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Connecting to the modern digital world of work | Part Two

Posted on by Dave Sutton

The modern world is constantly changing and evolving, and this – and the times that we are working in – has forced business owners to discover the potential of technology when used correctly in the workplace.

If we take a look at the two goals we outlined from the previous article, and explore how to go about achieving them, in the process we will be making it possible for your business to continue growing and thriving long into the future.

Let us remind ourselves what those challenges/goals are:

  1. Lower risk – increase levels of security and compliance
  2. Increase profit and productivity.

Let us now briefly explore what you can do to assure that you achieve your goals.

  1. Lower risk – increase levels of security and compliance

Try splitting your goals into four sub-categories – in this way you will have a better chance of achieving them. They are as follows:

  • A cultural change
  • Infrastructure
  • Technical controls

A cultural change

The main cultural change in modern business would be regarding security, which should always be the main priority for every single member of the team. We do understand that it is not easy to distil this attitude in your team, but, with an accumulation of the right training, education, and support for your users, it is more than possible. They must be trained on the basic and advanced security measures taken by the organisation. Some security measures include passwords, the dangers of Shadow IT, and how to spot Phishing Emails and Ransomware attacks. All may sound like a foreign language but with the right IT consultancy around cyber security, you will be familiar in no time.

Infrastructure

You must be certain that you own and have control over every end user device – full authority over what your employees can access and – even more crucially – what device they are accessing it on is crucial. Doing so will ensure you have the most secure infrastructure possible for your organisation.

Technical controls

If your team work on mobile devices they must be encrypted. We have all lost a mobile phone at some point in our lives – if someone picks it up they will have access to everything on it. Mobile encryption stops your data from falling into the wrong hands were you to lose it or if it was stolen.

  • Firewalls are key to protecting your systems from cyber attacks. A Firewall acts as a gatekeeper to your system and a filter between your computer and the internet – it only allows through what is safe and blocks access to unfriendly/unfamiliar data and entities. A Firewall is ‘your silent cyber security partner’ which allows you to carry on doing your daily activities whilst protecting your system silently in the background.
  • Anti-Malware software plays a pivotal role in the cyber security of your organisation. Anti-Malware software is a program designed with the sole purpose of preventing, detecting, and removing any malicious software on your IT systems. Malware can take many forms – all are malicious, some of the ways they are utilised are in the form of viruses, rootkits, spyware, or (most commonly) Ransomware – all of which have the ability to completely stop your organisation functioning from the inside.
  • ALL Shadow IT must go! Undoubtedly – like most businesses around the world – you have a hierarchical system in your workplace, with the access your users can enjoy reflecting their station. Tests should be carried out to highlight what potential impacts the new tech you want to introduce to your team could have (if any occur) and what can remedy those inefficiencies if they arise. Shadow IT is introduced privately, often outside of normal business practice, therefore it does not undergo these checks. Your users are just trying to make the business process faster for themselves (or potentially slightly easier) but, little do they know that, because this Shadow IT has not undergone the checks, the potential for a rise in cyber attack is high. If allowed to continue operating, these tools have the power to cause irreparable damage to your IT infrastructure, in the process potentially leaving your business unable to operate altogether.

Data

You must know as much about your data as possible – you must know where it is stored and who has access to it.

  • Increase profit and productivity

As we did earlier, we can split this into two subheadings:

  • Integration and automation
  • The right tools.

Integration and automations

  • Microsoft – Offering the most extensive suite of familiar tools on the planet provides unrivalled tools in terms of functionality and quality. Microsoft Teams is one of the newest additions to the Microsoft suite – its range of tools to promote communication, collaboration, and productivity from anywhere in the world has led to it amassing a daily following of an astounding 250 million people worldwide – in an astonishing 181 countries. The best thing about the Microsoft’s suite is the integration it has, as well as its ability to allow automation. With everything in the same place – as well as the ability to release your skilled staff from mundane tasks – you can save time and boost the productivity levels of your team.
  • Education and training is very important. Your staff need to have an understanding of the hardware and software they are using – even if at a very basic level. This is a big benefit to your business – most importantly for security purposes but also in your quest to improve productivity levels. It is that knowledge which your users have discovered about the tools they use every day that will ensure they are as productive as possible.

We hope that these two articles have enlightened you to the possibilities of modern-day technology in the workplace, and also the potentially disastrous security and productivity effects of continuing to use dated tools and practices. Adopting modern procedures and tools will jettison your business to a far more prosperous future with tech as a power ally.

Your business IT support partner

Uptech is the leading IT support company in Kings Lynn and West Norfolk. We are passionate about the support we offer businesses like yours; providing Enterprise-level tools, Cyber Security Solutions, and IT hardware to businesses in need of a helping hand. Established in 1994, Uptech offers High-end IT Services to Businesses with 5-200 staff, with multiple locations (including WFH), keeping them all Connected. We have helped our clients grow and progress their IT, allowing them to become more profitable and productive. Contact us now to find out how we can help you.

CTA A Digital World

Connecting to the modern digital world of work | Part One

Posted on by Dave Sutton

The modern world we live in is run digitally – if the digital world ceased to exist then the human race would feel like they’d gone back to the dark ages! Some of the biggest advancements have taken place over recent years, and with-it business owners – with a keen eye on the future – have noticed the potential that tech can employ in the workplace. If used correctly, the possibilities are endless.

In the following two articles we will take a close look at some of the challenges that businesses are facing in the modern digital age, as well as some of the digital tools that can help alleviate those issues.

Not many business owners can pick out a positive from last year’s turbulent series of events, but you may be surprised to hear that there has been one. It has highlighted some of the overseen issues in our workflows and the sometimes dated and laborious way we complete tasks. Some challenges that were ‘on the to-do list’ for the classic ‘quiet day’ that never came were brought to light, which had to be resolved quickly when businesses had no time to forecast and plan sufficiently.

Some businesses are, amazingly, still trundling along using the wrong IT, which in turn means they are not getting the maximum benefit possible from their digital solutions.

The wrong IT and what it can do to your business

There are many businesses that are, surprisingly, still using outdated software or hardware – doing so will have a serious detrimental effect on business functionality in the short and long term and, worse, lessen the standards of your cyber security. Arguably, one of the worst effects of using outdated software or hardware is the ‘tech savvy’ users taking it upon themselves to use their own IT (Shadow IT) which you have no control over – the harm this can cause should your team open a malicious link or inadvertently release your data on the web could destroy your business altogether. Control over documentation, access, security, and reliability is essential.

The aim for all businesses is financial success for the future but, to ensure that, you must first guarantee that your organisation is capable of achieving long-term prolonged business functionality – in turn meaning growth. To achieve this you need to strip back your organisation to its component parts and dissect each step of the business process.

A digitally based strategy for the future

The future is mobile. Most are under the impression that the COVID-19 pandemic brought about this change in the way we work, but, in actual fact, it simply sped up the process – the work environment has been making a slow and gradual transition to a more remote one for quite some time.

Last year, the changes in our work environment, for many, highlighted potential business challenges that needed resolving, and as soon as possible! Modern digital options on the market are the solution.

Here are two challenges that businesses all around the country have and why you should resolve them as soon as possible.

The two challenges:

  1. Lower risk – increase levels of security and compliance
  2. Increase profit and productivity.

Why address them?

1. Lower risk – increase levels of security and compliance:

You will experience problems if you don’t remedy these as quickly as possible, including:

  • Loss of time
  • Loss of data
  • Loss of reputation
  • Loss of clients

And if the above is allowed to continue this will then create a ripple effect leading to the most important of all:

  • Loss of revenue.

What can lead to these impacts?

  • Cyber threats

Cyber attacks – as we all know – if uncontended, have the power to cause untold problems in your business; including the theft of data and valuable information, or even by causing electrical and equipment failures, and these are to name just a few. Methods of cyber attack know no bounds – they are far more extensive than most know and come in a variety of different forms.(The most popular and preferred methods are Phishing emails, Malware, and Ransomware as cyber criminals have found these are the options with the best chance of success.) But don’t only be concerned by these, because whilst the digital world evolves the methods of attacking it evolve simultaneously alongside it – and all have the power to completely debilitate your organisation if they are given the chance.

Cyber security should be at the peak of your business concerns in the modern world – having sufficient levels of cyber security make the difference between success and failure as a business. The ripple effects of a successful cyber attack, from access to the loss of data, can lead to reputational loss and in turn revenue (your formerly loyal customers will no longer trust you, and that could mean the end of your business completely).

You must use the resources at your disposal as efficiently as possible; it is essential to find the right balance that allows for a thriving workplace but not an overly saturated and complicated one. Not having the ability to use resources to their full potential (such as staff, money, and time) can have a serious derogatory effect on the reputation and success of a business.

We will now take a look at the second challenge, the impact of not rising to this challenge, and the risks that can lead to that impact.

2. Increase profit and productivity:

The impacts if not remedied:

  • Loss of time
  • Loss of reputation
  • Loss of clients
  • Loss of revenue.

The risks that can lead to these impacts:

  • Poor use of resources.

It is never okay to just ‘take it as it comes’ regardless of what is going on in your workplace – specifically, the industry in which your organisation resides, or in the world as a whole – strategy is essential, because without it your business won’t thrive and grow.

Your tasks will take longer than necessary which means you aren’t being as productive as possible. This time wasting could eventually lead you to fall behind on what you promise to provide for your clients – it won’t take long for your clients to take their business elsewhere, which, of course, means less revenue for your company.

  • Not moving with the times

Not moving with the times is very unhealthy, both in work and otherwise. There are, of course, some functions in your work day that have to stay the way they always have as there is no modern alternative, but, for the majority of tasks in your workplace, with the right modern tech, your business can enjoy the boost that can help it prosper.

If your competitors are using modern techniques for productivity, they will eventually attract your customer base away from you, meaning your revenue will drop.

In the following article we will explain how, by changing the culture of your workplace and with some help from the correct modern tech, you can solve all the problems we have highlighted above, in the process allowing your business to run smoothly.

Your business IT support partner

Uptech is the leading IT support company in Kings Lynn and West Norfolk. We are passionate about the support we offer businesses like yours and provide Enterprise-level tools, Cyber Security Solutions, and IT hardware to businesses in need of a helping hand. Established in 1994, Uptech offers High-end IT Services to Businesses with 5-200 staff, with multiple locations (including WFH), keeping them all Connected. We have helped our clients progress and improve their IT, becoming more profitable and productive. Contact us now to find out how we can help you.

CTA - A Digital World