Unlocking Enterprise Growth with Smart Technology Expense Management
Small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) feel considerable pressure when forced to compete with larger companies and their robust tech resources. But technology is also a democratizer: countless small companies have used efficient IT practices and smart technology expense management to level the playing field and stay competitive against much larger industry players.
Here’s how to get started, with technology management examples built specifically for SMEs.
Unlocking Growth: Five Technology Expense Management Strategies for SMEs
Technology drives growth for SMEs by enhancing productivity, improving customer experiences, opening new markets, and facilitating innovation. However, these benefits hinge on the efficient and strategic use of the right tools. Without proper management, solutions with high potential can quickly become cost centers instead.
1. Align Tech Investments with Business Goals
Every technology decision must be rooted in business goals. Whether your objective is to improve customer service, expand your market reach, or streamline operations, ensure your tech investments always align with your plans. Even small exceptions can add up over time and derail your technology expense management efforts.
Though SMEs are small by definition, their tech stacks can still grow to be quite large and complex. Over time, hidden complexities tend to become hidden costs that are difficult to pinpoint and eliminate. By making routine IT audits a part of your technology expense management strategy, you give yourself a continual source of data that ensures you can always verify alignment between your current tech usage and future plans.
2. Optimize IT Infrastructure
Optimized IT infrastructure provides a foundation for smooth business operations. As you consider technology solutions, make sure reliability is a top search criterion. Be sure to search customer reviews and search for companies whose needs are similar to yours; reading their experiences can be invaluable.
If you need help consolidating technologies or streamlining your stack, a technology audit can shed light on areas ready for optimization. It also supports an effective expense management process.
3. Leverage Data Analytics
By implementing data analytics tools that gather, analyze, and visualize data, you can derive information that informs your strategic decisions and help pinpoint opportunities for growth and savings. Analyzing data about the technology tools your business uses helps you identify high-use tools and others that may have been abandoned. Leveraging data analytics is an important part of any technology expense management strategy.
4. Prioritize Cybersecurity
When cybersecurity incidents touch down, SMEs often find themselves dealing with large enterprise-sized consequences. By investing in tools and partnerships that support proactive security, you give yourself the best chance to maintain customer trust and avoid (extremely) costly data breaches.
That doesn’t just mean firewalls and virtual private networks (VPNs) — employee education is a significant part of avoiding preventable breaches, and third-party technology expense management partners can help you improve your security posture while lowering your spend. Your ultimate goal is to build a mix of security solutions, partnerships, and education practices that hardens your perimeter and gives you granular control over the entire collection of tools.
5. Don’t Be Afraid to Seek Expert Guidance
Navigating the tech landscape is complex, and standing up to larger competition is never easy. That’s why smaller enterprises excel with the presence of expert IT consultants like Profit Advisory Group. We help you develop an efficient tech strategy, conduct risk-free IT audits, and provide ongoing guidance — giving you information, perspectives, and technology expense management expertise even larger enterprises can struggle to source on their own. Check out some of our customer success stories here.
Ready to do more with your tech and spend less while doing it? Reach out for a no-risk technology expense management review today.