Your small business faces many challenges in its daily operations and dealing with technology problems can be some of the most difficult ones to overcome. In this blog post, we’ll discuss some of the most common technology problems small businesses face, so that you can see where your company stacks up and where you should focus investment and training to overcome these challenges.
Outdated Hardware and Software
As great as technology is, it also quickly becomes obsolete in today’s fast changing business world. You should carefully monitor all your IT assets, making sure your software is updated properly and knowing the recommended life cycles of your hardware. One key recommendation to overcome future issues is to standardize your software applications as well as your hardware. It is also important to realize that while some of your IT assets can continually be updated and repaired, there also comes a point where investing in new hardware or software will be more cost efficient.
Illegal/Pirated Software
One independent business software estimates that more than 20% of installed business software is illegal or not properly licensed. This issue is normally a result of ignorance or sloppy project management instead of bad intent. Many times the problem results from purchasing the software unwittingly from untrustworthy sources or by not realizing that licenses have expired or that they provide for only a certain number of users. No matter what the intent, however, software manufacturers have collected many millions of dollars in damages from companies who were caught using illegal/pirated software or software with expired licenses.
Your company’s management should take special care to ensure that all the business software you use is purchased from trustworthy sources, the proper number of users are working with the software, and that the software licenses are current.
Lack of Security
Your company needs to make cybersecurity a top priority as hackers are becoming more sophisticated with new kinds of malware being developed and deployed on a constant basis. Your business can use the most sophisticated technology available for your operations, but that won’t matter if your system is compromised and frozen by a cyberattack. Take the necessary steps to secure your operations including extensive employee cybersecurity training, effective and updated anti-malware solutions, and comprehensive policies governing internet usage, employee-owned devices, and access to sensitive company data.
Lack of Control over Employee Devices
This problem is becoming more common as the remote working and the Bring Your Own Device (BYOD) trends become more prevalent at companies. Your company needs to have strict and thorough policies governing the use of employee-owned devices including the control of sensitive data and employee training in proper cybersecurity protocol. It important that all your employees understand that as a result of the increase in data access points because of these trends, your company’s sensitive data is now even more at risk of being stolen by cybercriminals or corrupted by malware.
Insufficient Backup and Recovery Options
Many companies fail to pay enough attention to the vital area of data backup in the event of a manmade or natural disaster. Your company should always seek to improve your cybersecurity and control over employee devices, but you should also make sure to make use of robust backup solutions and a comprehensive data recovery plan in the event that something goes wrong. Being prepared before anything bad occurs will help your company survive a crisis and quickly become operational again at a high level.
Integration Issues
Many small companies purchase the latest software applications without taking adequate planning time to assess how these new programs will integrate with their existing systems. As a result, much time, money, and effort is spent trying to figure out how to best work with data between new and old systems. Before buying the latest flashy tools, your company should make sure they will work well with your existing and older applications. Sometimes a less expensive or less advertised application will work better for your company and will avoid or mitigate some of these frustrating integration issues.
Not Protecting Against Power Interruptions
A surprisingly common problem that many small companies do not pay attention to is dealing with power supply issues. Every business can purchase and utilize the following inexpensive products that will protect your IT assets:
Surge Protector
This device protects equipment from high voltage power surges or spikes.
Voltage Regulator
This product, also known as line regulator, protects your IT assets from insufficient power periods. These brownouts or sags of power can occur when too many consumers in one area use their devices simultaneously or when a large machine or piece of power equipment is operating in your area.
Un-Interruptible Power Supply (UPS)
Similar to a back-up generator, this battery-operated device provides electricity to your device in the event of a power failure. This device automatically takes over when a power outage occurs and usually provides anywhere from 5-30 minutes of emergency power.
Insufficient IT Support
No matter what your company’s technology issues are, they will all be made worse without skilled and reliable IT Support personnel either in house or from a trusted provider. When you have a proven and capable IT Support provider as a partner, your company can work closely with them to plan your IT needs and overcome the problems described above.
For questions about common technology problems IT companies face and how to overcome them, please contact us here at Network Depot.