Mr Aaron Yim, Managing Director

Starting out as a distributor of Ricoh products in 1963, Ricoh Hong Kong officially became Ricoh Japan’s fully owned subsidiary in 1991. During these years, Ricoh Hong Kong has evolved from selling typewriters to become the leading document solutions expert in the territory.

Already the number one digital copier brand in Hong Kong for eight years running, Ricoh intends to continue being the front-runner in this industry. “We have important targets to achieve – that is, colourisation – in terms of shifting from black and white to colour digital printers in the office,” says Aaron Yim, Managing Director of Ricoh Hong Kong Limited. The company aims to produce pioneering products to facilitate communication and to make it easier. Customer satisfaction is our top priority here at Ricoh. “Our mission is to help our customers to be more efficient and cost effective,” mentions Yim.

People often say that staff in a company often reflect those at the top of the hierarchy. Yim believes the key to successful leadership is to care about the people that work in his office; “My philosophy is very simple – it is to make our employees happy.” The human-oriented strategy produces a domino affect that reverberates through the chain, to making customers then shareholders happy. “They will make our customers happy. If our customers are happy, receiving more than what they pay for called value-adding, then we can sustain the business for a long time,” emphasises Yim.

At Ricoh’s, running a business is more than just about making money. The company brought over the Japanese principles and incorporated the “Three P’s Balance™” corporate philosophy standing for People, Planet and Profit. According to Yim balancing these three is important for continuous growth and development: “We make sure these three things balance when we run a company. We are not here just to make money; we have to make sure other two P’s are sufficiently taken care of as well.”

Customers of Ricoh come far and wide ranging from schools, governments to law firms and logistics companies. The company has a 27 percent market share in digital multifunction products and has maintained the number one for eight consecutive years. “We haven’t been beaten by anyone in the last eight years,” remarks Mr Yim.

  “Create, share and think as one” is the company’s new slogan summing up how the company assists its clients to achieve these given concepts. Ricoh wants to help its clients communicate around the world. “We are not just helping people to communicate but also helping them to create, to share the knowledge around the world to different work groups so they can think as one team,” said Yim.

 To invent new technology often requires investing time and money. Ricoh invested and came up with a patented “green” technology called Quick Start-Up (QSU) to solve the old problem of the long wait for machines to warm up after standby. “QSU promotes the use of “energy saving” mode in the office which helps to save electricity consumption when the machine is not in use,” added Yim.

Besides offering the latest technological products Ricoh has expanded to provide one-stop shop Information Technology Services to help small offices to run more efficiently. “SMEs often lack IT support, so we help them to improve their IT infrastructure, such as setting up servers for them so they can work efficiently,” quoted Yim.

Always the pioneer, Ricoh moved into a new office building and invented a new concept called the “LIVE Office” experience. Instead of sticking to the passive, old product showroom format, clients can see how Ricoh’s solutions could work in their office by visiting the LIVE Office in Kowloon Bay. “We invite customers to come in and we ask users to show how they use Ricoh’s solutions everyday. Customers listen to real experiences from the users. They can also learn how to implement green office practices when they visit us,” said Yim.

This passion for green doesn’t just remain in the office. Ricoh helped to plant trees in areas damaged by fires as part of the “Corporate Afforestation Scheme.” Ricoh also teamed up with Friends of the Earth in various environmentally focused activities such as running a video competition to promote waste reduction in secondary schools. “The winners were invited to Japan to see how Ricoh carried out environmental activities.”

To celebrate their 45th anniversary, Ricoh Hong Kong presented a charity concert by the renowned local cellist Trey Lee in support of the Hong Kong Association of Youth Development. All proceeds from the concert went to supporting environmental programmes for the youth.
– Anna Tong

PHILOSOPHY
Ricoh’s success does not come from individuals alone as teamwork plays an essential part in the company’s strategy. Teams are frequently formed to work on solutions and projects, epitomising the notion that a few heads are better than one. Managing Director Mr Aaron Yim spares 30 minutes a day to walk around the office to talk to, motivate and care for his staff. Conclusively Mr Yim puts it all down to the people as the focal point of Ricoh’s success: “if you make people happy, they will make your clients happy who will in turn make your shareholders happy”

FAST FACTS

2008
• Ricoh is number one in the Hong Kong digital copier market for eight consecutive years
2007
• Obtained ISO 27001 Certificate for Information Security Management System
2005
• Best employers award in Hong Kong
2003
• WasteWi$e Logo
2002
• Awarded overall winner status, HKMA association Quality Award
• Certificate of Merit Green Office Award
2001
• Obtained ISO 14001 certification for environmental management trading platform