Case Study

ARO Print and Mail Center Management Restores Quality Services for a Storied Law School

At one of the country’s largest and longest-running law schools, lackluster performance in both the vendor-managed print center and insource-managed mailroom wasn’t living up to the institution’s tradition of excellence. Then the school put ARO on the case as a key strategic partner.

Client Snapshot

Private, nonprofit law school

~1,100 full-time students

Alumni in 50 countries representing business, private practice, government, nonprofits, startups, and public interest groups

Was outsourcing print center and insourcing mailroom operations

Document types printed: directories, case files, law exams, presentations, event flyers, and more

The Challenge

A Disorganized Mail Room and Print Center

Service performance and customer satisfaction weren’t the priorities of a staff mostly made up of students working part time. As a result, the school was struggling to meet increasing demands for mail room and print services. Some of the top problems included:

Lack of Accountable Leadership

Without clear and effective leadership, the print center and mailroom had fallen into wasteful practices with no means of accountability.

Overstaffing

Underutilized employees led to customers overpaying for deliverables, excess downtime, and mismanagement of on-site resources.

Inefficient Service

Duplication of work and misplacement of deliverables were common issues, due to the lack of leadership and the staff’s part-time mindset.

Limited Equipment Capability

The current equipment didn’t have the features, functionality, or speed to keep up with the demands of a fast-paced, high-demand client while maintaining high quality.

Lack of Communication

Communication between the insourced mailroom and outsourced print/copy center was nonexistent.

Lack of Insight for Performance Improvement

With no means of tracking, analyzing, or improving key performance indicators, wasteful and costly practices continued throughout the site’s back-office services.

The ARO Approach

Instilling a Clear Definition of—and Commitment to—Excellence

ARO stepped in to transform the school’s print center, document management processes, and back-office services, starting with a shared determination to improve outcomes for customers.

“The copy center is always thorough, professional, and reliable, and the results look great. I have been very pleased with the projects they have done for us!” - Admissions Manager III

Key Solutions

New Leadership – ARO deployed and empowered a highly qualified mail center manager.

Streamlined, Expert Staffing – ARO applied 35 years of managed service strategy insight to design and implement a customer service model that achieved 85% staff utilization. Our industry knowledge and reputation equip us with high-performing customer service representatives with subject matter expertise.

High-Performance Equipment – We implemented and managed new high-end scanning and binder equipment.

Enhanced Communication – ARO marketing efforts helped make sure faculty, staff, and other end users knew of the print center’s new and expanded capabilities.

Performance Analysis & Improvement – ARO implemented the AROworks software platform to help streamline operations and provide valuable insights including:

Automated KPI tracking – Capture of critical information/data throughout the copy and mail process.
Data-driven decision making – Monitoring and examining volumes, costs, and performance to unearth opportunities for improvement.
Increased efficiency – Integration with the mailroom for seamless tracking and management.

Results

Strengthening the School’s Communications Strategy for 10+ Years

“The team has been great! Very responsive and professional and they work to achieve a good quality product. The ARO team turned around a rush job for us and delivered it in a few hours. Top-notch work.”

- Dean of Students

ARO’s services and solutions have improved the law school’s image with all constituents. We’ve built a partnership that’s still going strong after more than a decade of delivering results including:

Improved Customer Satisfaction

Relationships with key departments and stakeholders have flourished. Trust in all ARO operations has exceeded expectations. And it continues to show in customer surveys, which rank our services at 5 (top rank on a scale of 1-5) on average.

Reduced Turnaround Times

ARO best practices created a day-one difference in job efficiency. Previously, customers had to come to the copy center to pick up their work. ARO took on delivery of copy jobs along with the mail, and the average turnaround time is now the same day.

Cost Savings

Driven by our best practices and data insights, we continue to document 2% in new savings every year for this client.