Saving money is important in business. There are consultants that businesses of every size hire just to determine where they can save budget. But there’s something that’s important to understand when it comes to making compromises with your technology. We mitigate risk every single day. Companies don’t have endless technology budgets, so our strategy manager works closely to determine where best to spend technology budget to maximize benefit and reward without compromising security. It is a fine balance. But what happens when the compromise that you’re making is too great? What happens when you rationalize away the need for essential IT security and infrastructure? You might go down. You might lose data. You might even lose customers. But you know that, and you’re willing to take that risk. You’re a savvy business owner that has truly weighed the risk in your mind. But what about what you haven’t weighed? What about the impact of business technology compromise on your quality of life? For those that are currently compromising their technology in favor of budget, here’s how its impacting your quality of life:
Your Health
Your health is fine. You go to the gym and you watch what you eat and for the most part, being someone that leads a desk life (even as an executive) you’re a pretty healthy person. But does any little part of you worry about what would happen if a disaster struck your business? Or think, “What happens if someone hacks into our system?” Or perhaps wonder, “I hope our backup has been running. I haven’t gotten any information or reports in a couple weeks.” Just like house work or bills or traffic contribute a small amount of stress to your life that adds up and impacts your emotional health, your neglected technology is a burden that is constantly (whether you realize it or not) in the back of your head. And if you really want to know what that stress is doing to you, check out this infographic from OfficeVibe.com. It tells us some of the impacts of work stress:
Your Family
You work hard so that your family can have the quality of life that they deserve. The best schools for your children, the best home for your family and catering to basic needs like clothes and food. It can feel like a lot of pressure. In some cases the pressure of providing for your family can be a contributing cause to the neglected technology for small businesses. Small business owners might see that saving money on technology is allowing them to provide for their family, when the reality is that technology compromise is detracting from your family life. Why is that? Spending a few hours for a fire drill when phone systems are down or internet service is interrupted doesn’t seem like much – but when you find yourself putting off vacation because of unreliable technology or constantly interrupting family events while you sit with your face in your phone answering vendor e-mails – it’s less than ideal. Your technology compromises could be impacting your family life in ways that you don’t even realize. But look closely and you might see some trends.
Your Money
No one wants to increase budget for something that is viewed as theoretical return. But when you cheap out on your technology, you’re really costing yourself money. Don’t believe me? According to our business continuity infographic, a single day of downtime for a single server at an organization with less than 100 employees costs an average of $12,500. That doesn’t even begin to account for the increased efficiency that you’re missing out on because of your outdated technology. The fact is that IT has been proven to boost your bottom line. If you think that you can’t possibly run more efficiently than you already do – think again. IT professionals have the expertise needed to tell you exactly where your bottle necks are happening and what you can do about them. You’re an expert in your business, don’t make assumptions before you bring in an expert in the technology realm.
If you knew for certain that technology could improve your quality of life would it change your stance on how you view the relationship with your managed services provider or in-house resource? I’m telling you that I see that happen every single day. I see employees’ lives that are made easier with improved technology workflows, better connections and faster networks. I see less user frustration. I see happier customers. I see profitable businesses become even more profitable. It’s hard to change something that seems to be working. But if you consider yourself an innovative business owner and value your quality of life – it might be time to consider a change.