Using Technology to Streamline Operations

Routine computer maintenance mitigates risk and increases the longevity of your existing systems.

by Kate de Gutes

You know what a typical business day is like: there’s nothing typical about it - except for your on-going struggle with slow and overly complex business processes. It’s tough to get ahead in today’s competitive business environment, especially when delays and errors can affect your sales and income stream, and when your customers aren’t getting the right answers right away.

If your business is like many other small and medium companies, you’re likely already using PCs and notebook computers, and possibly application, file, and web servers. You know that the right technology can help your business eliminate delays, avoid errors, and respond faster to customers and suppliers - all without expanding your workforce.

The Speed of Business is Real-time

All this technology lets you stay in constant communication with customers, employees, and business associates – whether they’re in the next office, across town, or across the globe. Your staff, customers, and partners are communicating in near real-time via e-mail, instant messaging, VoIP and a host of other unified communications and collaboration applications.

However, efficient operations depend on real-time access to accurate information. What happens if you lose your data because of a virus, worm, or computer failure? For instance, even one day without email – because of a hardware failure or a security breach – can significantly hamper a business. Costs not only include hard figures such as salary and fees for lost productivity and sales, but also what analysts refer to as “soft” costs such as damage to your businesses reputation.

Ask yourself: what would you do if your business lost its customer database? Or its accounting records? According to the Small Business Administration, 93% of small businesses who suffer a data loss and are unable to retrieve their data within 48 hours, go out of business.

Take Time to Protect, Secure

Protecting and streamlining your business technology takes more of an investment in time than money, which is undoubtedly why many time-strapped small and medium businesses don’t implement adequate maintenance and security measures. But studies show those companies that do, actually save 15-20% per year in IT support costs.

Routine computer maintenance mitigates risk and increases the longevity of your existing systems. It safeguards your business against performance lags, security breaches, and data loss. Implementing these maintenance and security measures doesn’t have to bust your budget—and it may prevent accidents and attacks that could damage or even destroy your business. Companies such as Techchex help keep small businesses running faster, more efficiently, and more securely by providing regular preventive maintenance services for their new and existing technology. A cost-effective IT service plan makes good business sense: a professional takes care of your computers and you take care of business.

Kate Carroll de Gutes is a technical writer based in Portland, Oregon whose work centers around the technology challenges faced today by small and medium-sized businesses. Her work has appeared in Fast Company and INC. magazines and on numerous blogs.