MALVERN, Pa.--April 20, 2005-- IKON Office Solutions Leaders from Phoenix International and Missouri State Teachers Association share insights Event part of national executive seminar series on driving document efficiency at work IKON Office Solutions, the world's largest independent channel for document management systems and services, today hosted an executive seminar in its national IKON Insight Series "Beyond Convergence: Delivering Operational Success Through Document Management" in St. Louis, Mo. The event featured insights from executives with Phoenix International and the Missouri State Teachers Association on how they partnered with IKON to assess their document workflow, and design and implement custom document management systems to meet business objectives for increasing productivity and lowering costs. Emil Sanchez, vice president of finance for Phoenix International, one of the largest privately-owned, full-service international freight forwarders and customs brokers headquartered in North America, discussed the implementation of an IKON solution that leveraged digital multifunction equipment and the latest electronic forms software--both part of IKON's best-in-class solutions portfolio. Says Sanchez, "IKON worked with us to assess our document needs before recommending any equipment or software. Once we both had an understanding of our current document workflow and our future-state goals, IKON designed and implemented an electronic document management solution that not only helped increase internal efficiency and lower costs, but also gave us a competitive edge in our market moving forward." Picking up on the efficiency theme, Bruce Moe, associate executive director of the Missouri State Teachers Association, described his organization's document workflow. IKON worked with Moe and his team to assess the association's current document workflow and business needs, and designed a more efficient document workflow. The association elected to have IKON implement and manage the solution through its on-site managed services team, which is part of IKON Enterprise Services--IKON's global services organization. As Moe explains, "Once we had a thorough understanding of our current document workflow and our needs as an organization, we worked with IKON to map out a more efficient workflow. Since our core competency is supporting the educational professionals of Missouri, we decided to partner with IKON to run our new document workflow, which included management of our central reprographics department, as well as fulfillment services, mail services, fleet management and production of marketing materials. As a result, document management is far more efficient, and we are able to focus on our mission of advocating for Missouri's teachers and support personnel." In addition to the insights shared by Sanchez and Moe, attendees of the IKON Insight Series event heard from IDC research manager Riley McNulty, and IKON's national director of consulting practices, Bill Blake, on the following: How to examine and achieve efficiency at every stage of the document management lifecycle, from input and capture to workflow and retention; How to assess and leverage digital technology to reduce document costs, enhance production and distribution, and streamline file storage; and How to evaluate your current printing environment and strategically choose the most effective blend of on- and off-site managed services to maximize efficiency. "Document management represents an area of tremendous opportunity for organizations of all sizes," said Kevin Simmons, Missouri/Illinois area vice president, IKON Office Solutions. "At IKON, we work with customers to assess their document workflow and business needs before recommending a solution. We're proud of our relationships with customers like Phoenix International and the Missouri State Teachers Association. By partnering with us to streamline document workflow, these organizations are able to sharpen their focus on their core business."