technology | TechSolutions, Inc. Optimized IT solutions supercharge your productivity and growth, and our IT services make it easy to take full advantage. Contact us for a FREE consultation. Thu, 27 Apr 2023 03:41:22 +0000 en-US hourly 1 https://www.techsolutionsinc.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/05/favicon.png technology | TechSolutions, Inc. 32 32 Boost IT investment returns by avoiding these mistakes https://www.techsolutionsinc.com/blog/boost-it-investment-returns-by-avoiding-these-mistakes/ https://www.techsolutionsinc.com/blog/boost-it-investment-returns-by-avoiding-these-mistakes/#respond Sat, 26 Jun 2021 00:00:57 +0000 https://www.techsolutionsinc.com/blog/boost-it-investment-returns-by-avoiding-these-mistakes/ Investing in new IT tools is one of the best ways to improve your business’s efficiency, data security, and ability to serve your customers. But it won’t always produce the outcomes you want if you go about it haphazardly. When purchasing new technology, make sure to avoid these mistakes. Spending without finding the perfect fit […]

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Investing in new IT tools is one of the best ways to improve your business’s efficiency, data security, and ability to serve your customers. But it won’t always produce the outcomes you want if you go about it haphazardly. When purchasing new technology, make sure to avoid these mistakes.

Spending without finding the perfect fit

Advertisers would have you believe that the newest technology will solve all your problems. While the latest cloud or virtualization offering will likely improve things for many companies, they may not work for everyone.

Don’t let the flash and hype of new products impress you. Carefully think about the results you want to achieve with technology. Make a list of your goals and see if they can be fulfilled through a new IT investment. A good IT provider should guide and not confuse you and should see to it that you make the best choice.

Believing everything will magically work together

As technology evolves, it tends to become more user-friendly, helping people work better and faster. However, some solutions do not follow that route and many business owners mistakenly assume that their new tech investments will work well with their existing IT systems.

Incompatible technologies can result in massive and costly downtimes that can cripple your business. Therefore, you need to be smart and do your research, or consult an IT professional before making tech purchases.

Not training your team

Just because you’ve found and purchased powerful new technology that integrates well with your existing infrastructure doesn’t mean you can set them and forget them. New systems won’t magically boost your company’s outputs and increase its bottom line. To achieve your desired results, your team will have to know how to use your tech investments first.

Keep in mind that not all of your employees may be able to quickly get a handle on new tools. Some may simply prefer the technologies they’ve become accustomed to. If you can, have IT experts who have considerable experience in your new tools train your staff. Because of their knowledge, these specialists will know how to simplify complicated steps and can offer tips on how to get the most out of your tech investments. Your IT provider is a good place to start when looking for an expert who will handle training.

Forgetting your budget

More and more IT solutions are packaged with pay-as-you-go monthly pricing. While this is a great way to help you avoid a large upfront capital investment, implementing too many different technologies quickly without thinking about recurring costs can exhaust your finances.

Think carefully before opening your wallet. Do a little research, draft a budget, or get help from a consultant. These steps will spare you from a lot of frustrations in the future.
Not getting feedback

Before you purchase new tech, consult the employees who will be using the new technology on a daily basis. Remember that not everyone may feel at home with fresh tools. They might even discover some downsides you aren’t aware of.

Need an IT professional to create a complete technology solution for your business? We’re happy to serve you.

Published with permission from TechAdvisory.org. Source.

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Boost office productivity with technology https://www.techsolutionsinc.com/blog/boost-office-productivity-with-technology/ https://www.techsolutionsinc.com/blog/boost-office-productivity-with-technology/#respond Thu, 29 Apr 2021 00:00:51 +0000 https://www.techsolutionsinc.com/blog/boost-office-productivity-with-technology/ Technology can provide countless opportunities to streamline workflows, eliminate redundant processes, and reduce costs. If you’re looking to stay ahead of the competition, simple technology strategies like the ones below can dramatically enhance your business performance. Change office communication To increase teamwork and productivity, set up instant messaging software such as Slack or Microsoft Teams. […]

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Technology can provide countless opportunities to streamline workflows, eliminate redundant processes, and reduce costs. If you’re looking to stay ahead of the competition, simple technology strategies like the ones below can dramatically enhance your business performance.

Change office communication

To increase teamwork and productivity, set up instant messaging software such as Slack or Microsoft Teams. These platforms allow employees to communicate in real time instead of communicating through asynchronous methods like email. You can instantly send messages and share files in team chat rooms, saving precious time and allowing you to get more work done. This is especially useful in enabling communications when everyone is working remotely

Install video conferencing

Rather than spending hours getting to and from meetings outside your office, opt for a networked phone solution that offers video calls and conferencing. This way, you can hold a video conference to discuss business matters while in the office, at home, or abroad. You can also record the call so everyone can actively participate in the meeting and review important details for later without having to pause to take notes.

Implement ERP software

Enterprise resource planning (ERP) is a type of software that organizations use to manage various business processes like accounting, project management, and supply chain management. ERP software provides employees with up-to-date business information that they can easily access and use. It eliminates redundant data entry and reduces the number of spreadsheets that are used to record critical business data by storing information in a centralized database.

Once information is in one place, managers have complete visibility across departments, allowing them to make smarter decisions and eliminating organizational silos. For example, supply chain managers can quickly detect when store shelves need to be replenished and send purchase orders to accounting teams for approval.

Upgrade workstations

Outdated technologies and workstations limit your business’s progress, and are a hindrance to developing clued-up, efficient employees. Aging systems and slow networks can frustrate your team and hamper productivity.

That’s why it’s important to thoroughly assess your current workstations, applications, hardware, and tools. While this doesn’t mean that you have to buy a new set of workstations for your entire company, you should at least replace obsolete equipment with more modern machines In addition, make sure all software and applications are up to date to ensure maximum efficiency and employee satisfaction.

To get the maximum return on your technology investment, it’s also important to partner with a knowledgeable and reliable service provider. Get in touch with our IT experts today to find out how we can implement technology to help your employees become more efficient and productive.

Published with permission from TechAdvisory.org. Source.

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3 Technologies that are revolutionizing healthcare https://www.techsolutionsinc.com/blog/3-technologies-that-are-revolutionizing-healthcare/ https://www.techsolutionsinc.com/blog/3-technologies-that-are-revolutionizing-healthcare/#respond Tue, 19 May 2020 00:00:00 +0000 https://www.techsolutionsinc.com/blog/3-technologies-that-are-revolutionizing-healthcare/ Innovations in digital healthcare technologies are significantly changing the way healthcare providers deliver services to patients. Healthcare businesses are now able to address several key industry challenges, including improving healthcare accessibility and revolutionizing drug development. Here’s how three of the latest technologies are shaping the future of healthcare. Artificial intelligence Artificial intelligence (AI) is redefining […]

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Innovations in digital healthcare technologies are significantly changing the way healthcare providers deliver services to patients. Healthcare businesses are now able to address several key industry challenges, including improving healthcare accessibility and revolutionizing drug development. Here’s how three of the latest technologies are shaping the future of healthcare.

Artificial intelligence

Artificial intelligence (AI) is redefining the field of healthcare and all its functions by simplifying the analysis of complex medical data. With AI algorithms and software, healthcare professionals can fast-track medical records processing, treatment planning, and drug development, among other laborious tasks.

When the Ebola virus disease ravaged three nations in West Africa, Atomwise partnered with the University of Toronto and IBM to find a treatment for the virus. The drug discovery company applied AI to a complete database of existing drugs and their side effects to look for one that could be repurposed. The AI tech was able to predict two that could significantly reduce the Ebola virus’s infectivity.

More recently, Google’s DeepMind developed an AI tool capable of spotting breast cancer with as much accuracy as a human radiologist. Google Health and researchers from Imperial College London “trained” a computer to detect abnormalities on nearly 29,000 mammograms of women. The AI then outperformed six human radiologists in a screening trial, suggesting the tool’s potential to improve breast cancer diagnosis at an early stage.

The use of AI is also permeating the pharmaceutical industry, with companies using AI technologies to discover new drug candidates and novel therapeutic solutions. These are only a few of the many instances of companies using AI to automate and expedite highly elaborate processes and ultimately improve the delivery of healthcare solutions.

Augmented reality and virtual reality

Augmented reality (AR) and virtual reality (VR) are immersive technologies that allow users to take in information and content visually. While AR pertains to the use of cameras, sensors, and displays to superimpose digital and real-world elements, VR lets users experience and explore entirely simulated environments.

New AR technologies help doctors and surgeons diagnose, treat, and perform surgery on their patients more precisely by providing them with access to real-time data and patient information. For instance, medical practitioners at Imperial College and St. Mary’s Hospital in London are using Microsoft’s HoloLens AR glasses during reconstructive surgery on patients with severe injuries.

Traditionally, surgeons located major blood vessels near wounds using a handheld scanner. With HoloLens, they can overlay 3D digital models of a patient’s CT scans onto their body parts during surgery to spot key blood vessels, bones, and muscles.

Meanwhile, a recent Harvard Business Review study found that surgeons who have undergone VR-based training performed 230% better compared to their traditionally trained counterparts. In the study, the VR-trained participants finished a surgical procedure 20% faster and completed 38% more steps correctly.

Medical institutions are also using AR/VR technologies to provide students and trainees with hands-on learning experiences, enabling them to better visualize diverse health issues and scenarios. Using immersive technologies can help them accurately learn and practice procedures without the risk of harming real patients if they make mistakes. What’s more, these can allow educators to constantly monitor and give feedback to their students during their education.

Nanotechnology

Nanotechnology is the field of research and innovation concerned with the creation of materials and devices on an extremely small scale. Advancements in this field can pave the way for more effective treatments, rapid diagnosis of diseases, and easier delivery of vaccines through aerosols and patches.

As early as 2014, researchers from the Max Planck Institute designed micro-robots that can swim through bodily fluids and potentially be used to deliver drugs or other medical relief precisely to a target location.

In 2018, researchers from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) and Brigham and Women’s Hospital designed an electronic pill that can be controlled via Bluetooth. The ingestible capsules can be customized to dispatch medicine and transmit diagnostic information back to a smartphone.

More recently, medical technology company Grapheal developed a wearable patch that can help chronic wounds heal more quickly using electrostimulation. This patch would also allow healthcare providers to remotely monitor the condition of a wound using biosensors, or devices that send out signals when they detect the presence or concentration of a specific biological substance.

Future technological innovations are bound to transform the healthcare industry, and it’s our job to make sure it does so for the better.

Call us today and we’ll help you leverage technology to boost your business and help you deliver superior healthcare products and services.

Published with permission from TechAdvisory.org. Source.

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2020 Technology Trends https://www.techsolutionsinc.com/blog/2020-technology-trends/ https://www.techsolutionsinc.com/blog/2020-technology-trends/#respond Mon, 27 Jan 2020 12:17:48 +0000 https://www.techsolutionsinc.com/blog/2020-technology-trends/ Every year, we try to look at different ways the world is transforming as we examine some of the technology trends that will influence small and mid-sized businesses. Below are several trends we have researched and identified as becoming more and more prevalent in 2020. 1. Profit Over Investment Before Election: After two years of […]

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Every year, we try to look at different ways the world is transforming as we examine some of the technology trends that will influence small and mid-sized businesses. Below are several trends we have researched and identified as becoming more and more prevalent in 2020.

1. Profit Over Investment Before Election: After two years of sales growth and high employment, as well as a pending election, business owners will be optimistic this year, but will not spend too aggressively. Many business owners are holding the line on all budgets and maximizing profits for the last year before the election. We expect this to be true for the technology budget as well. This year, IT investments will focus on security, staff augmentation, and automation.

2. Millennial Managers Drive Collaboration: The workplace will be increasingly influenced by the rise of millennials into management positions in addition to the tight labor market currently in effect. These new managers will stress inclusion over exceptionalism. Team goals, team awards, and department bonuses will accompany work flexibility, technology-enabled remote staff, and comforts in the workplace. As a result, we will also see the emergence of new work auditing and performance measurement tools.

3. AI Used in Different Stuff but Doesn’t Take Over: Familiar technologies including Artificial Intelligence (AI), Machine Learning (ML), and speech recognition will emerge as features integrated into new smart devices, tools, and systems this year. Your favorite devices across the home and the office will begin integrating AI to add new features and functions. For example, your new wireless headphones might start learning commands and gestures to save a little time or effort. Or perhaps, your bed might learn to adjust to your nightly sleep patterns. Firewalls, security cameras, TVs, and monitoring devices are doing the same. Just look at the 2020 Consumer Electronic Show held just this month in Las Vegas. AI, ML, and data-enabled devices will begin to change what you expect this year.

4. Extended Reality Happens for Training: Virtual and Augmented Reality have been promising technologies for years … too many years. However, the cost of content development is coming down as tools to build simulated environments have emerged. These new tools can rapidly create virtual environments needed for training, job simulation, and roleplay so that the technology can take its place in being useful for job training and skills assessments. Future applications will include customer training as well.

5. 5G and WiFi 6 Emerge: The next leap in speed for your home and office networks will bring about serious changes in data-driven tools, automation, and robot-supported life. This next step will allow computers to talk to each other faster than the human brain can. The increased bandwidth will be required for self-driving cars, improved security, and telemedicine. Not only will it be much faster, but we will also connect 50 times more devices than we do now. Standards are still being worked out for both 5G and WiFi 6, but with so much at stake, this might be the year it gets resolved.

6. Digital Assistants, Cobots, Exoskeletons Enter the Workplace: This year, we see the incremental leap to augmenting employee performance with physical and cognitive tools. In the office, Cortana, Alexa, and Google devices will begin to provide information access, voice-to-text communications, and office entertainment. The full ironman suit is a few years off, but the next step is Exoskeletons and Collaborative Robots (Cobots). Upgrading a factory so that cobots work alongside existing legacy equipment and human workers is an attractive proposition for many small businesses, and, as it turns out, is less expensive than full automation. Regarding ironman suits introduced at this year’s CES, Delta Airlines is testing a new exoskeleton to help make the job that baggage handlers perform easier on the bones and muscles.

7.California’s EU Style Cybersecurity Rules to Impact Delaware: This year, California’s more aggressive cybersecurity and data protection laws will be fully in effect. These laws, which went live on January 1, will regulate IoT devices, tighten policies on data collection, raise standards for data storage, and provide consumers new rights to accessing their personal data collected by various businesses. There will be a bit of amnesty as the first fines won’t be delivered for about six months. Historically, what starts in California is often copied by Delaware lawmakers. So watch out!

8. More Technologies Become Available in “Subscription Economy”: We always watch for technologies to become accessible to small businesses via subscription, and this year looks to be big. When Salesforce acquired Tableau Software, we saw a flurry of moves by other large platforms to integrate new data analytics packages into their software. Amazon now offers Blockchain-as-a-Service, and AI will soon be offered as a service for increasingly specialized applications. During 2020, no small company will have any excuses left to not use AI, Blockchain, or Business Analytics software.

9. Uber Ecosystems Emerge: In Hong Kong, Uber is pushing new ideas that are also scheduled to roll out in planned communities in the US. Imagine delivery of food (Uber Eats) expanded to include groceries, dry cleaning, pet care, and handyman services. Additionally, there are plans to include new transportation ideas stretching all the way from Scooter services to Air Shuttle services to downtown city locations. Homes, businesses, and lifestyles are optimized for outsourced 24×7 services delivered at a low cost.

10. Cybersecurity as Brand Differentiator: Companies that spend additional monies to protect their data will try to leverage those investments as part of their value proposition. This year, we will see more firms marketing “cybersecurity” or “data privacy” as part of their brand pitch. They will be most visible with national brands who will promise not to sell your data, but also promise to keep it safe. Close to home, professional services firms will take the lead by promoting safe guest WiFi, a secure internal network, and document protection as a differentiator.

By Rich Kenney

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Ensure the privacy of iPhone text messages https://www.techsolutionsinc.com/blog/ensure-the-privacy-of-iphone-text-messages/ https://www.techsolutionsinc.com/blog/ensure-the-privacy-of-iphone-text-messages/#respond Sat, 14 Sep 2019 00:00:09 +0000 https://www.techsolutionsinc.com/blog/ensure-the-privacy-of-iphone-text-messages/ If you’re a business owner who is constantly on the go, you may have become too comfortable texting confidential information using your iPhone. Thankfully, getting back on track is easy. Here are three iPhone privacy settings that will give you an added layer of comfort and security. Turn off message previews How many times per […]

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If you’re a business owner who is constantly on the go, you may have become too comfortable texting confidential information using your iPhone. Thankfully, getting back on track is easy. Here are three iPhone privacy settings that will give you an added layer of comfort and security.

Turn off message previews

How many times per day do you leave your iPhone unattended, sitting face up for any passerby to see? It sounds harmless, but that’s all it takes for the wrong person to glimpse a confidential message. Here are steps to prevent this from happening:

  • Open your iPhone’s Settings app
  • Select Notifications
  • Tap Messages
  • Disable the Allow Notifications option

With the preview setting turned off, you’ll be alerted to a new text message but will have to open the app to see the message contents.

Automatically delete texts

If you lose your phone or someone steals it, thousands of your conversations with your closest confidantes are up for grabs. The easiest way to prevent this nightmarish accident is to configure your iPhone to delete texts after a certain period of time has passed. Follow these steps for this additional security:

  • Open the Settings app
  • Tap Messages
  • Expand the Keep Messages section

From this window, you have options to automatically delete messages after 30 days, a year, or to keep them forever.

Turn off read receipts

When the word “Read” appears under a text message you’ve sent, that word is a read receipt. It lets you know you that the receiver of the text has opened your message. Sometimes it’s convenient, but it does clue people into what you’re doing.

To keep the people you text from seeing read receipts, choose Messages from within your Settings app and disable Send Read Receipts.

These three simple privacy measures will prevent countless awkward, problematic, and possibly dangerous situations. Want more iPhone tips or need a technology question answered? Don’t hesitate to give us a call today!

Published with permission from TechAdvisory.org. Source.

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Reasons to consider online scheduling https://www.techsolutionsinc.com/blog/reasons-to-consider-online-scheduling/ https://www.techsolutionsinc.com/blog/reasons-to-consider-online-scheduling/#respond Fri, 16 Aug 2019 00:00:38 +0000 https://www.techsolutionsinc.com/blog/reasons-to-consider-online-scheduling/ Top-notch care is no longer the sole criterion patients have for choosing which healthcare facility to go to. They now also look for the convenience that online scheduling delivers. Even if the use of smartphones, tablets, and other internet-connected devices has already permeated society, many healthcare facilities have trouble keeping up with the times. But […]

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Top-notch care is no longer the sole criterion patients have for choosing which healthcare facility to go to. They now also look for the convenience that online scheduling delivers.

Even if the use of smartphones, tablets, and other internet-connected devices has already permeated society, many healthcare facilities have trouble keeping up with the times. But those that have kept up with tech trends have seen an uptick in both the number of patients they take in and the quality of care they are able to provide, while facilities relying on the old ways continue to remain stagnant in both areas.

Online scheduling is one of the simplest and most popular technologies used by forward-thinking health clinics and hospitals. It allows patients to see when a doctor is available and schedule an appointment on your website. Practices that use online scheduling are able to reap the following benefits. 

More potential new patients

Today, people are less inclined to make phone calls, especially if it involves ringing up someone they don’t know. For many people looking for a new doctor or specialist, they will simply keep looking for one that has online scheduling to avoid calling. 

More time for your staff, better care for your patients

Think about how much time your staff spend each day answering phone calls from people making an appointment. It’s probably a lot if you have a busy practice. Online scheduling lessens phone time required so that your staff can better focus and care for patients at your facility. As a result, patients will feel truly cared for and will more likely return to the healthcare facility in the future.

Setting appointments beyond clinic hours 

In the past, patients had to wait for the clinic to open just to make an appointment. With online scheduling, patients can simply log in to your website and see when you are available so they can plan their schedule accordingly around their visit.

Still unsure whether you need online scheduling?

Sure, you probably can get away with not having it at the moment, but eventually, most patients will expect this technology from you. And the sooner you roll out online scheduling, the sooner your staff will get the hang of it, and the sooner your patients can enjoy its benefits. 

Need help setting up online scheduling for your practice? Talk to our IT experts today and we’ll make sure this technology will make things easier for your patients.

Published with permission from TechAdvisory.org. Source.

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Tips to monitor employee activities online https://www.techsolutionsinc.com/blog/tips-to-monitor-employee-activities-online/ https://www.techsolutionsinc.com/blog/tips-to-monitor-employee-activities-online/#respond Wed, 10 Apr 2019 00:00:56 +0000 https://www.techsolutionsinc.com/blog/tips-to-monitor-employee-activities-online/ There are a lot of pros and cons when it comes to monitoring your employees online. We’ve put together an honest and transparent list of arguments for and against this practice. And if you decide it is something you want to pursue, we’ve provided some tips for a smooth implementation process. The case for monitoring […]

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There are a lot of pros and cons when it comes to monitoring your employees online. We’ve put together an honest and transparent list of arguments for and against this practice. And if you decide it is something you want to pursue, we’ve provided some tips for a smooth implementation process.

The case for monitoring

There are a number of reasons why monitoring your employees’ activities on company devices is a good idea. Doing so can help you:

  • Protect your organization from data theft or harm – because careless or disgruntled employees may leak or steal your data.
  • Ensure you have a harassment-free workplace – because cyberharassment (sexual or otherwise) happens among employees.
  • Ensure staff are complying with policies – such as not downloading illegal programs or spending time on websites with illegal or hostile content.
  • Provide evidence in case of a lawsuit – heaven forbid this happens, but if an employee participates in illegal activities using your business’s computers, monitoring can provide evidence of who was involved.

The sad fact of the matter is that many business owners who begin monitoring their employees often end up discovering that their staff members aren’t focused solely on the company’s success.

Arguments against employee monitoring

Of course, there are some potential downsides to monitoring that you should be aware of as well. These include:

  • Productivity loss – monitoring can put a damper on employee morale and you may see the distrust lead to productivity losses.
  • Lost privacy and lawsuits – you’ll likely learn personal details of your employees that you would’ve never known about had you not monitored them. You may discover their political or religious views, sexual orientation, or medical problems. This could potentially open up your business to privacy or discrimination issues if you or your management team acts negatively based on any of this information.

Monitoring guidelines to follow

If you decide to monitor your employees, here are a few tips you should follow.

1. Create written policies
When you decide to monitor your employees, ask yourself: Am I doing this for security purposes? Is it to ensure your employees aren’t wasting time on social media? If your monitoring policies are too strict, you could create an atmosphere of distrust.

Set guidelines for acceptable use of email, social media, web browsing, instant messaging, and downloading software and apps. Also, make sure to include how monitoring will be carried out and how data will be secured or destroyed.

2. Tell your employees
It’s important to inform your employees about the scope of your monitoring policies. If they find out you’re doing it without their knowledge, you could face legal issues. By being transparent and open, you may actually see a boost in productivity by deterring employees from wasting time on the web.

When you tell your employees, explain why you’re doing it and the risks your business faces from misuse of digital assets. Reassure them you’re not doing it to spy on their personal life, but to create a compliant and law-abiding workplace. Because their activities will now be less private, encourage your staff to keep their personal communication to their smartphones. Also, provide a copy of your written policy to employees to read and sign.

3. Get the right technology tools
You don’t need to know every little employee activity, so look for apps and software that alert you of the most relevant problems so you can focus on more important tasks.

If implemented correctly, employee monitoring makes your business more secure and productive. For more information about security and other IT support tools, get in touch with us today.

Published with permission from TechAdvisory.org. Source.

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Endure tech disasters with external support https://www.techsolutionsinc.com/blog/endure-tech-disasters-with-external-support/ https://www.techsolutionsinc.com/blog/endure-tech-disasters-with-external-support/#respond Sat, 24 Mar 2018 00:00:44 +0000 https://www.techsolutionsinc.com/blog/endure-tech-disasters-with-external-support/ Three decades ago, the notion of hiring specialists in information technology was virtually unheard of. Nowadays, the majority of businesses are digitally operated, which means technology specialists are a must, especially given the huge increase in different types of security breaches. Determine how external support can back you up in times of technical distress. Access […]

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Three decades ago, the notion of hiring specialists in information technology was virtually unheard of. Nowadays, the majority of businesses are digitally operated, which means technology specialists are a must, especially given the huge increase in different types of security breaches. Determine how external support can back you up in times of technical distress.

Access to new technologies and industry experts

Managed Services Providers (MSPs) are equipped with resources most small businesses can’t afford. They employ teams of experts in fields ranging from cybersecurity to data management to networking — all available for you on an outsourced basis. For example, an MSP provides advanced security software and applications that can help your business avoid the risks of cyberthreat.

They also work with industry tech leaders who provide insights into upcoming hardware and software products in the market. This ensures you receive updated recommendations on the latest technologies so you can use them in your business, and they often come with deals and discounts that you wouldn’t normally have access to.

Knowledge from past breaches

External IT support providers have been helping businesses recover from all kinds of tech disasters since the dawn of hackers. They now have enough knowledge to prepare Data Backup and Disaster Recovery plans for you. This way, you and your team would still be up and running after suffering from an IT emergency without disrupting much of your business operations.

External support providers’ experience with data protection will ensure your systems are monitored around the clock so your security systems are always functioning properly to keep cybercriminals at bay.

Run your business with ease

You don’t specialize in technology, so you don’t have the skill or the experience in dealing with digital felons. You also know how vulnerable your business is online and won’t dare do anything to jeopardize it. That’s why external support is such a great asset — you’ll be able to manage your business without any worries because your external IT provider will keep it protected.

In the end, you also have to be cautious in your search for an external support provider. Conduct your research thoroughly, read through all their testimonial pages, and verify whether their business objectives coincide with yours. To put your mind at ease and to make sure that your business’s technology is in good hands, you can always send us a message and we’ll provide you all the references you need.

Published with permission from TechAdvisory.org. Source.

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Technology ROI 101 https://www.techsolutionsinc.com/blog/technology-roi-101/ https://www.techsolutionsinc.com/blog/technology-roi-101/#respond Tue, 05 Apr 2016 00:00:20 +0000 https://www.techsolutionsinc.com/blog/technology-roi-101/ Your technology needs to produce a return on investment. If it doesn’t, you’re wasting you and your staff’s time and money. But how can you ensure you gain that coveted ROI you’re after? What does it actually mean to have a positive ROI? And how can you tell if you have one? Here are a […]

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2016Apr4_BusinessValue_AYour technology needs to produce a return on investment. If it doesn’t, you’re wasting you and your staff’s time and money. But how can you ensure you gain that coveted ROI you’re after? What does it actually mean to have a positive ROI? And how can you tell if you have one? Here are a few tips for calculating the true costs of a new technology investment.

ROI basics

What does it mean to have a positive return on investment? It’s pretty simple. A positive ROI means the results a technology produces are greater than or equal to the amount of time and money invested. Obviously you want a positive ROI, but when is the right time to consider it? Should it be before or after you make a technology purchase? The answer is both. Before purchasing, you want to carefully consider whether a technology service or product is worth your money. Then months after you’ve implemented it, you should analyze whether or not you made a good investment. Doing this enables you to learn from your mistakes (if you made one) and make a wiser technology purchase next time.

Also, don’t forget to look at your technology currently in use. Ask yourself, is your technology simply keeping the lights on? Or is it providing a solid foundation for your business to grow? If the answer is the former, there are likely better options out there worth trying.

How to calculate ROI

When calculating ROI, it doesn’t have to be perfect. Here is a simple formula to get you started.

ROI = net gain/cost
Example: You spend $100 and make $150. Your net gain is $50
ROI = 50/100 = 50%

If you’ve yet to purchase a service or new equipment, you obviously don’t know how much profit it will generate. So you’ll have to do a bit of guesswork and estimation. It’s also important to consider some intangibles. Think about the productivity costs of staff time, disruption, and frustration (because most of us don’t work effectively when frustrated). Let’s take staff time for example. How much time will your staff save if you implement a Managed Services solution? With your employees no longer having to put out IT fires daily, what if your entire staff saves 50 hours a week because of it? How much does that add up to in saved salary expense? It’s important here not just to think about the savings in time, but also what your staff could be doing with those extra 50 hours. They could put those hours towards marketing or growing your business. And that alone could make up for the costs of the technology investment itself.

Intangibles don’t just apply to saving time, frustration and disruptions, but also the costs of implementing the new technology. For example, how much time will be required to train your staff on the new technology? What’s the cost of that? Also, how much time will it take to migrate from your old system to the new one? You should consider all of these when estimating your ROI.

Lastly, don’t forget to consider the unique circumstance of subscription purchases. Since you are usually paying these on a monthly basis, it can be a bit tricky to add up real costs. That’s why it’s important to use a timeline for these. For example, if you subscribe to software as a service, what’s the cost of that plan over the course of one year or five? How much money will you save over that time span?

What’s the benefit?

Besides the staffing example mentioned above, consider how a technology investment can create new revenue streams. For example, an investment in VoIP opens up an opportunity to offer video consulting to clients in parts of the country (or even world) that would normally be out of reach. This obviously leads to a new revenue stream and increased profits. So ask yourself, can the technology you’re considering create new revenue streams?

Next steps

Before making a technology purchase, it’s wise to talk with both management and end users about your decision. If you fail to consult your end users before implementation, they may disagree with your decision and therefore take longer to adapt or even rebel against it. Checking with them beforehand gives them a chance to offer valuable feedback on how it will be used in the trenches, and will get them onboard with the technology if you implement it. As for your management team, they can be a valuable resource to bounce ideas off of and gain insights about the technology you may have overlooked.

Lastly, ROI does not need to be calculated for every purchase. If you need to buy something small, like a new keyboard, just go and buy it. Save your ROI calculations for much larger investments that can have a dramatic impact on your business.

If you need help determining the ROI of a potential technology investment, feel free to give us a call for a chat. Our experts can help you determine the true benefits of a given technology and help you make a wise investment.

Published with permission from TechAdvisory.org. Source.

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Best Android tablet apps you should have https://www.techsolutionsinc.com/blog/best-android-tablet-apps-you-should-have/ https://www.techsolutionsinc.com/blog/best-android-tablet-apps-you-should-have/#respond Fri, 04 Dec 2015 02:00:22 +0000 https://www.techsolutionsinc.com/blog/best-android-tablet-apps-you-should-have/ Choosing an app for your Android tablet can be daunting. Whether you’re looking for a document reader app or a new web browser, there are many options out there that offer similar features. So how do you know which ones are the best fit for your device? We’ve compiled a list of powerful applications that […]

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AndroidTablet_Dec3_AChoosing an app for your Android tablet can be daunting. Whether you’re looking for a document reader app or a new web browser, there are many options out there that offer similar features. So how do you know which ones are the best fit for your device? We’ve compiled a list of powerful applications that will help you make the most of your Android tablet. Check them out and save yourself from browsing through hundreds of thousands of apps in the store.

Adobe apps

Adobe offers a suite of apps for Android tablets, including the Acrobat Reader, Photoshop, Illustrator, Premiere Clip, AIR, and so much more. These are all very useful for processing images, opening documents, and editing files. If you happen to be a user, most of the Adobe apps also work well with Creative Cloud.

Flipboard

Flipboard is a popular news application that uses a magazine-style interface. This app allows you to stay up-to-date with news and topics you’re interested in. You can easily customize your news digest from your favorite sources, such as Facebook, Twitter, RSS feeds, The New York Times, and more.

Google Drive

With Google Drive, you gain access to a suite of powerful apps including Google Docs, Google Sheets, Google Slides, Google Keep and much more. Google Drive offers 15GB of free storage, which you can use to store all kinds of digital files and access them from anywhere.

Kindle

There are tons of ebook reader apps out there, but few can measure up to Amazon’s Kindle app. Kindle provides you with more than a million ebooks to download and read on your Android device. You can also manually download different books in various formats, and then transfer them to an external storage device.

CamScanner

This nifty application allows you to use your Android tablet’s camera to scan documents such as invoices, forms, and receipts, and have them exported in PDF format. You can store, sync, and collaborate on these documents across any number of web-enabled devices. The app also comes with support for fax sending, OCR, printing, and more.

LastPass

We get it – you have numerous accounts for social networks, apps and websites, and memorizing all of your passwords can be confusing. LastPass is a password management application that will securely store your passwords, and automatically log you into various apps and websites. With LastPass, you don’t have to remember every password you use.

Zedge

Zedge is a search engine for downloading ringtones, notification sounds, wallpapers, and themes. It is a good place to start if you’re looking to customize the look and feel of your device in order to give it a personal touch. It’s super popular among Android tablet users, with millions of freebies available and a simple user interface.

These applications are far from being a comprehensive list, but they can help optimize the performance of your device. If you want to learn how to use Android tablets to boost your business’s efficiency, give us a call today.

Published with permission from TechAdvisory.org. Source.

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