The business strategy in place for your small business is vital to your success. This is likely a plan you put a lot of though, resources, and heart into. It’s the road map to your future with the keys to how you plan on outdoing the competition, growing, and better serving your customers. Your business strategy encompasses your vision, includes strategic objectives, the play by play tactical plan, and took you a lot of research to finish. You’re proud of this strategy and where it will take you. But is it enough to ensure your success?
Have you put that much time, energy, thought, and heart into your technology strategy? Is tech included in your business strategy?
For many small businesses, a technology strategy seems extravagant. Their tech budgets can be microscopic and they only pay for what they really have to purchase to be successful. However, that makes a solid strategy even more important.
Without a technology strategy, your business plan is incomplete and could fail.
Why a tech strategy
A technology strategy is meant to align your technology with your business goals, objectives, and processes. Investing in your technology can save you a lot of hassel and money in the long run. Your technology strategy is especially important if you are faced with a few specific challenges:
- Legacy equipment
- IT infrastructure scaling issues
- Need to implement cost reduction measures
- Expansion challenges
- Compliance regulations
Benefits
A technology strategy can decrease the costs of your IT by taking a critical look at your current expenditures. In many cases, small businesses are overpaying in certain areas, and are therefore not able to invest in other areas when a tech investment could create efficiency. This alone is worth creating a strategy based on a deep understanding of the current state of your business and your technology.
A three-year technology strategy allows you to support your business strategy while planning for future tech expenses. If you are not able to update all of the tech that is currently holding you back at once, a technology strategy allows you to plan out when and how you will complete the necessary updates without breaking the bank. A high-level strategy can also help you to understand the evolution your technology will need to make to sustain or accelerate growth in your business.
How to create the right strategy
All of this might sound great, but where to start? Tech strategy creation can be an overwhelming task to try to take on. There is a lot that goes into it and if your competition knows something you don’t, you can easily fall behind. It is key to know where you are coming from to reach your end goal of improving your infrastructure and relieving any existing pain points.
Here are the steps you should follow:
- Audit your tech current state and create a tech overview
- Align your current state with your business overview
- Analyze how these intersect
- Create a strategy for when and how to implement key resources
Consulting with a Managed Services Provider will ensure your IT audit is thorough. A consultant will be able to recommend changes, which can include server and network changes or updates, adding new applications, creating a security policy, dropping unnecessary software or application, and more. This professional is more likely to have a working knowledge of what the tech trends are in your industry and how proper implementation can put you ahead of your competition.
Aligning your business goals and your technology is essential to the long-term success of your small business. Your strategy and growth plans should encompass every asset your business has to work with, and that includes your technology.
If you would like help getting a technology strategy in place, contact our consulting team.
