We all know that technology plays a significant role in running any business nowadays. It's essential to opt for the right tools and platforms that will help improve the overall performance of your business. However, choosing the right technology can be challenging. Too many options and too little knowledge fuel hesitation on making changes.
The stakes have arguably never been higher. According to the Australian Bureau of Statistics, 24% of Professional workers changed jobs last year. The 2nd highest reason people gave for their change was due to their working arrangements. This included not only WFH and flex working, but also having the right tools (technology) to do their job.
Ensuring workers have the right systems and tools to do their job is a major factor in building workplace happiness & productivity.
So if the benefits are obvious, why are SMB's held back by indecision?
In this blog post, we will dive deeper into the good, the bad, and the ugly sides of technology indecision.
Technology indecision can be a good thing, as it leads to thorough consideration of available options. By taking time to evaluate different technologies, you can determine which tools best fit your business needs.
In most cases, the extra time and effort to ensure that you have chosen the right technology or service will serve you well in the long run. This indecision helps you avoid buyer's remorse, which happens when you invest in the wrong tool, platform or service provider.
It's worth noting however, thorough consideration can quickly turn bad. It's important to have a framework for decision making and a clear awareness as to when enough is enough.
Hot Tip: Always evaluate options by their intended results, rather than their features. This approach is more likely to keep you out of the weeds, focussing on the end game rather than getting stuck in the detail.
Additionally, look for differences between your alternatives, rather than trying to compare apples with apples. This will aid decisions and ensure they're easier to make.
We all know the famous saying, "Time is Money." Delaying decisions can cost you in the long run. There are hundreds of ways to say “Let’s wait until…”, in the hope that new information will make your decision easier.
More often than not, it's only made easier when waiting is no longer an option. At this point, a lack of investment in technology has likely cost considerable amounts of time, productivity and lost opportunity. Moreover, any change more than likely will now cost more.
Not adopting the latest technologies used in industries could lead you to be left behind in a rapidly moving market. Your competitors could be using the latest tech that automates their tasks, thus improving their productivity and sales while you remain stuck in the old ways.
Many businesses lament after an upgrade that they should have done it much sooner.
In some cases, indecision leads to decision paralysis. A slow poison that will slow you down and kill your morale. People frozen by indecision often create a willingness to abdicate responsibility, which in turn breeds apathy amongst a business. The damages of this can be far wider reaching than productivity and morale.
The inability to make a decision can lead to failure to move forward. As a result, it can lead to an increased lack of productivity and missed opportunities, not just from lost time, but from lower workplace morale, drive & enthusiasm.
Technology is essential and can be the driving force behind innovations that would lead to higher levels of business success. Research has shown that SMBs with mature IT capabilities are twice as likely to achieve 30% or more workplace productivity gains.
The inverse of course is lower productivity, reduced morale, higher staff turnover and ultimately lower profits.
Technology indecision also hits the hip pocket. A "stitch in time saves nine" is an accurate statement in regards to maintaining IT systems, tools and infrastructure.
Failing to act costs businesses on average ~20-30% more on infrastructure spend alone. With many IT investments having a 10x ROI or more, the cumulative gains lost can be what separates the good, the bad, and the ugly.
Technology indecision has it's ups and downs. It can indeed lead to thorough discussion that will help you make the right decision. However, this extra time invested can also lead to missed opportunities. Moreover, sometimes indecision could lead to decision paralysis that could have prevented you from taking your business to the next level.
The most common barrier we see stopping SMBs from making confident decisions is the adage, "We don't know what we don't know". It's important to have an IT partner that helps you make decisions. Being well informed, understanding options and outcomes enables businesses to make quick, confident and profitable decisions.
Perhaps the first decision you need to make is to switch managed service provider? Book a chat with us if you want to stop making difficult decisions around technology spend.
