Several months ago nearly every business experienced some kind of disruption to operations, and as millions of employees adjusted to working remotely, IT teams had to provide quick solutions to ensure work could carry on as normal.
Many perhaps previously overlooked the important role IT plays during the on-going pandemic and even now when we’re all more adjusted to working in new ways, IT teams continue to face hurdles related to cybersecurity, new technologies and remote working to keep systems moving in the medical and healthcare fields, food supply chain, distribution and manufacturing.
Here are some of the most common IT challenges facing all businesses across all sectors today along with some practical solutions.
IT budgets decreasing
A lack of budget and resources is a major concern for both IT staff and employers. For a lot of businesses, the range of applications they use continues to grow rather than shrink – this puts more and more pressure on IT people and systems to deliver the latest. The reality for many small and medium sized businesses is that a decision on whether to upgrade or purchase technology quite rightly comes down to margins.
IT should be a priority after lockdown, so the need for a more cost-effective IT solution will be crucial. This is where outsourcing your IT can help.
Technology overload
Recently businesses have been forced to deploy new tools to help teams collaborate and communicate remotely. But with unfamiliarity and lack of experience with new software, staff are being left frustrated and inevitability on the phone with IT.
Whenever you introduce something new, training well ahead of launch will take vital pressure off your IT team. At CT we offer all our customers CT Knowledge – a micro learning platform with a hundred three minute training sessions which are easy to navigate and help your team make the most of your most important existing and new business platforms.
Cybersecurity
Data and security breaches continue to make headlines and cause headaches for IT teams. Particularly during the Covid crisis, cyber-attacks have been more sophisticated and harder to stop. Making sure your teams are aware of some basic security tactics is important when they’re at working from home or on their own devices.
Real-time monitoring of networks and devices is also an absolute must. Whether you have been directly affected by an attack or looking to boost your security, you should review your current strategy and identify what’s working and what’s not.
Back up and disaster recovery
If you’ve ever accidentally deleted a file, experienced a server crash or any other data disaster, then you know how important having a reliable back up and disaster recovery plan is. This can be a real challenge for IT staff that are working with inadequate data back up or a lack of data storage and resources.
Most businesses may not have developed a plan to address a pandemic outbreak, but should have some kind of continuity solution in place. Having the right backup solution and disaster recovery procedures is critical to eliminating the downtime and expenses that accompany them.
An immediate challenge facing IT teams is understanding their business needs. As the technology landscape continues to evolve, and the current situation is still changing, your IT teams are dealing with increase demand on network infrastructure, a significant rise in user support requirements and new security threats.
Now might be a good time to look at having a strategic IT review which CT is currently offering free of charge to all S postcode businesses.
