The effect that the Covid-19 pandemic will have on our economy is not yet entirely clear. What is fairly inevitable, however, is that the economy will take a huge hit, and we will likely enter into a period of recession. Whilst many of us remember the crash of 2008 like it was yesterday, the one small advantage we have today is that we can see a recession coming and we can prepare accordingly. Of course, there’s no way to guarantee that a business will continue to make a profit, or even survive, during a recession, but it is important to prepare your business in the best way you can. Now is the optimal time to re-evaluate your IT infrastructure and systems to ensure that you are getting value for money from your technology.
Evaluate Your IT Needs
Critical IT Functions
First and foremost, you need to consider what IT functions are most critical to running your business. For example, Wi-Fi, cloud systems and cyber security: without these working correctly, most businesses would cease to function.
Creating New Business
Secondly, you need to decide which functions are most important for creating new business. During a recession you need to be thinking about how to create new business and increase your revenue. You need to decide what technology you need to maintain, such as antivirus software and what is extraneous, for example, unused software licences.
Is Your Current System Working
Finally, you need to look at what you’re spending and decide whether you are getting value for money. Is there anywhere you can save costs? If you have an in-house IT team, you should consider outsourcing your IT to ensure maximum efficiency.
Make Your IT Cash go Further
Spend Smart
In times of recession you want to stretch your budget as far as you can to ensure that your business is running at a cost-effective level. However, as the saying goes, you have to spend money to make money. There are a few things you should invest in to ensure business continuity. This includes:
- Security – without decent network security, your business is at risk from cyber criminals. A security breach could lead to data being stolen and consequently violations of GDPR and other regulations.
- Product warranties – hardware can be very expensive. Spending on product warranties means you are able to stretch the lifetime of your hardware further. The last thing you want during a recession is to spend hundreds on a piece of hardware only for it to break soon after.
- Cloud storage and backups – storing data on the cloud has benefits including lower costs, accessibility, scalability, disaster recovery and security. Your business relies on it and therefore it is important to invest in.
Outsource Your IT
In evaluating where it is possible to cut costs, it is important to carefully consider your IT support. If you have an in-house IT team, now may be the time for you to outsource your IT. Ultimately, you want to choose the most effective way to support your systems and your people to ensure your business can continue running as usual.
Outsourcing your IT means that you have a consistent expense that you can budget for. Furthermore, you will be able to plan for flexible IT support as your business changes. Additionally, it allows you to take advantage of the greater knowledge base that comes with a larger team. An experienced IT company will have dealt with a wide range of issues just like yours. Consequently, they will be able to pinpoint issues faster and solve them quicker.
Cardonet have been working with businesses for the past twenty years to help them overcome their technological challenges. Our group of highly experienced engineers are available 24/7 to assist and ensure that your IT infrastructure is running seamlessly.
If you are spending too much time dealing with technology issues and if those issues are affecting your team and customer experience, call us on +44 203 034 2244 or +1 323 984 8908. Alternately, you can contact us online. We will be happy to help you overcome your IT challenges so that you can focus on what you do best during the downturn.
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