Business Technology Is an Investment, Not a Drain

In 2020, now more than ever, business technology is an integral part of a modern organization.

Businesses that want to be competitive today need to ensure they are well-versed in the interconnectedness fostered by a digital and highly technical environment.

The increasing emphasis on technology and cost is apparent in the modern marketplace, with the business tech industry clearing nearly $4 trillion in sales in technology annually.

Though decision makers and executives are keen to invest—around three-quarters of them are eager to embrace new technology—there are still significant hurdles.

The most significant of these is that introducing tech into a business can be a difficult and confusing task for many, leading to unsatisfactory results or outright failure.

The end result of this is that investment in technology itself can be viewed as a negative, rather than the poor implementation.

Business Technology Spending In the Digital Age

IT spending is on the increase among organizations, regardless of industry.

While some of this cash outlay can be chalked up to replacing outdated systems, one in four businesses are adding technology assets due to recent security issues.

Other data shows:

• Forty-four percent of businesses are planning on increasing their technical spending in 2020
• AI-powered tech for businesses is predicted to triple by 2020 with edge computing doubling in the same time period
• 5G technology will be adopted by two-thirds of enterprises with 5,000 or more employees by 2021

However, while businesses are busy digitally transforming to reduce costs, increase productivity, and boost revenue, there can be an inherent trend toward wasting money spent on technology when effective leadership isn’t driving tech spending.

Need examples? How about:

• Companies in the U.S. are wasting an average of $247 on rarely used or unused software for every desktop
• The total cost of wasted technology is $30 billion annually
• Outdated technology causes 18% of employees to turn to unauthorized third-party apps that can lead to issues with security
• Companies lose $11K to $15K per employee per year due to ineffective or inefficient communication

In this way, outdated technology or technology that’s been implemented poorly, under lax leadership, or to find a “quick fix” for a critical issue can result in a waste of budget dollars with minimum benefit.

That’s why savvy businesses looking to digitally transform to leverage technology are focusing on ensuring tech dollars spent are bringing the kind of investment value for which they were intended.

It’s also why managed service providers, which have done these implementations time and again, are being sought out more readily for their expertise in digital transformation projects.

Ways to Ensure Your Business Technology Spending Isn’t Wasted

Technology is a necessary part of doing business successfully in today’s digital marketplace.

But to reap the true value of technology, companies must employ the kind of strategic thinking that curtails needless spending and ensures tech spends provide the highest ROI possible.

Fortunately, there are many ways to achieve this, including:

1. Making a Plan and Tracking Spending

After you’ve identified growth-enhancing business capabilities, spend time researching the tech investments required to support them.

Once you have a roadmap, pinpoint where your expenditures will provide the most significant ROI.

Sometimes a great ROI can be easily attained by finding low-hanging fruit in your company in need of digitization.

A common example is migrating your email server to the cloud—simple, quick, and very cost-effective.

Continue to calculate the cost of technology and reevaluate at regular intervals to avoid overspending.

2. Streamlining SaaS

Streamlining your SaaS subscriptions can help you avoid common budget-busters like siloing and dupes.

Siloing makes it challenging to share information across platforms.

Duplicate data not only takes time and resources to eliminate, but it can result in dataset inaccuracy if the information isn’t consolidated properly.

Other dupes that can affect your budget are duplicate applications, or two or more applications purchased to complete the same task.

3. Using Certified Business Technology Vendors

When you buy trusted technological solutions from certified vendors, you can be sure you’re purchasing the appropriate application for your task.

When organizations purchase tech “on the fly” without the assistance of an expert, it’s not uncommon for them to pick the cheapest solution—a choice that can lead to problems down the line if it turns out the solution is not everything you thought it was.

42% of applications are replaced after only two years due to ineffectiveness, resulting in additional cost and loss of productivity as employees are forced to learn a new application.

4. Understand Risk Versus Reward

To curtail spending, organizational leadership should understand potential risks and value and measure them against transitional, executional, or operational costs before purchasing and deploying additional technology.

Why an MSP is a Critical Partner for Tech-Savvy Businesses

Managed service providers (MSPs) who are certified and partnered with trusted vendors can provide enormous value to a business because of their access to established industry solutions.

MSPs have worked across a variety of industries and situations, so they have insight and understanding of the inner workings, goals, and roadblocks for nearly any business situation.

This expertise allows them a fuller understanding of the most cost-effective solution to fit your business goals.

MSPs focus on strategizing for the future to develop a stable, long-term plan for IT that can help streamline your budget and provide the highest level of utility for optimal ROI using only what you have set aside.

Takeaways

• IT spending is on the increase. Businesses are digitally transforming to reduce costs, increase productivity, and boost revenue, but there are many who are unwittingly wasting the money spent on tech
• Technology is a necessary part of doing business successfully in today’s digital marketplace. To reap the value of technology, businesses must employ strategic thinking to curtails needless spending and ensures tech spends provide the greatest ROI possible
• The best ways to control waste are to streamline SaaS solutions, make a plan and track spending, use certified vendors, and understand risks and rewards
• Using an MSP is a crucial way to control tech spending. MSPs who are certified and work with trusted vendors have the tech knowledge necessary to avoid duplicate and excess spending while allowing businesses to reach targeted goals

Impact is one of the leading independent managed service providers in the country. We’ve been in the business of helping SMBs realize their goals for 20 years, and we will continue to do so for many years.

The wealth of expertise we have at Impact is one of the many reasons our thought-leadership blog is recognized as one of the Top 25 Digital Transformation blogs by Feedspot.

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