What do you think? Is technology solely beneficial, or is it a double-edged sword? Yes, it does assist with business intelligence and tends to make all sorts of processes easier. That being said, it also makes businesses more vulnerable to things like cyberattacks and fraud.
Benefits to tech innovations
Companies all over the world are turning more and more to technological innovations as a way to spur growth. Mobile devices and cloud computing as well as other technologies have become uber popular in the past few years. In fact, outcome based, digitally enabled approaches helped GE generate more than $800 million just in 2013.
The downside
However, it is critical for businesses to understand along with technological innovations, there are also security risks for data. Many businesses are unfortunately learning this lesson firsthand too.
Companies are beginning to believe that the constant use of devices that are connected to the internet are presenting them with myriad vulnerabilities when it comes to the security of their data.
Devices such as tablets and smartphones that actually do give greater access to that information that employees need for their productivity have also poked several holes in their security programs.
Finding middle ground
There is no doubt that big data can make your business more efficient. Think back to the old days before computers. Everything was typed and filed away. If you needed reports, you had to gather all of the files and information and then create the reports by hand.
This could take days and by the time the report was finished, some of the information could have changed. Nowadays, everything is kept digitally. When we need a report, we enter the parameters into a computer and get the report instantly.
The thing is, for as beneficial as these devices are, they are also vulnerable and for this reason, we need to implement security protocol practices and awareness. As a company, it is critical that your business data, as well as any data regarding your clients, is kept confidential.
The best way to do that is by having the latest in terms of technological security. Even with the best, though, many perilous breaches in security can and do still wreak havoc on corporate activities.
The impact of technology on business transformation
Data comes from all over the place and no, not all of it is digital. However, there is little doubt that having the right data is truly the lifeline for businesses in the competitive markets of today.
This holds true in a variety of fields and if a company can provide data, they will never lack for clients. Data does matter and there is no doubt that today’s trends seem to suggest that this will not be changing anytime soon.
Technology has a transformative power and that power is quite evident in business. One easy example of this is email. Another is Google. Before such things as search engines existed, a business would have to store massive amounts of information and subscribe to many different newswires to stay abreast of things.
Research for anything could consume many man hours. Now, all it takes is a few clicks of a mouse and we have the same information at our fingertips.
Aside from the risks associated with technology, there is not a doubt that digital devices have made businesses more relevant and have also made the day to day life of working in an office easier.