To help address the speed at which technology is constantly changing in our industry, Cbeyond released its top five tips to help businesses with this challenge. The guidelines, part of Cbeyond’s "Technology Ally" best practices series, are designed to help SMBs sustain existing technology infrastructure while realizing the full potential of their IT investments.
1.) Simplify Complexity: To start, SMBs should use a roadmap to identify technology and define its value to the business. Classify technology within three main categories: commodity, core or strategic. This provides a simplified overview of the company’s technology and a better understanding of which particular technologies are mission critical in helping move the business forward and remain innovative.
2.) Understand the Importance of Business Continuity: There is a huge difference between disaster recovery and business continuity. Business continuity is much more than backing up files; it is how to keep a business up and running. To achieve this, businesses need to maintain the flow of information and stay connected to employees, vendors and customers. Correctly understanding business continuity enables a company to have a plan in place to maintain operations during an unexpected event.
3.) Build the Ideal Environment for IT: Examine whether your company’s infrastructure presents the ideal environment to ensure optimal use of technology. Key considerations include physical maintenance, adequate security, access control to stored data and necessary power supplies. Establish and adhere to a regular maintenance schedule to extend longevity. Or, in other words, care for IT in the way you would care for your car.
4.) Be Proactive: Businesses need to identify the best resources and time to monitor general IT issues before they become problematic. Similar to an annual physical checkup, business technology requires the attention and proactive action of subject matter experts who can spot and predict key technology issues before they impact the business adversely.
5.) Share the Burden: Don’t spend unnecessary internal resources focusing on IT needs. Embrace a technology ally that can handle complexity and offer a package of technology services to meet your needs. Added time and an extended shelf life will help you focus on becoming more competitive and moving the business forward.
