As the second quarter of 2025 approaches, leaders from five channel partners discussed software innovations and related technology trends that they think should be on dealers’ radar. Members of this quintet cited application programming interfaces (APIs) that integrate business process automation and tighter security for remote maintenance, better benchmarking data, and more e-commerce storefronts for office technology dealerships.
“How can we get better as a channel?” asked Sarah Henderson, who joined MPS Monitor and NEXERA in mid-2024 as part of Valsoft’s joint venture. That collaboration intends to merge remote management and service analytics under unified leadership, with Henderson serving as regional director for North America.
The perennial challenge remains identifying where dealers struggle, according to Henderson, and then helping them make better data-driven decisions. To that end, the 19-year channel veteran views high-level benchmark comparisons as a must-have.
Predictive InSight’s Ed McLaughlin discussed data modeling at the 2025 Executive Connection Summit (ECS) in January, inquiring as to what type of data dealers are using. “Many still use outdated financial modeling, so it’s a valid question,” observed Henderson, who heard McLaughlin’s presentation at ECS. At the summit, NEXERA revealed upgrades to its Executive Insight Dashboard, which is powered by data from BEI Networks.
These dashboard enhancements enable businesses to measure their performance against top dealers globally. Henderson called the upgrade a huge refresh that offers dealers seamless opportunities to visualize and evaluate excellence through intuitive monthly reports and real-time views. “Our new benchmarking capabilities empower dealerships to understand how their organizations are performing in key service areas compared to industry leaders,” she said. “NEXERA’s use of BEI data allows us to provide comprehensive, data-driven insights through tools like WorldStats, helping executives drive improvement and profitability.”
With the integration of global benchmarking, the Executive Insight Dashboard allows dealers to review and act on at least nine key performance indicators, including call-back percentage and overstock parts. “Our team of analysts works closely with dealers to identify areas of inefficiency and prioritize changes that will have the greatest impact on profitability,” Henderson noted. To showcase this upgrade, NEXERA offers prospective dealers complimentary performance audits that provide a hands-on view of live data and actionable strategies for improving business performance.
Recently, NEXERA branched out and launched the Sales Atlas software platform in late 2024. The new automated territory mapping solution incorporates data from BTA’s Business Equipment Quota Index (BEQI), which provides market potential (product demand) indices for the U.S. market. “Our model enhances both territory integrity and performance effectiveness,” explained Henderson.
Dealers can map off the right stat and not use demand time from the machines in the field. The BEQI database contains 20,000 businesses. Dealers can sort data geographically by criteria such as vertical markets and number of employees and even drill down to the ZIP code level. “It’s all about evaluating sales demand and penetrating markets,” emphasized Henderson.
Connecting and integrating
Integration remains a key focus for ECI Software Solutions, Inc., which concentrates on automation between its product lines and “looking for every opportunity to remove low-level tasks,” stressed Product Marketing Manager Susan Scurry. The firm’s e-automate enterprise resource planning (ERP) software sits at the heart of its ecosystem. “The more manual labor and double entries that software can help to prevent means dealer partners can spend their time on more strategic challenges like diversifying their businesses and discovering new revenue streams,” she said.
According to Scurry, having a tight connection between ERP and device management is at the core of automating managed print services (MPS). To help support MPS activities, ECI delivers more capabilities focusing on integrating e-automate and its Printanista Hub.
“Most dealers already use Printanista’s meter data for automating billing, but with the software also monitoring device conditions, errors, or duty cycles, other automated processes can also be executed,” noted Scurry. For example, auto-orders for supplies/toner can be generated in e-automate using supply status data from Printanista, and certain device conditions can even automatically generate service tickets. “This helps office equipment dealers focus on delivering customer service rather than task completion and repetitive data entry,” Scurry said.
“Our dealers tell us that growth is a top priority,” added Laryssa Alexander, president, field service division, ECI Software Solutions. “By automating tasks in e-automate and expanding their offerings with an integrated e-commerce platform like EvolutionX, our dealers are unlocking new revenue while delivering a better customer experience.”
Sometimes, delivering exceptional service means not rolling a truck, which is where more integration with Printanista comes into play. Its Remote Device Link [RDL] capability offers secure connection to a device’s web interface. “With our integrated solutions, service technicians can use the RDL feature to diagnose issues or adjust device configurations without making site visits,” said Scurry.
Better remote security is a top priority for other service and solution providers, too, including Predictive InSight LLC, which provides prognostic analytics to copier service organizations. Predictive InSight distributes the EKM Global Insight MPS software, which now boasts more than 1,000 resellers and two million devices worldwide.
“We are on EKM’s Product Review Board and actually help with program design and engineering,” said McLaughlin. “The biggest enhancement made in 2024 was plugging security issues for remote maintenance.” ISO certification was achieved in late January, he reported, and SOC 2 (Security Operation Center) certification is expected around press time.
Predictive InSight also partners with MPS Monitor, the cloud solution that thousands of dealers in more than 60 countries use to manage more than one million printing devices. Another recent upgrade is the addition of API integration for public access via PIP, ECI’s special portal software. “Using e-automate, dealers now can more easily enter orders and track shipping,” reported McLaughlin.
Meanwhile, Access Control Devices, Inc. (ACDI) now offers KPAX Liberty, which allows for simplified implementation and maintenance of agents in poorly adapted client environments. The stand-alone boxes reduce the time service techs spend managing collection agents. “Those KPAX Liberty boxes are awesome,” said Andrew Butts, a service operations specialist for Atlanta-area dealer Document Strategies Inc. “The ability to configure them via a cell phone and not have to touch a client’s PC is impressive.”
Perhaps best known within the partner channel as the largest distributor of PaperCut print-management software, ACDI began distributing KPAX in 2020. Designed for multi-brand office printing and copying hardware, the centralized fleet-management solution was developed by French firm Kpax Manage.
KPAX optimizes the management of MPS programs to reduce fleet operating costs, improve service quality, and develop new revenue opportunities. From a single, unique interface, users can access MFP information regardless of the number of sites, customers, or machines.
ACDI rang in 2025 by rolling out EZ Meter as part of its integrated product portfolio. Developed by the Lioce Group, the software solution allows users to collect fleet-management data, including supplies and print counts, from USB devices (without Wi-Fi connections) and send it to data collection software such as KPAX. This addition “provides resellers [with] a powerful new solution that, for the first time, allows USB-connected printers and MFPs to be discovered and proactively managed, regardless of the number of sites, the number of customers, or the number of machines,” noted David Brown, senior product manager at ACDI.
User input
In 2024, ECI added an Equipment Supplies Details console, which brings all equipment information from both e-automate and Printanista into a single interface in response to users who were finding themselves switching between applications. It includes live device supply info, supply order history, and inventory availability; a dealer can find everything they need to send appropriate supplies to a customer site all in one place.
ECI offers additional e-automate integrations that help improve dealer operations. To enhance the service-call experience when trucks are required, MobileTech is a solution that provides a dispatching application for scheduling, routing, and managing service technicians plus a mobile app for field service techs. “All service ticket updates are available to everyone in real time,” Scurry noted. “We understand that it takes a lot [of time and money] for dealers to get field techs up and trained. Anything we can do to aide in that process and strengthen technician retention is a win-win.”
More Sales Connections
Lease portfolio synchronization was a main goal in 2024 for business workflow automation software developer SalesChain LLC, which is celebrating its 23rd anniversary. Built specifically for the office technology industry, its full suite of tools also “are more integrated than ever before,” noted Matt Szczygiel, chief marketing officer. “We choose function over form, so our user interfaces may not necessarily be the ‘sexiest,’” he acknowledged, stressing that dealer owners and managers know there’s value in the details. “We drill down and communicate at the granular level.”
Connectivity is king. From dealer sales to back-office delivery to upper management, data is leveraged at all levels for tasks involving customer relationship management, forecasting, reporting/charting, and deal documentation. “We are excited to talk about our leasing integration,” Szczygiel continued, which the SalesChain team has been developing for the past year. “We’ve worked with leasing companies to build APIs central to facilitating more robust portfolio management for dealers,” he noted, adding that the firm has transformed from what it was back in 2020. “We’ve seen 25% year-over-year growth for the past two [fiscal] years.”
Enhancing cross-selling capabilities is another major focus. From IT and security services to audiovisual, mailing, and water products, SalesChain integrated its messaging system in 2024 to include dedicated fields for dealer reps. There’s even a field for managerial roll-up bonusing. For marketing services, SalesChain has bolstered its partnership with Evolved Office, whose platform focuses on the office technology dealer channel.
A third point of emphasis for SalesChain is configure, price, and quoting software. “Our CPQ tool integrates with ECI e-automate,” reported Szczygiel. “It connects to inventory management systems, providing comprehensive communication,” he explained, adding that SalesChain is particularly proud of its used equipment sales feature, which is unique to its platform.
