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Growing Your IT Systems

Growth Businesses need their digital nervous system to grow with them. Otherwise time and money are wasted trying to get quarts into pint pots.

For most small businesses, there is a clear IT growth path that gives you the best return on your money.

Main drivers are the need for everyone in the business to stay in touch with each other and secondly the demands of the larger suppliers and customers that the company needs to deal with to grow past the micro business stage.

The stairway to heaven is set out in the diagram. What it means in practice is that you need to think of it as the backbone of the business.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

The first step is to get everyone on the same operating system and using the same tools.

Training and support need to be an integral part of the business. If you don’t do this you won’t get the return on your investment.

Then ensure that everyone has email at their desk and that they share information across a network with enough data storage and disaster recovery provision – less than 10% of organisations that lose their data are able to recover - this is a crucial stage - you must secure your data!

Once you have reached this point the continued expansion of your IT systems will be in response to the players and customers you deal with.

Mobile and Remote Working

As you expand you will likely need remote workers to access the central data store. As you work with larger organisations they are increasingly likely to expect you to work with them electronically and be able to log onto their systems or have them see your operational information in terms of stock levels and despatch data. This is the time to develop an intranet - allowing you to deliver a data store, a community connection platform and secure team spaces for group working.

Once you have a rock solid network in place with an intranet functioning, its relatively straightforward to begin to use the browser as an interface into the back office systems so that they can be shared internally. From here it is a short step to ultimate goal of delivering the functionality that larger global players demand.

Independent Expert Advice

We have a many years experience in advising growing companies how to plan their strategy, manage their suppliers and their projects.

We are Technology Means Business accredited advisers and can be found on the National Business Link register of consultants. This means that we will make sure that your IT system reflects your business needs and avoids the pain of having spent a lot of money on an unsuitable system.

We have a number of white papers and publications that you may find useful listed on the right hand menu. Alternatively you can request a meeting with us to explore your needs by clicking here.