Canon’s Sam Yoshida discusses his return to the U.S., the One Canon initiative, industry challenges, areas of opportunity and his relationship with Canon dealers.
Two months ago, Sam Yoshida returned to Canon U.SA. as executive vice president and general manager of Canon’s Business Imaging Solutions Group (BISG). He is also vice chairman, Canon Solutions America, Inc. (CSA).
Having spent 27 of his 35-year career with Canon in the United States, Yoshida is well known to Canon dealers. Even so, the news stirred up some anxiety among the company’s leading dealers””dealers who knew and liked Yoshida during his previous tenure at Canon USA. Toyo Kuwamura, who preceded Sam, was well liked and had made significant changes in Canon U.S.A.’s approach to dealers. It seems, however, the anxiety was not caused by Yoshida’s return, but by a concern the company’s improved relationship with its dealers would go back to more of the fractured relationship that existed before Kuwamura.
Kuwamura’s commitment embraced the “One Canon” policy, which meant whether you were a dealer or end-user customer, all would have access to everything the company had to offer. To the analyst community (particularly those who focus on channel distribution), this policy was a breath of fresh air.
When we learned about Yoshida’s return, we requested an opportunity to interview him after he had settled into his new position. We were pleased to get a conversation on the books, and I’m happy to say, Yoshida is very much in the same good form as when he was when he previously was in the United States.
Yoshida worked in the U.S. from 1987 to 2014 and was vice president and general manager, marketing, for Canon U.S.A.’s Imaging Systems Group (now known as BISG) before he was assigned group executive, Corporate Systems Division, Office Imaging Products, Canon Inc., in 2014. After two years in that role, he moved on to Canon Canada as senior vice president and general manager for the Imaging Systems Group.
Prior to his role at Canon U.S.A., Yoshida spent four years at Canon Virginia, Inc. (CVI) and one year with Canon in the United Kingdom. When CVI launched in 1986, Yoshida was one of three people from Canon Inc. sent to Newport News, Virginia, to establish the new company. This included securing the site for the facility, overseeing the building of the factory, and hiring staff. Today, CVI plays a major role for Canon in manufacturing, recycling, and innovation.
Born in Japan, Yoshida grew up in Jamaica, Queens, New York, from the ages of one to seven. He spent two years attending junior high school in Fair Lawn, New Jersey, and returned to Japan for higher education, graduating from Keio University.
As a result, he has an excellent grasp of English and communicates effectively with dealers.
CR: What would you like to accomplish in your new role?
Yoshida: I have an obligation to Canon, the industry, and dealers at large to continue what has been accomplished by those who came before me. I am lucky that I have been in the copy, printing, and document management industry for 35 years. During my first four years, I learned a lot about Canon.
I also saw firsthand the growth in the industry, thanks to many members that have been great dealer partners. I feel blessed and want to make sure Canon can continue to build and continue the success going forward.
It is a mature industry. From that aspect, the most important thing to understand is that [the print] business is not going to die. [However,] as an industry, we must adjust to a new way of doing things.
Our business model is very strong. Between our channel partners, along with our direct access to the customer, we have enjoyed much success. We want to add to the model. Canon cannot provide all the answers, and we understand that. We want to continue to make products, solutions, and programs that yield healthy profits. Because of this model, we have been successful, but we can make it better and stronger. I still feel [confident] about our ability to help dealers meet the challenges and build on their success. When the time comes and I retire, I want to be able to say we made it better for everyone.
CR: What do you see as a dealer’s biggest challenge?
Yoshida: The industry is changing at a very fast pace. The U.S. is such a big B2B market, and [dealers] have the appetite to invest. The U.S. represents a significant market but is a little bit unique. I saw something similar in the Canadian dealer channel. We have a pyramid, and in the U.S., we have close to 400 dealers. Some can make it, and some are more challenged. That has become more so since I was last here four years ago.
We still have the same number of manufacturers, but there are fewer dealers. Because of our recurring service model, dealers can stay in business but not experience growth. Unless they deal with the changes, they will continue to experience a gradual decline in click counts. To combat that, they must manage the fleet better and deliver a better value to the customer. One way to do that is to add new solutions such as security and document management.
From what I have seen since my return is that large dealers are able to invest. They have addressed managed print and IT services. The result is they have a more balanced revenue. The dealer channel is still healthy. That is why the private-equity companies are coming into the business. The dealers need to change and become more efficient and improve efficiency in their model. This will enable them to meet their customer’s needs.
CR: You held your first dealer council meeting on September 11. How did it go?
Yoshida: A typical meeting with a full day of discussion. The most important topic was the change of command from Toyo to me. It was obvious [dealers] are concerned.
I made the commitment [to the dealer channel] about being open. As far as BISG and the change from Toyo to me, there will be no change. And in my role as vice chair [at Canon Solutions America], there is no change from Toyo to me. I am engaged in all aspects of the business and fully involved.
The things that are going well would not change. I was upfront about that. I have a strong belief in the industry. It is my obligation to continue to strengthen the relationship and allow our dealer channel to continue to experience healthy growth.
Most of the dealer issues were about possible change””our product road map and things I cannot discuss. All the products are going well. Dealers are enjoying good market [share], service, and product. [We talked about] account coverage, markets, and rules of engagement. We had 10 dealers, and it was an open and objective meeting.
CR: Toyo Kuwamura strongly advocated a “One Canon” philosophy. Will you continue to do that?
Yoshida: In all our internal meetings, we want to let everyone know that I am committed to the “One Canon” philosophy. We cannot solve everything at once. “One Canon” is also an internal message. That is what I want to do, and if you have any great ideas, I am open and happy to listen.
CR: On the solutions side of the business, how is Canon going to address security?
Yoshida: The security message is a good one and strong one. [For Canon], security is huge. A major competitor takes security from the IT side of the house. We [look at] security from the workflow level and in the solutions area.
Canon intends to leverage its strength in device-based solutions because of the strong platform, and the profitability in utilizing that approach ensures a reasonable success. Solutions is about changing our business model to [offer] more services. Our business is still based on our delivery of imageRUNNERs.
The business is still about hardware as well as solutions””90% of the business comes from imaging and is still very profitable. The Fiery, Prisma, and Uniflow are all tools that provide solutions. We cannot deliver Canon-only solutions. The fundamental solutions role is information management””managing information, managing data””and what will be our core platform and differentiation. Every manufacturer is in all those spaces. Canon is no different. We feel we have a strong solution.
CR: What is your message to the dealer channel?
Yoshida: Our industry is challenging because we are not experiencing the growth we enjoyed in the past. I feel very positive because we are addressing the American customer with hardware and solutions. If we can help our customers perform better and streamline and improve efficiency, the business will continue to do well. [Customers] are still spending money, and it is a great opportunity for all of us to keep investing and deliver customer value. That’s the message I would like to deliver to our channel partners.
Canon is here to stay.
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