stepping into the limelight
Xerox returned to the limelight last week with what it billed as its "biggest product launch in its history" PHOTO: Jad Limcaco

Xerox released a new line of printers and devices on March 29, in what it billed as the "largest product launch in Xerox history." 

The launch may put to rest the questions and confusion about Xerox's fate following its split earlier this year. On Jan. 3, Xerox officially split the company in two, leaving behind its business services devision (now known as Conduent) and doubling down on its technology and hardware business. 

With Conduent focusing on the business side, Norwalk, Conn.-based Xerox was free to focus on developing shareholder value with new products. 

And last week we saw the first results, with the unveiling of 29 ConnectKey-enabled printers and multifunction devices with simple and secure on-the-go capabilities, cloud connectivity and access to productivity features and apps.

OK, printers are not going to shake up everyone’s world, but as long as paperless offices remain a dream, they're a reality. 

These printers are a far cry from the old ‘clunkers’ of the 1970s that spent more time with paper blockages than they did printing.

The new printers are a key part of enterprise digital workplaces, and in some cases the key part of digital processes.

Xerox: You Can Build a Smarter Printer

The new ConnectKey portfolio transforms traditional printing devices into smart, connected workplace assistants with personalized workflows, one-touch access to the cloud and multi-layered security features in addition to the old print, copy and fax.

The printers come in two different lines, designed to meet the demands of different workplaces: the Xerox VersaLink and Xerox AltaLink series.

The VersaLink devices are designed for small workgroups and distributed teams, and include 19 printers and multifunction printers (MFPs). The AltaLink series includes 10 MFPs designed for larger workgroups or print volume needs.

Xerox has also made the smart, connected workplace assistant available on all 29 machines through the touch-enabled tablet screen

As a standalone item, each printer is impressive. Together they show there’s still muscle under the Xerox hood. The company stated the new devices can streamline business processes, allows scanning and printing directly from your phone, integrate with cloud repositories including Dropbox, Office 365 and Google, offer customizable interfaces, all protected with the built-in security layer.

"This launch underscores our commitment to R&D, product delivery and channel support that will lead to the long-term success of our partners,” Mike Feldman, Xerox's president of North American operations, said in a statement.

This is the first launch since the split became official in January. Xerox has a lot to do after a couple of years in the doldrums. The new releases will be available in the second quarter and likely will be followed by more in the same vein later in the year.

Microsoft Offers Office 365 Compliance

Redmond, Wash.-based Microsoft released Office 365 Advanced Data Governance this week, which gives users new compliance capabilities along with a new policy management interface for Data Loss Protection (DLP).

The release included Office 365 Threat Intelligence, which provides:

  • Interactive tools to analyze threat levels
  • Real-time, customizable threat alert notifications
  • Assessment capabilities to analyze suspicious content
  • More extensive Management API that displays threat details

Threat Intelligence uses Microsoft Intelligent Security Graph, which uses the billions of data bytes from its data centers all over the world to analyze threats to widely-used Microsoft apps like Office clients, email, user authentications, signals as well as the Windows and Azure ecosystems.

The Graph gives up-to-date information when it detects malware inside organizations, as well as malware located outside the firewall. 

This is just the latest security update from Microsoft to ensure that Office 365 remains secure.

SpringCM Digs Deeper Into Public Sector

Dan Dal Degan, SpringCM’s CEO, told us he had major expansion plans in early March. This week we got a sense of what he was talking about.

The Chicago-based company announced a new integration with the Salesforce Government Cloud, offering government employees new ways to connect with the public, with the added benefit of giving SpringCM added traction in the public sector.

The new integration, available on the AppExchange, offers these agencies an easy way to upgrade outdated document management systems and processes in an effort to make public sector workers more effective.

SpringCM already has a strong record of working with the public sector by bringing document-centric processes to the cloud with clients including the US Department of Energy and the US Department of Agriculture.

The Government Cloud is an instance of Salesforce built specifically for government agencies. It is FedRAMP-compliant, a special level of security classification awarded to cloud-based products.

With the new integration, SpringCM can offer its cloud-based document management platform to public sector workers.

Its platform aims to make handling forms, correspondence, FOIA requests, grants, permits, contracts or any type of document process easier.

SpringCM is now in a position to help public bodies with digital transformation strategies, which couldn't have come at a better time. The recent IT Modernization bill requires government agencies to replace legacy IT systems and provides $3.1 billion in funding to do so. Let's see if SpringCM goes for it.

Content Panda Keeps an Eye on SharePoint

Security-minded businesses have many approaches to keeping on top of threats. One is monitoring activity, particularly for big apps or platforms like SharePoint.

The market is filled with apps offering to do just that right now. The latest is from Content Panda, which has just announced the general availability of Content Panda Analytics, its newest end-user monitoring for SharePoint.

Content Panda provides a single dashboard display of vital usage statistics which provide a dual purpose for companies: an easy method to note unusual activity and insight into usage — vital information for adoption efforts. 

“Successful SharePoint deployments need more than just a vision and a strategy. Content Panda Analytics takes SharePoint deployments one step further by giving companies the information necessary to measure, refine and iterate their rollouts to maximize the platform's business value,” Heather Newman, Co-Founder, Chief Marketing Officer and Chief Evangelist at Content Panda said in a statement.

The analytics tracks user activity and provides reports that compare organizations' data with other companies using SharePoint. Is this enough to get workers using SharePoint? On its own probably not, but understanding a problem is a first step to solving it.