Technology enables a company to maintain consistent performance even during economic hardship. Optimizing computing infrastructure is one of the biggest keys to improving the overall efficiency of your business. Outdated technology can result in less productivity, weak operational processes, and an inability to keep up with the competition.
While technology optimization may require an initial financial investment that is significant, as the dust settles on this new implementation you will discover that optimized technology is a money saver when analyzed over time. Analyze your business plan and you will see that virtually every element requires some form of technology. If you take that analysis one step further you will learn that at its core, technology enables you to work smarter and not harder.
Management Systems
Onboarding a new employee often results in an exceptional amount of paperwork and training materials. Human resources departments are inundated with forms that all need to be reviewed, filed, and stored not only at the beginning but throughout an employee’s time with the company as well. Software programs that help to make this process virtual and paperless are great solutions for increased efficiency regarding employee filing systems.
HR managers are not the only department of people that would benefit from this type of software. Operations managers are also often overloaded with many small tasks and responsibilities throughout the day that would be more efficiently completed if thorough one system.
Fleet managers, for example, must consider safety, efficiency, compliance, and employee relations simultaneously every day as a main function of their job. Vehicle telematics software as described on this site here gives these professionals a chance to streamline their overall process and better juggle each element of their fast-paced responsibilities.
Remove Roadblocks
Often a lack of modern technology is a major roadblock to employee productivity. If tasks are not simple to complete, they will either push them down to the bottom of their list or they will take up so much of their time completing them, that other important tasks go uncompleted. In both scenarios, even simple updates like providing the office with the highest speed Wi-Fi available, or changing from desktops to laptops can remove these roadblocks and improve efficiencies.
Laptops empower employees to have an option to work in areas that are not exclusively their desk. Having the opportunity to bring a laptop into a conference room for a meeting, take it to a common area to work and have a change of scenery, or to be able to work from home, means that you are creating an environment with options, and options improve morale.
In some cases, laptops are a better product than a desktop. Consider the tasks you are expecting your employees to perform when determining the best laptop to purchase to optimize efficiencies.
Project Management
If you have a project-based business, for example, a professional services firm, a HVAC or plumbing service company, or a construction firm managing projects efficiently is critical for on-time and on-budget delivery. Technology lends itself to this pursuit by creating a work breakdown structure that organizes a large project into a list of tasks that need to be completed.
From here, managers are better able to delegate tasks and track their completion, and staff members have a more concise picture of their specific assignments as well as the managerial expectations that accompany them.
This can also greatly benefit your customer service endeavors. Project management software can help to provide accurate and of the moment information that clients and customers might require at random.
For example, a home design client may request to know, out of the blue, the exact delivery details of a piece of furniture your firm ordered for their project. Updated technology means that you can generate this information quickly for them, as opposed to having to weed through files, make phone calls, and estimate dates manually.
Optimize Traffic and Improve Security
As online-based consumerism gains popularity, your business must be able to keep up, as well as keep a competitive edge. While traditional networks work well enough to transfer typical data streams from one place to another, that is where their capability ends.
Forward-thinking businesses have noticed these inefficiencies and started to move towards intent-based networks. These networks can identify, analyze, and optimize application traffic as well as improve security.
As you implement more technology into your business, it is essential that you also up your security efforts as well. Some additional ways that a more advanced network can also benefit your business is an overall reduction in infrastructure costs, a decrease in staff time costs associated with deploying, and a healthier technological support system for managing network systems. In essence, upgrading your equipment without also upgrading your network is defeating the purpose of the initial goal of improved efficiency.
Communication
Phones have become necessities for employees, however, to be grouped with forward-thinking businesses, your tech provisions must exceed beyond simply providing a basic phone. You must consider what you are expecting out of your employees regarding how these phones are meant to be used, and how they must perform. A smartphone is an obvious choice here considering the likelihood is high that your expectations will include email, text messaging, virtual communication apps, and video conferencing capabilities.
Automation
Automation is a major part of the overall efficiency conversation. Through technology, hardware and software can collect and process data in the blink of an eye. Certain functions like accounting, stock control, and data collection are all additional benefits of creating automation within your business. Regarding manpower, this process frees up workers to focus on both tasks that require a human touch, as well as money-making activities that can better serve the profitability of the business.
Agility
It is no secret that your business must allow for some bend as determined by the market. If your overall plan is too strict and rigid, then the chances that your business will be able to flex and remain successful during times of market fluctuation are minimal. Technology can help with both operational and strategic agility and provided the support necessary to keep your business relevant over time. Certain situation awareness technologies can help identify even the slightest changes and provide solutions for managing them.
