In order for your business to be competitive, you need every aspect of your company operating at maximum efficiency. If just one component of your business isn’t functioning properly, then you’ve lost the competitive edge. This principle applies especially to the network of a small-to-medium-sized business.
As an SMB, you may feel like the major corporations have the advantage because of their sheer size and buying power. While this definitely is an advantage, there is one thing that an SMB has on the big boys; the ability to make a quick decision and act on it.
A major corporation has so many departments, branches, employees, managers, and red tape that it can take a painfully-long amount of time to decide on something and move forward. For example, a fast food chain restaurant will spend years developing and testing a new menu item before it’s released, whereas the owner of a single restaurant can effectively compete by offering new and exciting menu items on a daily basis.
As the owner of an SMB, if you’re not doing everything you can to leverage this quick-decision-making advantage, then you're rendering your company’s most powerful competitive resource inept. One common way for a business owner to cut themselves down at the knees like this is to neglect the performance of their main communications hub, i.e., their network. InformationWeek explains:
One advantage of being an SMB is the ability to react more quickly than larger competitors. But if your company network is frequently down, sluggish, or unsecured, that competitive advantage is eroded.
Time spent troubleshooting problems with your network equates to time not spent communicating ideas and moving company initiatives forward. The same can be said for a computer network that’s underperforming due to poor maintenance, as well as computers that are constantly being slammed with hacking attacks due to poor network security. InformationWeek goes on to describe how a properly working network can make the competitive difference:
A secure, reliable, self-defending network based on intelligent routers and switches provides your business with maximum agility by providing reliable, secure access to business intelligence. What’s more, a secure, reliable network infrastructure provides the necessary foundation for a number of efficiency-enhancing technologies and solutions, such as IP communications.
This is where managed IT services from Grove Networks can help your business be more competitive. By outsourcing the management and maintenance of your company’s network, we make sure that your company’s computers are operating at optimal efficiency. This will free up your staff from having to deal with IT problems, which will make your business more agile at adapting to the needs of your customers, providing your business with the competitive edge.
To discover how the competitiveness of your network can be improved upon, call us today at (305) 448-6126 for a free IT consultation.
