Technology has become the cornerstone of every modern business’s day-to-day operations, helping them work quickly and efficiently. You just have to imagine for a moment what business would be like without email to realise how much we rely on the IT that underpins every organisation.
While many businesses have cut their costs and found new levels of agility with the latest business applications such as, mobile communications, web-based collaboration and faster broadband, there are still businesses that have failed to adapt to this change.
Either because of cost or tradition, companies are suffering from IT lag. They have chosen to stick with the same technology for too long and are now in danger of missing out because of less efficient and often unreliable systems. But what is it they missing out on?
Business effects
The effect of IT lag on businesses can be catastrophic. You only have to look at the technology entering the marketplace to realise that people have become highly IT conversant, populating Facebook and Twitter and relying on smart phones to get things done. Where once it was the minority, now it’s the majority and customers are expecting businesses to keep up with them.
Yes, customers that experience IT lag may be tolerant in the short term, particularly if the business offers great face-to-face service. However, as technology develops and businesses become more competitive, customers are beginning to lose patience.
As a result, those businesses with a web, and perhaps mobile presence, are benefiting. Not only do they have the abilities to meet the consumer on their own terms, but they can respond to customers 24/7 and at a time most convenient to them.
Staff retention
Unfortunately however, IT lag doesn’t just mean lost customers. As the social networking generation (often called Generation Y) enters the workforce, employers will increasingly find that employees used to social networking are finding that outdated technology supplied at work can’t meet the demands of this tech-savvy generation.
Workers don’t want to be saddled with a work PC running an old version of Windows and Internet Explorer, with no Flash Player and a small set of tightly locked-down applications, especially when their home computers are much faster.
But businesses shouldn’t shy away from this level of working. Efficiency equals productivity, which in turn boosts the bottom line. So rather than see the generation as demanding with a short attention span, employers should tap into their employees’ tech-savvy talents and use them to benefit the business.
Low cost upgrade
Fortunately, for businesses currently experiencing IT lag, upgrading the company’s systems doesn’t have to mean an overhaul of all technology or massive investment.
You can now use many of the latest business applications via Cloud computing – all you need is a web browser. And there are often free trials of hosted software to give you the chance to decide if you want to subscribe to the service in the long term. Applications are accessed over a secure network and managed by a service provider.
And as we become increasingly used to downloading apps for our smartphones as consumers there are business applications that you can access from your mobile too. For example Salesforce.com is a hosted software service specialising in Customer Relationship Management (CRM). An app can be downloaded on to a smartphone so employees on the move can access the service.
Then, as your business grows, or if you want to allow your employees to work flexibly, more services can be rolled out as and when you need them, on a cost per use basis. And, because the services are hosted by the company supplying them, you don’t need to employ dedicated IT support staff to handle any problems, everything is fixed off site keeping downtime to a minimum.
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