Mr. Rahul Goel is the Senior Director, Service & Engineering Center, at Canon India Pvt. Ltd. He has been an integral part of the team and has played a key role in the growth of the brand in India. He has been a part of the Canon family since 1997 as Customer Support Engineer for Delhi Branch. He holds more than 28 years of experience in consumer durable industry. His leadership and management skills along with his sound knowledge in the consumer space with a diverse experience has made him an important part of the team at Canon India.
Presently Mr. Rahul, oversees all India Service Operations of wide portfolio of Canon’s products, including Multifunction Copiers, Document-Cheque Scanners, Projectors, DSLR’s, Cinematic Imaging Products, Laser-Inkjet Printers, and Large-Wide Format Printers. He is responsible for B2B & B2C Direct and Indirect Chanel Services, Training and Technical Support, Business Strategy Planning for Service and Spares parts, Internal Audits and Quality Management, Service network expansion, financial planning, Budgeting, and Pricing, Service process improvisation, Warranty Cost Planning and Analysis, Call centre operations and Quality Audits. Prior to joining Canon, he worked with Ricoh India as Engineer in 1995.
Mr. Rahul earned his bachelor’s degree from Kolhapur University in Maharashtra and Post-Graduation Diploma in Management from IGNOU. He later attended ISB-NUS General Management Programme for Asia.
We got a chance to sit with him and had a conversation about Canon and tech in general, here’s how it went:
1. How does Canon approach its service operations to ensure a better customer experience?
At Canon, we have consistently prioritized delivering customer-centric service solutions, keeping customers at the heart of everything we do with a strong focus on enhancing the customer journey and overall satisfaction. As service expectations shift along with the industry conditions, we have embraced a forward-looking approach, building a comprehensive, tech-enabled service ecosystem that ensures seamless product maintenance and operational continuity. Our advanced tools like e-Toner, e-Meter Reading, and e-Proactive enable automated forecasting, allowing us to deliver proactive service while significantly reducing the monitoring burden on customers. This predictive intelligence, in tandem with our virtual, remote, and self-help support led by skilled engineers, ensures uninterrupted service even in dynamic business environments.
With the aim to provide services that are accessible and responsive, Canon has integrated an omni-channel communication framework including Canon’s website, WhatsApp, e-business portal & app, email, and lastly the Canon Contact Centre, that ensures the customers can reach us anytime, through availability of multiple channels, basis their preference.
As Canon’s services go beyond technical maintenance it acts as long-term partners to its users, providing consistent engagement, training, and workflow support. With the continuous shifts in the industry, we remain committed to continuous innovation leveraging, technology-led enhancements that keep pace with changing demands. Our goal is to offer consistent workflow support, training, and engagement, making service a strategic differentiator for Canon. Bringing together this commitment of quality and transparency, we aim to carry this trust forward in the forthcoming innovations and opportunities.
2. What key initiatives has Canon introduced in recent years to enhance customer satisfaction and elevate after-sales support and how it has evolved to meet changing customer expectations over the years?
Canon India has redefined its service framework to deliver smarter, faster, and more seamless support, with a sharp focus on minimizing downtime and ensuring business continuity. Our Smart eServices platform offers value-added features like predictive maintenance, remote monitoring, performance analytics, and merged reality-based support, empowering customers with faster resolutions and self-service capabilities.
In 2024, we advanced our focus on automated forecasting and remote service, reducing manual intervention and enhancing uptime. This is backed by a future-ready workforce trained through the Apprenticeship Program with JIM, a central tech desk, cybersecurity sessions, and Tech Showdown. Further, Canon has also enabled 24×7 omnichannel support across WhatsApp, web, mobile app, email, and the Canon Contact Centre, ensuring customers can connect anytime, through their preferred channel.
This tech-led, human-first approach has helped us maintain a 9.9/10 B2B customer satisfaction score for two consecutive years, delivering on our promise of intelligent, reliable, and empathetic service.
3. What are the key elements that make Canon’s service network both robust and responsive across the country?
Canon has built a robust, tech-enabled service network focused on reach, reliability, and responsiveness. With six Master Service Centres in key metros including, in major cities including Delhi, Mumbai, Chennai, Bengaluru, Kochi and Kolkata. These are further supported by nine authorised service franchises, and 349+ dedicated camera collection centres, covering over 19,000 PIN codes nationwide, including our 200 direct locations that ensure timely, on-ground support across India.
At the heart of this network is the Canon Technical Excellence Centre, which drives both technical expertise and soft-skill development, ensuring high-quality customer engagement. We continue to evolve with innovations like Canon Connected Architecture (CCA) for real-time machine connectivity and self-help tools for faster issue resolution. Through our Data Solution Farm, we enable predictive maintenance, detecting initial failure signals before they impact the customer.
Moving forward, Canon remains committed to expanding its reach, enhancing workforce capabilities, and aligning its approach with industry shifts to deliver consistent and reliable customer support.
4. Six months into 2025, what have been the key highlights from this year for Canon’s service offerings, and what does the future look like?
In regard to the forthcoming period, Canon’s service infrastructure is centered on smart scalability, skill advancement, and technology integration to meet evolving customer expectations. With a focus on predictive service, wider digital presence, and deeper regional penetration, Canon aims to leverage these innovations that are designed to provide personalized, always-on support, while easing customer
With Canon’s focus on training led practices like via its Technical Excellence Centre, the brand will ensure a future-ready workforce, while expanding its smart service tools further expanding remote support and self-service capabilities. As the industry advances, Canon remains committed to building a service ecosystem that is robust, efficient and aligned with the dynamic needs of its customers.
