Tag Archives: IT People

Five key IT areas

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Five key IT areas you must address in your business’s 2021 growth strategy5 key IT areas guide. As we finally approach the end of – what we can all agree has been a difficult year – it’s likely that the last thing you want to think about is your IT next year. However, being the IT super-fans that we are, we’d suggest that now is the best time to do this. We’re about to begin a new year.

It’s going to be another challenging one. So what greater way to start than with a clear strategy for the months ahead? A solid IT strategy is a critical part of your business growth plans for the year.

Download our new guide to find out the 5 key IT areas you must address in your business.

5 key IT areas you must address

How was 2020 for your business?

It didn’t take long for the optimism of a new decade to wear off. By the end of 2020, companies everywhere were reeling as they reckoned with the effects of the COVID-19 pandemic. Sadly, the impact of the virus was too much for many firms, leaving millions of workers unemployed and driving thousands of businesses to close their doors. Those companies that stayed afloat had to act quickly in order to enable their remote workforce and maintain operations.

Heading into 2021, there is little precedent for projecting the future. The economy is showing some signs of stability, but there are lingering fears over continued challenges or further surprises. Now is the time to investigate to see how five key IT areas can help your company in 2021.

Making sense of it all

Through all the confusion, though, there are still some basic concepts that will shape the year to come. Digital operations are more important than ever, with many transformative changes accelerating over the past year. Fair treatment for all is an absolute mandate, making diversity, equity and inclusion a top priority. The influence of technology is massive, forcing new approaches to regulatory behaviour. When is the last time you analysed your IT system? Have you locked the secrets behind the five key IT areas?

As the industry emerges from a chaotic year, it will begin a rebuilding phase, but this rebuilding goes beyond restoration. There is little opportunity to return to the old way of doing things. Thanks to changes that no one would have wished for and fuelled by the requirements of a digital society, the technology industry will doubtless take a new shape in the coming year. This isn’t rebuilding to reclaim the past; this is rebuilding for the future.

Book a FREE IT audit to cover the five key IT areas

All our clients benefit from our experience and knowledge. Our team have been working in the industry for over 25 years. We pride ourselves on delivering nothing but the very best customer service and solutions to our customers whatever the situation may be. Contact the LIS Help Desk to book your FREE IT audit and discover the secrets of the five key IT areas to help your business. Our services include managed IT services, network support and telecoms.

LIS – SECURING YOUR DIGITAL WORLD

#FreeGuide #ITStrategy #BusinessGrowth

Digital Transformation

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Misconceptions Surrounding Digital Transformation

Most people in the business sector are talking about digital transformation (DX). An example of this is Uber’s quick rise from a mere mobile phone app, putting a longstanding black cab industry at threat.

Because of its simplicity and how effective it is, a lot of businesses are rethinking their models. A lot of the time they are completely restructuring their own IT infrastructure, bettering their processes and redefining their team. They’re doing this to prepare themselves for an economy where everyone is using digital services. As well as thriving off applications instead of physical products.

On the contrary, amongst all of this excitement, there are a lot of myths surrounding this topic. This causes confusion for business owners and their staff. It’s for this reason; the wrong approach is often taken.

Digital Transformation

One aspect of digital transformation is the concept of going paperless

5 myths about digital transformation

People are desperate to see change

Generally, people react in one of three ways to digital transformation. They either pushback, have a sense of fear or try to bid so they can increase their power.

In an interview with CEO world, the management guru Cheryl Crann stated that the ones who limit digital transformation are the employees. The reason being is due to the extra work and aggravation before benefits can be detected.

It’s recommended for a successful migration to a digital-first model; businesses should make the necessary improvements to employee’s workflows and processes. Such modifications should begin with the major stakeholders and then to the rest of the organisation.

Digital transformation is only just for the technology

There’s more to change than just digital. There are other variables such as culture, objectives, processes and more. In today’s digital world, we must shift our attention from the technology to the outcome of the technology.

The best way to do this is to consider what you want to achieve first and then reverse-engineer the systems and processes. It’s not about merely acquiring the newest and most efficient technology. If you’re going to transform, you need to embrace change not just focus on the status quo.

If you fail, it’s classed as bad 

McKinsey and Co estimated that even in the highest tech firms, only a mere 25% succeed. Moreover, if you’re in a field such as manufacturing or energy, it could be as little as 4%. However, you can learn a lot from failure.

Conversely, if the company’s organisational structure is strong, the process should be smooth to absorb and review feedback, come up with improvements and implement them. After that, it’s just a case of repeating the same method and getting an optimised workflow.

In this report, it’s also mentioned that effective and successful projects have a focus on the latest product and service launches in markets not being opened. Again, success only arrives after the amount of transformation comes from hitting a specific limit with multiple business functions and business units.

Everyone is undergoing digital transformation

According to Telstra, around 21% of experienced and senior decision-makers, class their organisations as “digitally mature”. At the same time, those who haven’t started transformation are at 30%.

Telstra believes that this is a great and clear opportunity for businesses to enhance and increase their way they approach digital transformation. Even though there is room to do more for digital transformation, a clear strategy for the company needs to be there for them to follow it effectively.

Digital Transformation is the same rules for everyone 

Depending on your industry, digital transformation can vary a great deal. It can even change between organisations and subunits within a particular organisation. To effectively undergo digital transformation, you need to have a flexible ecosystem. The experience can be optimised and it is achieved within an organisation.

However, problems must be recognised and be solved using digital transformation. After this, you must customise the change and realise that it is not a one size fits all method. Similarly, this is an ongoing process which gets refined as part of the business model. While it evolves through time, it addresses challenges, goals and outcomes.

Ultimately, digital transformation is not a walk in a park, and you can’t predict the results. However, if you’re a business, you can only survive and change or become extinct. You must change alongside the market requirements. However, if there is an option between slow and expensive, or quick and cheap, fewer consumers like the former.

LIS, your IT partner

Lodge Information Services is one of Essex’s longest-standing IT partners. With over 25 years’ experience, we can assist you with IT support, consulting and cloud computing needs. We’re proud to be local, offering remote and on-site support. Contact the LIS Help Desk to book your FREE IT Audit.

LIS – SECURING YOUR DIGITAL WORLD

#Digital #Business #ITSupport #Technology

The death of the mouse

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The world is a crazy place right now. The pandemic has caused havoc, the UK is in recession and we are sad to announce the death of the mouse. Let us pause for a moment give thanks to an inventor that has made our lives easier. Computer pioneer William English has died aged 91, as reported by the BBC. Mr English, who was born in 1929 in Kentucky, studied electrical engineering at university before embarking on a career in the US Navy.

The engineer, inventor and researcher co-created the first modern computer mouse in 1963. After his colleague Doug Engelbart, a fellow engineer at the Stanford Research Institute (SRI) came up with the idea.

The death of the mouse

William English, using the mouse prototype. Credit: SRI International

Working under Engelbart in the mid 1960s, William English, known to most as Bill, became the first person to use a mouse when he built the prototype at SRI.

In the 1950s, after leaving his career in the US Navy, Mr English joined SRI to work with Mr Engelbart who wanted to build a computer that anyone could use – a concept that would be the founding bricks for modern day PCs, laptops and tablets.

At the time computers were only used by specialists who would enter and retrieve information through punched cards, typewriters and printouts.

The birth of the mouse

Bill English built his first mouse prototype in the early 1960s. Credit: SRI International

The mouse, which got its name because of the way the cursor called CAT at the time seemed to chase the mouse movement, was a simple pinewood block with a single button and connector. Underneath the mouse were two rolling wheels at 90-degree angles that would record vertical and sideways movement on the computer.

Mr Engelbart, who died in 2013, aged 88, envisioned a device that could move a cursor across a computer screen and perform tasks by selecting symbols and pictures, Mr English helped his vision become a reality.

English and Engelbart demonstrated their first mouse and experimental multifaceted computer called oNLine System (NLS), in 1968 at an event in San Francisco that became known as ‘The Mother of All Demos’.

The Mother of All Demos unveiled early forms of online text editing, video conferencing and hypertext, the links now commonly used to navigate web pages on the internet.

Support for today’s technology and the future

What would our office look like today without pioneers like William? His invention is still going strong today and has come a long way since its original form. We may mourn the death of the mouse; however, technology is constantly moving forward. Thanks to William English’s efforts, much of the technology we use today exists.

Contact the LIS Help Desk to speak to one of our team. We can advise you about the latest computer systems and upgrades for your office. Don’t spend hours trawling the Internet for the best deal. Speak to us and let us take the pain away. This saves you time and money. We can set up your system and offer you a monthly IT contract. As well as cloud back-up systems, the latest security and telecoms.

All your technology requirements, all under one roof.

LIS – SECURING YOUR DIGITAL WORLD

#BillEnglish #ComputerMouse #Technology #ITSupport

 

IT support questions

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What questions should you ask your IT support company? Sometimes in life we have to ask awkward questions. How much did that cost? Do you really need a second piece of cake? What is that smell?

You may have spoken to several IT support providers to look after you companies IT. However, who can you trust? It’s easier when you have been given a recommendation from a trusted source. Asking the right questions during the selection process, to determine if the company is the best fit is key. Whilst some questions may seem tricky, they will help you sort out the contenders.

However, you don’t usually expect to feel awkward asking questions of an IT support company. Well, you should.

A few tricky questions could help you to decide if they’re really the people you want to protect your business and its data. Make the wrong decision on which IT support company to work with, and you’ll lose time, money…  and a lot of productivity too. Worse still, if they’re not what they claim to be, you could also put your customers’ information at risk. At the moment, you really need to check their safety measures to protect your people. We’ve written a new free guide, listing the 5 most important questions you should ask your IT support company. Not one of those questions is to do with how much they’ll cost you.

Click here to download our useful guide.

What questions to ask your IT provider

Choosing a new IT provider can be an important decision for a business owner. What questions should you ask?

Five Things to Look for in an IT Support Company

It is not uncommon for technical problems to be handled by whoever happens to be the most tech savvy person in the company. That can work for a little while. As a result, it is not a sustainable practice. Your team should focus on meeting your organizational goals – not dealing with technology problems. Why not outsource your IT needs as it will help alleviate the burden, so you can get back to business.

Contact us to arrange an IT audit, discuss your goals and any technical issues you are experiencing.

 

Building a Business

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Building a business that people want to work for

8 lessons on building a business that people enjoy working for: a TED Talk from Patty McCord. She created the culture at Netflix.

Getting the tech right is key whether you are a one man band or a budding world player. Nothing is more frustrating than “the system” stopping you from delivering your vision. Contact LIS to help get the tech right and keep your people happy.

#tedtalks #business #netflix

8 lessons on building a company people enjoy working for
8 lessons on building a company people enjoy working for
Most companies operate on a set of policies: mandated vacation days, travel guidelines, standard work hours, annual goals. But what happens when a company looks less to control and more to trust? Patty McCord, the iconic former chief talent officer at Netflix, shares the key insights that led her to toss the handbook out the window.
www.ted.com