An inefficient IT infrastructure can quickly stifle business growth and cause numerous problems in today’s technology-dependent world. The quality and suitability of your IT framework plays a pivotal role in your company’s success, which is why it’s so important for everything to run smoothly. As such, you should regularly reevaluate your setup, and when doing so be sure to look out for the following signs:
#1. Energy Bills Are Too High
Of course, computers require energy, but with today’s energy-efficient appliances, there’s no reason why your energy bills should be sky high. Excessive use of electricity points to a highly inefficient system, typically one with inadequate cooling or dated components. On-premises servers can be particularly expensive to run; hence many smaller businesses are migrating to the cloud.
#2. You’re Struggling to Meet Compliance Standards
Many industries are subject to strict government-mandated regulations that dictate what you can and cannot do with customer data. Meeting these standards is crucial to the success of your business, and failing to do so may leave your company open to fines and a damaged reputation. If you’re using old systems maintained by an on-premises team, meeting compliance standards can be even more challenging.
#3. You Are Upgrading Often
With the fast pace of technological development, it’s only reasonable to expect to upgrade your systems every so often. Nonetheless, if you find yourself investing in new hardware every year or two, you’re probably spending far more than you need to. In fact, sometimes it’s more expensive to upgrade existing systems than to buy new ones.
#4. Employees Are Feeling Demotivated
No one wants to sit and stare at a loading screen or progress bar before they can even get to work. If employees are waiting for systems to boot or applications to load up, then they’re wasting their time and your business is wasting money. Inefficient computers and software are some of the main reasons behind poor productivity and lack of team motivation.
#5. Computers Keep Crashing
Unexpected downtime is the bane of any IT department. Aside from stifling productivity and causing frustration, regular system crashes often lead to more serious issues, such as malicious software or severe malfunctions. In other cases, your systems might not be able to handle the workloads you throw at them. Whatever the reason, if computers keep crashing, it’s time for a change.
#6. Your Infrastructure Lacks Flexibility
In today’s global economy, businesses of all types and sizes have opportunities to expand into new marketplaces, but only if their existing infrastructure allows them to. If your current systems lack flexibility and scalability, any opportunities for growth are likely to be severely stunted. That’s perhaps the most oft-cited reason companies have for migrating to the cloud.
#7. You Suffered a Data Breach
Cybersecurity should be at the forefront of any IT strategy. It’s something that your company simply cannot afford to compromise on. If your network has suffered a data breach, then it’s time to conduct a complete cybersecurity audit of the entire system. There’s a good chance that the underlying cause of the problem was outdated or malfunctioning systems, in which case it’s definitely time to rethink your IT security strategy.
#8. You’re Using Multiple Systems to Complete a Single Task
If your employees are using multiple applications and systems to carry out a single task, chances are that they’ll be wasting valuable time and resources. Instead of relying on a mishmash of different products supported by different developers, you may want to consider tailored software development and/or cloud implementations that streamline and centralize all core business processes.
Whether it’s obsolete technology nearing the end of its lifecycle or poorly implemented systems that don’t work well together, an inefficient IT infrastructure is not something any business can afford if it wants to grow and succeed.
Dyrand Systems provides worry-free IT solutions for businesses in Vancouver. By taking advantage of our tailor-made managed services, you’ll be able to focus on the things that keep your business moving forward. Contact us today for a free assessment.