Scottish Enterprise Awards 2019

8 | SME NEWS - Scottish Enterprise Awards 2019 Despite a global downturn in the uptake of printing services, Workflo Solutions has bucked the trend. Remaining consistently profitable has involved a continual process of adaptation and evolution to match market demands and rewarded the company greatly. We caught up with Michael Field to find out more about how he and his company did it. Established in 2007, Workflo Solutions has grown considerably from its West Lothian roots. Still fiercely loyal to its Scottish origins, Workflo Solutions has gone from strength to strength and is now a leading supplier of document solutions including managed print services, multi-functional photocopy, print and scan technology and electronic management software. Founder and Managing Director, Michael Field has seen it through the last twelve years of business, and the many changes that have happened since its inception. Creating a first-class printing company is one thing, but Michael Field just wasn’t satisfied with that. ‘The managed print market is continually evolving, keeping up with trends which have occurred since the infancy of the printing industry,’ he tells us. In this industry which is constantly changing, we asked how Michael what is at the centre of his business. ‘The company was founded with clear principles to have a strong focus on quality of service and to operate ethically in all transactions,’ he explains. ‘Despite a global downturn in the uptake of printing services, Workflo Solutions has remained consistently profitable. It has also continued to evolve, diversifying its product portfolio to include IT services and cloud Best Print, Copy & Scanning Technology Company 2019 Workflo Solutions: computing.’ This diversification in the direction of Digitalisation has proven to be a positive move for the company. Many businesses have opted to use intelligent document storage strategies to lower their printing outgoings and environmental impact while increasing productivity. ‘Workflo Solutions has embraced these trends – making a significant investment into its IT service division, while also further promoting its document management capabilities,’ says Michael proudly. ‘We employ a team of experts specialising in both areas, offering advice to companies around different document management strategies and helping them to implement these.’ Certainly, the acquisition of companies specialising in IT, such as Pyramid IT in Livingston reflects the growing demand for this sort of service. ‘This year we established a new IT division which specialises in managed IT services and cloud computing, opening up an entirely new sales channel for the company, for both new clients and its existing relationships.’ This new sales channel is the first step for a company that continues to grow and expand. ‘Many others in this market sector are standing still and not adapting to the ever evolving ever changing marketplace,’ says Michael. It’s certainly not an accusation you could level at Workflo Solutions which is looking at competitors in both the managed print and IT sectors. ‘This is an extremely ambitious company, targeting growth of £5m and is actively considering a number of acquisitions involving its competitors – which would make the company one of the biggest players within the industry in Scotland,’ Michael continues. ‘I believe we are unique in this space. We are ambitious and hungry. Many companies in this industry rest on their laurels. We don’t.’ It’s not just the growing use of IT services that has driven Workflo Solutions forward, but the increasing of revenue through the implementation of electronic document management software to business across all verticals. This will integrate both paper-based and digital data and processes allowing simple and fast retrieval of data. It’s a synergetic approach that relies on developing the already established print business alongside the rapidly developing IT side. This advancement will allow Workflo Solutions to provide services to help businesses to set up the workplace of the future. ‘Our future plans are about expansion, adapting new cogent technologies which benefit our clients as they come on stream, growth by acquisition and where we identify a strong reason for doing so, breaking into new territories.’ Not content to rest on their laurels, it can be no surprise that Workflo Solutions has grown rapidly in the past 12 years. Under the dutiful stewardship of Michael Field, the business has taken the opportunity to go from strength to strength in the industry, expanding into new markets that complement its own. Despite the significant growth of the business, Michael is still loyal to his roots. ‘It is important that we continue to maintain our headquarters in Scotland, yet work to identify new opportunities across the UK,’ he tells us. ‘Scotland is a glorious country from where to establish a business.’ It’s certainly hard to argue with that when you look at his enviable success. Contact: Michael Field Company: Workflo Solutions Website: www.workflo-solutions.co.uk Telephone: 0333 300 3250