoh is empowering digital workplaces using innovative technologies and services enabling individuals to work smarter. For more than 80 years, Ricoh has been driving innovation and is a leading provider of document management solutions, IT services, commercial and industrial printing, digital cameras, and industrial systems.

Headquartered in Tokyo, Ricoh Group operates in approximately 200 countries and regions. In the financial year ended March 2018, Ricoh Group had worldwide sales of 2,063 billion yen (approx. 19.4 billion USD).

For further information, please visit www.ricoh.com.

© 2019 Ricoh USA, Inc. All rights reserved. All referenced product names arethe trademarks of their respective companies.

Contact:John GrecoRicoh USA, Inc.(973) 882-2023john.greco@ricoh-usa.com

Tracey SheehyBreakaway Communications for Ricoh(212) 616-6003tsheehy@breakawaycom.com

SOURCE Ricoh USA, Inc.