When I speak with Presidents/CEO/Business Owners, there are various motivations for their technical choices. Some have promised a customer something they can’t deliver. Some want the latest tech gizmo. Some are driven solely by price. While these are all important, they should never be the sole deciding factor for technical directions.
1. Match your technical decisions to your annual and three year plans. Your IT manager/consultant should understand and comprehend your business strategy. (I know. Good luck…) Your tech solution should be solid, but flexible.
2. Automate, automate, automate. Many times you can incur a one-time cost to automate a business process, and save money in the short and long run.
Automation can also facilitate growth. As your business grows, the automated process remains at that fixed cost, yielding greater profit margins.
3. Bite the bullet. Sometimes several small steps lead to a dead end. IT should be a strategy, not a series of band aids.
4. Cause problems. Trying a new idea doesn’t have to be expensive. Try it using a manual process. If you get flooded with work, automate it.
This is merely a guideline, but the emphasis is making solid business decisions.
Stephen Tuttle
DS Technologies, Inc.