There are many innovative solutions that small businesses can implement in their organization to improve their operations, and help encourage growth. A lot of it has to do with IT. It is a well known fact these days that information technology is so integrated with modern work and business, that it is almost inconceivable for a business not to utilize any technology in their organization. London IT support company, TechQuarters, is a small business that digitally transformed a long time ago – this helped them adapt to many different situations. For example, early on during the onset of COVID-19, TechQuarters was able to go remote, getting rid of their offices, and adapt well to the new way of working.
But what are some of the best IT solutions that small businesses can implement to become more successful and agile?
Automation
Business automation refers to the practice of using machines and software to perform tasks and processes that would normally be performed by humans. Tasks and processes may be automated to be carried out as part of a regular routine, or a business may define triggers that ensure that the software or machine carries the task out when the right action is registered. Automation has been utilized on more ways that most people expect; one example of automation that most people are familiar with is automated teller machines (ATMs).
Nowadays, automation is becoming more and more accessible for small businesses, and is a solution that should be considered by any company. There are a few different levels of automation. To start with, there is task automation, the most basic kind – simple, one or two step tasks are automated to be performed routinely, or when triggered, by an application.
Process automation is a more complex form of automation that is able to free up much more time for employees. Examples of process automation are workflow automation – where full processes are performed by software – and process mining – which enables businesses to automatically collected data to analyze and improve workflows.
Advanced Automation refers to the integration of multiple IT systems in a business. Advanced automation relies heavily on machine learning in order to collect and analyze raw data as it is produced by a company’s infrastructure. The next level up from this is Intelligent Automation. This is where AI-powered apps and services are used to run processes, but the key aspect is that these apps learn something new every time it encounters a process or situation – this means that processes can be improved and streamlined continually over time.
Low-Code and No-Code
Software development is an incredibly valuable skill to have in a small business. The ability to develop custom applications means businesses can implement their own solutions that perfectly meet the needs. There are two related solutions that can make software development accessible for any business, even ones with no developers: Low-Code and No-Code Development.
Both of these solutions were developed to enable users to build software even if they do not know much about coding. Traditionally, you needed to write software one line of code at a time – each piece of code was to tell the host computer what functions it needed to run; for this reason, writing software was a long and detail-oriented process. However, with Low and No Code development, all you need to know is what you want your app to do, and you can build it with the platform you are using.
Low-Code platforms contain libraries of pre-written code that would-be developers can use. It is still fairly similar to traditional development, except you can drag and drop each line of code, rather than having to write them out. There is a misconception that low-code developing is incapable of producing sophisticated applications, but this is wrong. In fact, Low-code development is most effective if the user does have experience with coding – the user will have the skill and knowledge for developing sophisticated software, but because they are working with pre-written code, the development process will be much quicker.
No-Code takes these principles one step further, and it primarily aimed at people with no coding experience whatsoever. Rather than offering lines of pre-written code, No-Code platforms have libraries of pre-coded templates and functions, allowing users to develop apps through a purely visual workflow – no writing necessary at all.
Multi-Cloud Environments
The Cloud is a technology that needs very little introduction. It is one of the most pervasive technologies of the modern world; and has also been one of the most disruptive in the technology sector. The managed IT support London businesses receive from TechQuarters is based on the technology of the Cloud. The ability to create virtual storage and computer resource, stored over networks, means businesses can operate without being tied to any one location.
There are two main types of Cloud: Private Clouds and Public Clouds. A Private Cloud is one that was built by the organisation that uses it – built with servers, or several servers, and using virtualisation to create their Cloud, a business can get heightened security and lower latency when they make their own Private Cloud. On the other hand, a Public Cloud is one that is built and managed by a service provider – one such as Google, Citrix, or Microsoft – and is usually globally distributed. With a Public Cloud, businesses pay the service provider a subscription to access storage and computing resources in their Cloud. The benefit of Public Clouds is the cost-efficiency, and the scalability, owing to the fact that the resources of Public Clouds are much, much greater than the average Private Cloud.
A Multi-Cloud Environment is one that utilizes both Private and Public Clouds to fulfil different operations. A business can reap the advantages of both types of Cloud – the security and low-latency of Private Clouds, and the scalability and resources of Public Clouds.
