As we talk with current or prospective clients or other small business owners it becomes clear that although tending to day to day business is paramount to survival these owners are also searching for ways to stay current, trim expenses and improve productivity. Many times this can be accomplished through improved technology.
This is when our business owners may become the “Reluctant CIO” of their own business.
With the pace of technology changing at breakneck speeds the successful adoption of new hardware, software, cloud based, or other technology products can allow small businesses the opportunity to compete with enterprise class organizations for a fraction of the costs associated with implementation. It is easy to see why savvy business owners are anxious to learn more about innovations in technology that can help them gain an edge on their competition.
The “Reluctant CIO” is often conversant with technology changes and innovation through a variety of sources. These sources may be industry associates, personal research, IT consultants or providers, or other knowledgeable resources. There is always a decision to be made on cost vs. return on investment but knowledge is crucial to making informed decisions in this regard.
What is the ROI on a new cloud solution vs. running the current server based application? Which cloud based productivity tools should you choose for your business? How would I migrate my email from an old Exchange server to Office 365? What about disaster recovery, backup solutions and the ability to recover data in an emergency?
These types of IT related decisions need to be made on a regular basis and the “Reluctant CIO” can be overwhelmed when deciding on best practices and the correct course of action to take for his business.
This is where his trusted advisors become critical to his decision making.
We will examine specific technology advancements and their effect on small business in future weeks. Stay tuned…………..