The small and mid-sized business segment is very diverse. Business as small as 1 or 2 people up to 100 or more fall into this categorization. You might think that it would be difficult to provide some general IT rules that could apply across such a heterogeneous market place. But I don’t think so. I have five rules for the SMB, no matter how big or small, that can be used to better manage information technology.
- Rent Don’t Buy – As a rule the SMB should preserve capital and look to purchase technology services. Today this is more feasible than ever. Software, platforms, servers – all of the critical components of an SMB technology strategy can be purchased as a service rather than investing in hardware, software and integration. Of course small purchases like PCs, printers, etc make sense. But as a rule, the SMB should buy services – not the technology.
- Get Service Providers Not Consultants – The SMB needs a solution not a project. Think in terms of getting turn-key solutions from Service Providers rather than traditional systems projects from consultants. The way to tell the difference is in the approach. A Solution Provider has an answer and can show you how to make that answer work for you. A Consultant asks a question and then works to help you develop an answer that is specific to your needs. The difference is like buying a house from a builder that offers standard models with various options and upgrades as opposed to hiring an architect and building a custom home. Get the package, not the ala carte.
- Leverage Technology for Quality and Agility - Competition in the future will focus on quality and agility. The current advantage of low cost producers to win business on price alone will be threatened by higher transportation costs and the trend for smaller production runs. In order to stay competitive in mature markets like the US, Canada or Europe, the SMB will need to leverage technology for accurate forecasts, reliable production control and repeatable processes. Consistency, high quality and on time delivery will be the competitive model of the future. Technology will be the leverage required to achieve these goals and stay profitable.
- Don’t Under Estimate Maintenance and Security – Most SMB do not have adequate maintenance and security for their IT systems and infrastructure. System maintenance is critical for consistent and reliable performance. Systems that are properly updated, effectively protected from virus or spyware, properly configured with appropriate security policies and monitored for physical error or performance degradation are critical to the success of any business. Keep your systems maintained and secure.
- Backup and Have a Disaster Recovery Plan – How will your business recover from accidental or malicious data destruction? What happens in the event of a natural disaster or fire? Can you recover critical business data? Most businesses, of all sizes, do not have adequate disaster recovery and business continuity plans in place. For the SMB these plans do not have to be overly complex. However, without adequate and verifiable backups for system and data recovery and a plan for restoring business operations in the event of a disaster, the likelihood of a business surviving a catastrophic loss of data is very low. Backup your systems and have a recovery plan in case of disaster.
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