Gone are the days of executives ruling the roost. The IT Department are the real stars of 2021.
Information technology has become the driving force behind the 2020/21 economic quarters. 2020 saw a catastrophic market crash that left many SMEs without either work coming in or employees to do it. Where we could, we were forced to work from home… something made far easier by our IT departments.
With the world’s economy starting to get back to normal and businesses everywhere opening back up, many of us have decided that the shift to the online office should be permanent. What does that mean for the rest of us? It means that IT is the new corporate backbone of 2021.
The Importance of perfected IT
The modern working world depends on the Internet of Things to keep ticking smoothly over. Without our myriad gadgets and devices, a paperless society would only be a far off fantasy. As it is, some businesses run entirely without paper receipts or invoices.
Your information technology department could be costing or saving you money, depending on what you let them do. For example, a recent US survey found that businesses lose $1.8 billion annually because the technology they are using is obsolete. IT departments can spend hours fixing obsolete technology that slows down productivity and has already reached the end of its shelf life. This is the office equivalent of flogging a dead horse.
In other examples, IT departments could be spending large portions of the day helping staff members with particularly complex software systems. Again, this is going to cost you money in the long run. Other sources state that poor quality data can end up costing your business money.
Three easy fixes for businesses with Bad IT
If you suspect that you are losing business due to poorly maintained IT systems, then there are a few easy solutions you can try.
1 – Hire new blood
Bringing some new team members into old IT department can breathe fresh life into a malfunctioning department. It may be that some of your employees are needing retirement age, it could be that they need an early redundancy package to make way for new thinkers. If you are looking to hire new IT staff, then we recommend Hays Technology as a good starting point.
2 – Consider staff training
Similarly, some of those older members of staff probably haven’t studied their craft in a while. investing in some high quality staff training could mean you speed up the software systems of your entire company. It will take an initial investment of time and money, but they should both pay off in terms of increased productivity afterwards.
3 – Refresh outdated technologies annually
Have your IT department perform a systematic review of each of your hardware and software systems, every year. You don’t have to replace everything every year, but you do have to keep tabs on when it will need replaced. comparing performance of newer equipment to performance of existing equipment can highlight any productivity issues that arise.
Updated IT and an updated IT departments are what is needed to fully support your business
