Technology in business has always been important, even when we didn’t realize it. But in the post-pandemic world, IT professionals are more critical to businesses than ever before. Whether businesses need innovative developers to create new productivity-increasing apps or security firms to protect data, the demand is growing.
Small businesses needed to find new ways to communicate with their customers and employees to generate new income streams throughout the pandemic. Technology became the central concern for business operations, no matter the size of the organization.
New ways to use technology meant that more businesses could stay afloat. Adopting new software to stay relevant has shown business leaders that technology helps. Implementing the best technologies in 2021 is the difference between a small business thriving and folding.
Table of Contents
- Trends in Business Technology
- The Role of Technology in Remote Work
- The Future of Work and Technology
- How Can Technology Change My Business?
Trends in Business Technology
By analyzing the role of technology in business today, we see how technology will change the world of tomorrow. Business technology is a hotly contested issue for many companies, but the data shows how vital technological and online services can be.
IT Spending in 2020
With 8.2% of all business spending towards IT, businesses understand that technology is key. But many business leaders feel that spending on IT is often wasted. We need to increase productivity and make the benefits of effective technology expenditure clear.
But implementing the correct systems and tools helps take a small business from where it is to where it wants to be. Understanding the role of technology in the post-pandemic world
The Role of Technology in the Post-Pandemic World
With customers opening their minds to new technology, businesses have the opportunity to be more creative, more innovative, and more open with their customer base. But to keep up, businesses need to adapt.
Whereas remote work was once a perk for a relatively small number of workers, it’s now the norm. Covid-19 forced all sectors to innovate and change the way they approached business.
What’s the Role of Technology in the Digital Workplace?
The World Economic Forum found that employers saw the potential for moving 44% of the workforce remote. To do this, they need to adopt technologies that will:
- Improve employee productivity
- Make onboarding new employees or contractors easier
- Facilitate communication
- Deliver value to customers
With 41% of businesses expecting to expand on their use of contractors and make the most of a generation that has needed to upskill to stay relevant, using technology opens the door to incredible opportunities.
Remote specialists were brought in at a moment’s notice. Effective SaaS implementation. Artificial intelligence boosts productivity, efficiency, and the ability to expand to new markets. The opportunities aren’t on the horizon — they’re here.
Case Study: Invision
One example of a fully distributed company is Invision — by taking on remote developers with specialized skill sets to improve their business, Invision has expanded thanks to their recruitment process.
When Invision needs a particular skill, they look for an outside developer to come in. With a growing demand for contractors, Invision’s business model will become the new normal as time goes on — specialists won’t necessarily be tied to one company, but they will be brought in to offer expert help when needed.
The Future of Work and Technology
With more people concerned about workplace safety, the digital workplace is quickly becoming the new normal. Business leaders are waking up to the growth potential of adopting SaaS products, AI, and cloud computing opportunities.
The role of technology in the expansion of the digital workplace is key. The business world is starting to adapt to employees wanting to work from home. Now, new markets are beginning to influence the decision-making around how effective online work can be when the correct systems are in place.
Software-as-a-Service
Businesses are already spending more than 24% of their revenue on software, but 73% of organizations expect nearly all business apps will be SaaS by 2021. And what would a company get in exchange? Easier communication, services on demand, and collaboration across the world.
With the explosion of Zoom and Slack in 2019 and 2020, we can expect more businesses to seize the chance to find technology that improves productivity. Open up the workplace to more remote workers and specialized apps for productivity or communication will soon become second nature.
Cloud Computing
Adapting to new, unstable normal means taking on cloud services to allow remote workers to contribute. With business adapting to the Covid-19 crisis, cloud computing started to do the job it was meant to.
Whether people needed public cloud apps, remote developer services, and tools, or a cloud infrastructure (including the expanding Desktop-as-a-Service market), cloud computing gave the solution The pandemic forced office workers to become telecommuters overnight.
But thanks to that experience, small businesses, and large enterprises all learned how to take advantage of a market undergoing hypergrowth. Cloud computing will be the centerpiece of the business world of tomorrow. It’s the technology that will drive post-pandemic recovery.
Artificial Intelligence
Organizations today can’t ignore the impending tide of artificial intelligence and its role in business. Getting the competitive edge means that companies need to collect, understand, and effectively implement strategies based on data findings. Artificial intelligence is a necessary tool.
And although technology in business will mean the death of some old professions, it is also the birth of millions of new jobs. While an estimated 85 million jobs will be lost to computers, the job market will open up 97 million other jobs for people to jump into.
Technology is not going to kill industries but actually create new opportunities. It’s the dawning of the age of cobots — humans and machines collaborating for better business outcomes.
How Can Technology Change My Business?
Jumping on the tech train as early as possible is key for businesses wanting to take advantage of the booming market. Although COVID-19 brought many industries to a grinding halt, SaaS, artificial intelligence, and cloud computing companies are booming.
Whether you are working in marketing, manufacturing, or any other industry, modern technologies offer companies a chance to enter new markets and to contact new customers at the fraction of the cost of traditional methods. As technology opens new doors for companies, there is no reason not to jump onto the bandwagon.
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Originally published at Upstack.co on Jul 9, 2021, by Austin Miller.
