Most small-business owners don’t wake up excited to think about their IT.
Honestly, if your technology is doing its job, you probably shouldn’t have to think about it very
much at all.
It should just work.
But when it doesn’t? Suddenly everyone in the office knows about it. “My computer is so slow.”
“The Wi-Fi is acting up again.” “I can’t get into that account.” “Where did that file go?” “Who has the password?”
“Have you tried turning it off and back on?”
If those phrases are part of your normal workweek, your technology may be creating more work
than it’s eliminating.
Small businesses tend to build their technology as they grow. You add a computer when you hire someone. Subscribe to software when you need it. Add another phone line. Replace equipment when it finally gives up. Create a workaround for something annoying and, somehow, that “temporary” workaround is still part of the process three years later.
Eventually, you end up with a collection of technology that technically works but doesn’t necessarily work together.
So, how do you know when it’s time to take a closer look? Ask yourself:
Does “Have you tried turning it off and back on?” solve an alarming percentage of your
technology problems?
Is your password management system a sticky note? Bonus points if it’s “hidden” under
the laptop.
Does everyone know which printer is “the good printer” and which one requires a very
specific combination of patience, bargaining, and threats?
Does your phone system make it easy for customers to reach the right person, or have you
just accepted “Press 1 and hope for the best” as part of doing business?
When someone leaves the company, are you completely confident you know every system, account, and file they have access to and how to remove them?
Do you know your important business data is backed up, or are you mostly just hoping it is?
If you hired five people tomorrow, could you get them connected and working, or would
“we’ll figure it out when they get here” be the official IT plan?
And finally: Is there a process everyone agrees is ridiculous, but you keep doing it because
“that’s just how we’ve always done it”?
If you nodded your head or laughed at a few of those, it might be time to look at the bigger picture.
The answer doesn’t always mean buying something new. Sometimes a perfectly good computer just needs attention. Sometimes your phone system can do more than you realize. Sometimes two systems can be simplified into one. And sometimes an inefficient process exists simply because nobody has stopped to ask, “Why are we still doing it this way?”
Good technology should solve problems, not create new ones.
It should make your employees’ jobs easier, make it easier for customers to reach you, protect
the information your business depends on, and grow alongside you.
And ideally, it should work quietly enough in the background that you can get back to thinking about literally anything else.
Learn More
Visit their website to learn more about CHS Tech Solutions. Read more about Lancaster’s small business community in our latest publication, Small Business Success— A resource magazine for small business owners and entrepreneurs throughout Lancaster County!
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