New technologies keep evolving by always improving on previous designs. This is technology 101. Despite this continuing evolution, many business owners are hesitant to adopt new technology, and choose to continue using older equipment in an effort to save money. A better way for your business to approach technology is to have a long-term replacement plan.
Companies that don’t have a plan to replace their outdated technology will still eventually have to upgrade their tech, but it will be done in a reactive manner. The reactive approach to replacing technology may seem like it is fiscally responsible, but it’s actually the worst way to upgrade in terms of expense and lost productivity.
As a business owner, your instincts may be telling you to hold off replacing an older piece of equipment. If it’s still working fine and getting the job done, then why replace it? This is a fair point, in part because this logic applies to most of life’s major purchases, like vehicles and homes. As you’re well aware, buying new technology certainly qualifies as a major business expense–new server units aren’t cheap!
To start, let’s look at this issue in terms of workplace efficiency. If the reason for using technology is to increase the productivity of your business, and if newer versions of technology are designed to improve upon the efficiency of previous models, then, by not upgrading within a reasonable amount of time from the release of the newer, more-efficient version, you will spend the subsequent time missing out on the increased productivity that the latest tech would have afforded your company.
Concurrently, this time spent missing out on the increased productivity will eventually reach a tipping point where it will cost you more money to operate your older equipment than it would have to simply purchase the latest equipment upon its release. The logic behind return-on-investment strategy is why one of the most persuasive selling points for new technology has always been; “It will pay for itself.” this selling point is absolutely true In terms of productivity gained from new technology.
Another point in favor of adopting new technology is that a business owner must consider the efficiency lost when a workforce has to acclimate to new technology. Every new version of technology comes with a learning curve that employees must adapt to. Time spent figuring out the operational intricacies of the new tech equates to lost efficiency. The further you are between upgrades the potentially steeper the curve.
Generally, the differences between newer versions of tech do not produce enough of a learning curve to significantly impact company efficiency. However, if an employee was using an outdated piece of tech that they were very familiar with, and it was suddenly replaced with the latest, totally redesigned version (like upgrading from a Windows XP PC to a Windows 8.1 touchscreen), then it will take the user a significant amount of time to learn the new system’s protocols. Time spent figuring out a major learning curve like this will eat away at the overall productivity of your business. The simple solution to avoiding a loss in efficiency like this is to keep your workforce up-to-date with the latest tech.
Clearly, the benefits of using the latest technology far outweigh the expense of replacing your older tech. The best way for your business to take advantage of the latest tech is to have a long-term technology replacement plan; one that carefully takes into consideration the unique needs of your company and is designed for the sole purpose of increasing your company’s productivity and efficiency. Quikteks can design such a technology replacement plan for your business, a plan that will provide you with a maximum ROI for your new tech. Call Quikteks today at (973) 882-4644 to get your new technology plan started with a free IT assessment.