Does Your Business Have Too Much Technology?

Starting a business is certainly no easy feat. It was likely a hassle just to get things up and running at a basic level. While most organizations that provide a product likely had to focus on getting that product to market, technology has begun to help aid this endeavor considerably. Unfortunately, it’s easy to fall into the trap that your organization uses too much technology--so much that it negatively affects your bottom line.

It’s understandable that some technology is absolutely required for organizations to function, but there are always those who look to technology to solve every single issue facing them. This is a dangerous practice. Technology might be great for sharing data, increasing collaboration, and ensuring that your business can meet its designated requirements, but too much technology can make it more difficult for organizations to get their jobs done. Let’s take a look at some situations when technology doesn’t help a business, but hinders it.

Unnecessary Technology
It’s not necessary for your organization to implement every single new solution that is released. It’s often the case that more technology creates more stress for the average worker--particularly if that employee doesn’t need to use the technology in order to go about their day-to-day responsibilities. For example, a CRM solution might be able to help your organization manage customer and interdepartmental communications, but if you only have a small number of employees as is, is it really worth it? There isn’t as big of a need to track how long everything takes, or how your few customers connect with your company, simply because you only have a small number of employees or clients in the first place. It will become apparent if somebody isn’t doing an adequate job, or if one of your clients isn’t happy with how they are being treated. This isn’t to say that your organization can’t benefit from a CRM solution--rather, it’s about weighing the costs versus the benefits that your organization receives from a CRM solution. Basically, if a centralized software solution is what you need to keep your employees busy, it’s probably more than just a technology issue that needs to be addressed.

Of course, this is only one example. Technology that’s not needed ultimately wastes both time and resources that could be better spent elsewhere. Therefore, you need to be careful about how your organization implements new solutions, as well as how you determine whether or not a solution is worth investing in. To do this, start by analyzing how much value your business gets from implementing it. To use the CRM as an example, consider how much time is actually spent using a CRM when you have only five employees. Now compare this to the time spent using a CRM when you have 40 employees. Compared to the smaller workforce, you’ll practically have to use a CRM in order to ensure that you can properly manage all of the relationships and communication within your organization.

Old Technology
In contrast, you might consider implementing new technology if your business has been around the block a time or two. If your business has existed for several years, has a dedicated consumer base, and is still growing despite the fact that it’s using outdated technology, it can be a detriment to your organization to resist implementing new technology. Simply put, old technology is more prone to failure, leading to more revenue spent on maintenance and management, as well as opening up the door for security threats.

Some businesses wait so long to replace or upgrade their technology that they face major legacy technology issues down the line. Others simply don’t have the resources available to upgrade as every new version is released, compounding the problem and making it even larger the more time passes. Either way, failure to upgrade your technology when it’s needed can lead to considerable detriment:

• Loss of productivity: Old technology can lead to a decrease in operational performance. The latest and greatest solutions are much more efficient, leading to faster processing speeds and more productivity.
• Problems with security: More recent operating systems are more likely to have addressed security concerns found in older operating systems and software. This makes them much more secure overall. Plus, older technology is more likely to be fast approaching its end of life event, where it’s no longer updated or maintained by the developers.
• Redundancy: Technology is often the solution to the redundancy issue, but work needs to be invested so as to allow both new and old technology solutions to be compatible with it. This takes time and resources that not all organizations have access to.
• Loss of opportunity: Regarding your web presence, having an outdated website or page can negatively influence your potential interactions with clients. If they don’t like what they see, chances are that they will take their business elsewhere. On the other hand, if your website is streamlined and sleek, they will be more likely to invest in your organization.

Does your business want to take full advantage of business solutions so as to improve your organization’s functionality for the long haul? SMART Services can help. To learn more, reach out to us at 586 258-0650 .