In today’s fast-paced business world, technology is the wind in the sails of any company looking to stay ahead of its competition.
Modern digital solutions can significantly streamline business operations, helping companies of all sizes operate more efficiently and profitably.
With that in mind, let’s look at several practical examples of how companies use technology to navigate the turbulent business seas to reach new heights of success.
1. Automate Mundane, Repetitive Tasks
Employees often spend a lot of time on routine tasks. Using automation supplies them with more time to focus on crucial duties. In fact, workplace automation has such great potential that between 9 percent and 47 percent of jobs won’t require human employees in the future. Here’s two ways you can start automating tasks:
Data Collection
Use optical character recognition (OCR) software to automate collecting data from digital and paper forms. Extract the data to enter it automatically into Excel spreadsheets or text files. Microsoft Power Automate makes this workflow easy with its low-code, drag-and-drop approach.
Appointment Scheduling
Another business process that begs to be automated is appointment scheduling. Some companies require customers to schedule appointments via phone or email. Then, employees manually enter the appointment details into an internal calendar.
Employees work more effectively when companies implement an automation process like Microsoft Bookings’ online self-service scheduling solution.
2. Unlock Actionable Insights with Business Analytics
Technology can transform how companies gain insights into their performance and customer behavior. Raw data can be transformed into trends and opportunities by visualizing and analyzing large quantities of data. This information can help companies make better decisions and improve their bottom line.
Use tools such as:
- Microsoft PowerBI
- Tableau
- Looker
Most companies already have the data they need to become more competitive in today’s fast-paced business environment. They simply need to take advantage of it, and it’s easier now than ever.
3. Improve Data Sharing and Collaboration
Modern companies generate, process, and store large quantities of data in the form of customer information, business documents, sales figures, and more. This data plays an essential role in all kinds of business operations. Still, it’s often not used as efficiently as it can be because it sits in isolated silos that are hard to access.
Employees can easily store, access, and share necessary data using cloud-based document management systems like Microsoft SharePoint or Google Workspace. This solution allows them to access the content they need regardless of location or device.
With their help, employees can seamlessly collaborate in real-time and effortlessly share the results of their hard work with third parties. Additionally, all leading document management and storage systems implement robust security and compliance features to ensure that sensitive data is always protected.
4. Enhance Communication and Remote Work Enablement
Communication is the oil that keeps the gears of every company running smoothly. Digital communication tools like Zoom, Microsoft Teams, and Slack can ensure it’s always in ample supply.
In addition to one-to-one and group instant messaging, they allow employees to make and receive voice and video calls, participate in virtual meetings, and more.
It becomes easy for employees to work efficiently remotely using project management tools like Asana, Trello, or Monday.com, just as they would when gathered in the same office. Boosting communication can differentiate between success and failure in a world where talent is in short supply.
Streamline Business Operations with Security in Mind
Technology has the power to significantly streamline business operations by automating repetitive tasks, unlocking actionable insights, improving work collaboration, and more. However, it can also be a double-edged sword because each digital solution can create many doors for cybercriminals to walk through undetected.
That’s why cybersecurity should be a top priority for all companies that decide to transform their business operations digitally.
Check out this blog post to discover how you can balance strong security with productivity: SMBs Can Balance Security and Productivity
