Digital technologies have undeniably changed the way that we perform a myriad of professional tasks. From the rise of digital communications and remote working technologies over the past decade, to the growing potential of the Internet of Things, there are an abundance of emerging technologies and software solutions out there that are, in short, capable of actually revolutionising your enterprise.
So where exactly do you begin? Picking and choosing from the expansive ecosystem of digital technologies is daunting, to say the very least. That’s why assessing the current and projected needs of your company is essential in organising your company’s tech investments and infrastructure. We’ll be outlining 6 tech investments that are not only most commonly sought after today, but are also more likely to provide a higher and more direct ROI.
Read on to start mapping out your business tech investments today.
1. Cloud optimisation
Arguably, the most frustrating component of onboarding new staff and growing your workforce is increasing the size and complexity of your office network and workplace apps. That’s what makes cloud cost management high up on the list of essential investments for companies experiencing growth periods.
Although some aspects of cloud optimisation can be conducted by in-house IT technicians (like amending storage and selecting software with more cost-efficient licensing agreements), these manual amendments can only save so much and for however long until your company’s cloud infrastructure experiences any kind of growth. This pain point is ultimately what created a demand for AI-operated cloud optimisation services.
By setting up automated optimisation measures for your workplace Kubernetes clusters, you can drastically reduce your risks of overprovisioning for your company’s cloud infrastructure. In other words, cloud cost management can effectively allow your enterprise to enjoy all the benefits of cloud computing at only a fraction of the costs you’d be paying otherwise.
2. Project management software
And now that you have all these additional cloud computing capabilities, what should you aim to do with them? For many enterprises that are still maintaining hybrid work models for their staff, investing in collaborative software has become a genuine no-brainer. Having software solutions that allow your employees to work remotely and even across different time zones, has opened up new opportunities for agile business growth.
One of the most effective software solutions that you can add to your business network is a good project management tool. Most businesses utilise project management software to break down larger projects into individual components. These components can also be assigned to select employees, creating digital tasks with their own ascribed deadlines.
There are also a wide range of different project management tools to select from, which means you can just shop around and enjoy a few free trials to find a software solution that works for you. Do you want an application that has an integrated communications channel? Or do you want a simple pinboard-style UI that allows you to see tasks as items on a to-do list? It’s all up to you.
3. Data analytics tools
Investing in data analytics is rapidly becoming a non-negotiable standard for all growth-oriented businesses. At the risk of sounding overdramatic, a failure to invest in data analytics tools could just as easily be considered an act of negligence for business owners.
How so? Well, the sheer amount of information that can be gleaned from your business data can help shape your development or growth strategising with minimal effort from your company’s management team. You can simply let your company’s marketing, web performance, or sales data speak for itself, and then respond to the findings of your analytics efforts.
There are data analytics tools that can provide insights to various elements of your business operations, ranging from insights across your sales funnel to website and social media performance metrics. Utilising these tools can help you maintain performance that rivals your main competitors.
4. CRM software
Speaking of attaining insights into your sales funnel, one business tech investment that’s effectively designed to provide a strong ROI is CRM (or ‘customer relationship management’) software. As its name suggests, CRM software is designed to track your company’s marketing efforts over all channels, providing a whole-systems approach to managing communications with both prospective customers as well as previous customers.
With a CRM software solution at your disposal, you can maintain a stronger picture of your customer engagement metrics as well as how your business is performing in accordance with current consumer trends. CRM software can also help you increase your chances of experiencing repeat business, as software can be used to manage email marketing campaigns.
As CRM software enables businesses to see what their customers see when engaging with your marketing materials at every stage of the customer journey, this software can play a pivotal role in the optimisation of marketing campaigns and customer engagement strategising.
5. Workflow automation
There are likely to be elements of your business operations that are a bit of a bore to carry out. Thankfully, gone are the days where you need to trudge along with administrative tasks that eat straight through your workday. With workflow automation processes in place, you can effectively automate the more rote components of your company’s daily operational activities, allowing you and your wider staff to save hours out of their week.
Workflow automation processes can be carried out by IIoT-compatible software solutions. For example, a smart scale located on a production line can automatically weigh products and send that information to a central data hub, or a piece of performance software. From here, human users can receive data pertaining to the weight of products on their production lines without having to be on the factory floor themselves.
And as IIoT technologies grow increasingly complex, so too does the potential of workflow automation. Now, whole production systems and operational pathways can be automated to a greater scale. So not only will you be able to determine the weight of products, but you may even be able to sort products by weight and even send them off to shipping using this information. The sky’s the limit when it comes to this particular investment option.
6. Cybersecurity tools
Finally, with rates of cybercrime on the rise across Australia, it’s in your company’s best interests to start investing in the development of a dynamic cybersecurity strategy right now. And by ‘dynamic cybersecurity strategy’, we mean one that has many digital security measures and components. It’s not enough to just be reliant on an anti-malware package, but pairing antivirus software with network security assets like a VPN and a firewall can help add extra layers of security to your business’ digital infrastructure.
Password managers are another cybersecurity tool that could prove highly beneficial for your business, especially if you have teams that share logins for digital accounts. And if you’re looking for a hardware investment, consider adding some ethernet switches to your office spaces so that you can configure VLANs (or ‘virtual local area networks’) and segment your office network traffic.
By putting these cybersecurity measures into place now, you can help protect not only your enterprise and your employees, but also any sensitive personal data relating to your customer base. In this regard, an investment in cybersecurity is just as much for preserving the trustworthiness and reputability of your enterprise as it is for actually protecting your company and all of its digital assets.
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You can likely already tell just how the technologies outlined here can effectively pay for themselves. The funds and countless man hours saved by utilising all of the 6 technologies explored above can provide more than enough space for business owners to focus on what matters most: planning their next steps and thinking big-picture.
