Top 3 Steps to a Smarter Business

Being smart is a good thing. So much so that every industry has its own acronym for it. You’ve seen this one: Specific, measurable, achievable, realistic and timely. How about: Self-Monitoring Analysis And Reporting Technology.  Or even smart watches. Whether in the traditional sense of the class genius, or looking dapper at a wedding, being smart is a good thing. So, what does it mean to be smart in business?

Ahead of the Game

You don’t need to be the biggest company out there to make an impression. This is due to the accelerated growth of the digital landscape, where businesses can drive real change and exposure to their brand. This has resulted in business leaders prioritising their IT budget more than ever before. But why is investing in IT smart for business?

Let’s look at the benefits: Better collaboration within their organisation, reduced silos, better analytic capabilities, and improved agility throughout. There is no doubt that improving these key aspects of a business will help to streamline processes, lower overhead, save time, and increase efficiency. Innovative technology allows businesses to achieve this, by providing pioneering collaboration-tech, analytics, cloud hosting solutions, and digital transformation solutions.

Let’s look at the top 3:

#1 – Collaboration

Collaboration technology is a game changer for businesses. The deployment of platforms that allow businesses to reduce silos and enhance communication amongst employees has given businesses the edge. This includes solutions such as shared document hubs, instant messenger, and voice over IP, video conferencing, and more. Through this new culture of shared information, businesses can bring all employees together- paving the way for innovative work culture and uniting departments. Additionally, collaboration technology encourages continuous learning throughout the organisation, as working on collaborative projects becomes easier, and employees become engaged and aware of the work of their co-workers. This is a cultural shift that many organisations are keen to embrace, especially in the mid-market where collaboration technology can allow businesses to become as competitive as their larger counterparts due to increased efficiency.

#2 – Cloud Computing

Cloud Solutions are constantly being improved, meaning that this technology is at the forefront of innovation. Simply put, the cloud is a necessity for ambitious businesses. Why? Let’s start with the costs: By using the cloud to be more flexible and scalable, the expenditure of additional hardware and maintenance is significantly lowered. The cloud is a smart choice for costs. If we look at the importance of accessibility, and staff in multiple locations, the cloud gives ease-of-access to share and access documents from anywhere. Including accessing data and the previously mentioned communication abilities. With the cloud, smaller businesses can compete in smart and effective ways.

To read more about the benefits of the cloud for your business, see Cloud Architect Mark Steen’s Top 5 Secrets to Cloud Success.

#3 – Analytics

Analytics can influence strategies and allow businesses to identify their priorities, making them extremely useful for ambitious businesses looking to grow. Similarly, they can provide important metrics and information on a business’s target market, giving a deeper insight into who their customers are and the success rates of their strategies. Many mid-market businesses either don’t collect data or cannot organise it in an efficient way- and so are handicapping themselves from the benefits of analytics.

Digitalisation is changing the world at an unprecedented rate. That’s why it’s imperative that businesses update legacy systems and existing infrastructure. Organisations need to select technology that will innovate their business and give practical and tangible results towards efficiency.

To read more on the benefits of data analytics, see our recent before and after post.

Timico are an IT managed service provider that specialise in unlocking your digital potential. Check out our blog section for more on digital transformation and smart tactics.