Despite the economic turmoil caused by the pandemic, the Ukraine war, and other global crises, entrepreneurs are growing their businesses at record rates. The US Business Formation Stats reports that the number of small businesses in the US increased by 2.1% in 2020 over 2019, and small businesses account for 99.9% of all new jobs created yearly.
While starting a company is no easy feat, growing that business and making it profitable is even more challenging. Business owners have to deal with the rapid changes in the workplace, like managing a distributed workforce and adapting to hybrid working.
This is where IT infrastructure management services come into the picture. Managing your IT infrastructure is not possible with a patchwork of disjointed solutions. You need a comprehensive, flexible, and scalable IT infrastructure to eliminate your business’s tech troubles and help it thrive in the new normal.
You can consider the following tips to minimize IT headaches and take your business forward with suitable supporting IT infrastructure systems:
Tip #1: Audit your IT systems periodically and more frequently
The first step to managing your IT infrastructure is to conduct a complete end-to-end audit of your applications, networks, and systems. This helps you get a clear idea of your current IT capabilities and identify areas of improvement. After all, fixing something is impossible when you do not know what’s wrong. You can conduct the review using your in-house IT team or hire expert IT infrastructure management services to help you do the job. At the end of the audit, you can identify your strengths and weaknesses and get a clear idea of the next steps.
Tip #2: Prioritize routine maintenance
While purchasing new equipment and upgrading your old systems to the latest devices might seem tempting, it isn’t feasible in the long run. Constantly replacing old systems with newer ones is expensive and interrupts your business’s smooth flow. The better choice is to focus on extending the lifespan of your existing IT systems while ensuring that they run efficiently. A routine maintenance plan can help you find and fix bugs in your systems while preventing bigger issues in the future.
Tip #3: Focus on security
Data loss and digital attacks are two significant risks that can damage your business’ reputation. Ensure that your team takes security seriously by creating strong passwords and installing anti-virus solutions and firewalls across the entire system. It’s a good practice for the IT team to conduct routine security testing to detect and patch any vulnerabilities. You can outsource network security to expert teams that offer IT infrastructure management services to complete the task efficiently.
Tip #4: Embrace the cloud
Cloud systems provide you with maximum scalability and flexibility. It’s an excellent choice for businesses to build a robust IT infrastructure without investing a fortune in setting up IT systems. You can consider moving a few applications and systems to the cloud instead of investing in legacy systems.
Tip #5: Consider outsourcing IT management
Managing your IT systems is a challenging task. There are tons of activities to be completed like device installation, network security, systems monitoring, maintenance, and troubleshooting. If you do not have the human resources or technical expertise to handle a run a full-fledged IT team, you can consider hiring competent IT infrastructure management services to handle that job for you.
Outsourcing offers numerous benefits like cost-efficiency, technical expertise, and smooth operations, helping your core team focus on your core business operations.
Consider hiring IT consultants to avoid bias and reduce costs
Hiring external IT infrastructure management services can yield the best results, as these teams give you a fresh perspective on your systems. They also have the technical expertise to provide the right insights and help you build a scalable and future-ready IT infrastructure at the best costs.
Consider these tips as a starting point to build a flexible and adaptable IT system that supports and grows with your business.
