Why It Pays Off to Audit Your IT

Large, medium-size, and especially small businesses are facing some difficult times at this point—and for them to make it through this and flourish in the future, some long-term changes are going to be necessary. Let’s break down a few ways that technology should play a role in these changes.

Optimize, Optimize, Optimize

With various mandates and regulations currently forcing numerous businesses to close their doors outright or hurriedly adopt remote work solutions, it comes as no surprise that many businesses and the people that allow them to operate have been thrown for a loop. This has been shown to be particularly true as these orders have now extended beyond a calendar year.

In light of this, many businesses have found it necessary to abandon their attempts to wait it out and try to cobble together a remote work strategy.

Even if the business was prepared for these tactics, many issues are still apt to be present and need careful consideration: enabling a team to work productively and effectively, at least to the point that the bills can be paid.

Many businesses have also taken the route of temporarily laying off members of their workforce and rehiring them as they could with the assistance of the paycheck protection program that was made available. These subsidies have largely helped to save many businesses and the jobs of numerous employees.

Another invaluable tool that businesses have used has been automation, which assists businesses in saving time (and therefore, as we know, money) on tasks like payroll processing, invoicing, and the management of their operations. Automation can also be used to boost collaboration, as well as supply chain and project management.

Security within Security

While cybersecurity is undeniably crucial for a business, many have postponed their efforts into it during these tumultuous times. However, this decline in cybersecurity spending has been paired dangerously with an increase in online transactions—budgets slashed as revenues have slowed. Overall, the cybersecurity industry has grown at a rate of around five percent for each of the past eight years… but this year, that growth has been diminished to a little over one percent.

It is understandable that most workplaces now relying on a remote workforce want their teams to be as successful as possible, so it is a good thing that most have continued to invest in endpoint and intrusion protection despite diminishing their budget for cybersecurity. As a result, it is clear that risk management and reduction are still the priority.

Having said that, implementing automated protections is only one part of the fight. Many cybercriminals have changed their tactics, relying on fooling the users through phishing attacks. Unfortunately, the stifled security awareness that remote work and the use of a personally owned device can leave your users somewhat more vulnerable than they would be in an office environment.

Due to this, it becomes even more important that your users are aware of—and ready to deal with—the threat that phishing can pose.

It has become very clear that remote operations will almost assuredly be a focal point for businesses in the future, so you can rest assured that we’ll be here to assist you. Find out what our team has to offer you by calling (403) 210-2927 today.