Accurate information and reliable infrastructure are essential for effective business operations. Today, many organizations strive toward promoting changes that will help maximize profits and reduce costs. Thus, if your IT environment is not up-to-date, operational challenges are inevitable.
With the introduction of sophisticated hardware and software, organizations are certain of increased profits and efficiency. Instead of depending on outdated technology innovations, several organizations are switching to technology refresh programs. These technology refresh programs provide a strategy where organizations can operate with manageable costs, access frequent upgrades, and replace parts of their infrastructure when needed.
Having functional hardware and software in place promotes employee productivity. A solid refresh strategy for your hardware and software is cost-effective and essential for the growth of your business.
The importance of a refresh strategy cannot be overemphasized as it benefits SMB businesses as well as larger ones. We’ll explain what this means and how to change your approach to ensure you’re not falling behind with outdated hardware or software.
What Is a Technology Refresh Strategy?
A technology refresh strategy is a plan companies encourage to ensure that IT infrastructure or equipment is replaced periodically. This is necessary to guarantee reliability and maximize performance.
This idea is to put a plan in place where your technology is being refreshed on a schedule, so you don’t have to think about it. This is designed to keep your digital tools updated and ensure hardware is replaced before it begins to act up and cause problems.
4 Benefits of Having a Technology Refresh Strategy
1. Determines what technology is outdated
The management team is usually less attentive to the technology in use and more concerned about the profits generated. A technology refresh on hardware and software will help organizations determine what technology needs to be replaced or upgraded.
It aids organizations in coming to terms with the technology occupying space in closets and those beneficial ones that will help grow the business.
2. It decreases costly downtime.
As technological innovations age, they become very slow and unable to perform all the required functions. This leads to an increase in security risk and unwanted downtime. In addition, the organization may be worried about having dissatisfied customers due to issues with failing technology. But, the technology refresh strategy will prevent these types of issues increasing the speed and performance of the organization and its operations.
26% of SMBs say their downtime is between $10,000 and $20,000 per hour.
3. It saves cost
One importance of employing the use of a technology refresh strategy is that it saves cost. The amount of money spent to support old hardware and software is enough to take care of other aspects of the organization. An effective strategy will help an organization avoid unpredictable IT costs that will affect the company’s operations.
4. It is easy to implement
A technology refresh is easy for organizations to implement. It helps the overall performance of the technological equipment and assures employee productivity. This way, organizations can carry out their operational activities without delay or difficulty. With this strategy, organizations will no longer engage in continuous computer repair that will hinder their growth.
Why Is Technology Refresh Strategy an Ongoing Cost?
Not all technology costs can be removed. Business owners are always in a dilemma when calculating IT costs. Technology refresh strategy is an ongoing cost for the following reasons:
Lifecycle of your IT equipment
Your IT equipment has a specific life cycle. There are chances that the equipment may still function after its life cycle, but it is precarious. Once older software loses support, it’s no longer receiving security patches, leaving it open to being hacked. To avoid data loss and downtime, many organizations plan regular technology refresh programs.
Several companies do not like a significant capital investment all at once, so they prefer to upgrade their equipment in batches. This makes the technology refresh program an ongoing cost that is evenly spread out over time rather than being ad hoc.
Maintenance costs
Well-maintained equipment keeps businesses operating smoothly. Ongoing maintenance of your hardware also increases its lifespan, giving you more time before it needs to be refreshed. The monthly costs of maintenance end up being less in many cases than the ongoing repair costs and downtime faced with older technology tools.
Get Started with a Technology Refresh Program
Technology budgets are not done on a short-term basis. This is why business owners must contract a reliable IT company and review the services at regular intervals- a minimum of a quarterly basis.
Need the services of a reliable IT company to help refresh your software and hardware? Contact us at 416-412-0576 to take care of your Toronto business.
