Four reasons why your business needs a strategic technology plan

“If you fail to plan, you plan to fail.”

We’re all aware of Benjamin Franklin’s famous adage, but when it comes to formulating a strategic technology plan, how many of us heed his advice?

At 365 Technologies Inc., we’ve worked with organizations of different sizes and industries, and the one thing many have in common when we first meet them is little to no strategic technology plan. Instead of planning, they manage technology using the “seat of your pants” method – they replace hardware after it breaks, and introduce software when they’re already behind the eight ball.

Sound familiar? If so, here are four reasons why you should consider creating a strategic technology plan:

1. As your business grows, a plan ensures you have the technology infrastructure to support it.

Some companies make technology decisions in the moment without considering how the decision will impact them over the long term. For example, it’s possible to purchase a server based on your present needs without evaluating long-term business requirements. You’re right to ask these questions:

• What type of applications will we run?
• How much power and memory do we require?
• Does it support virtualization?
• Will we need to connect remotely?

But it’s also right to ask these same questions followed by “in five years.” Without planning, the result may be a costly upgrade in a few years, which a good technology plan can circumvent.

2. Lower capital costs.

Any good strategic IT plan should include a hardware and software replacement schedule, which tracks warranty expirations, software licenses, and server and computers requiring updates or replacement, so you can phase out old hardware before it dies. This schedule ensures you replace your assets in a logical order, you maximize your return on investment, lower your overall capital-equipment spending, and improve uptime and productivity.

3. Simple and accurate budgeting.

You don’t want to be surprised by technology costs; unforeseen technology breakdowns, license renewals, and new purchase requirements can quickly eat up the budget that you’ve dedicated to other business initiatives. A technology budget simplifies the process by foreseeing future costs before – not as – you incur them.

4. Technology integration on a micro and macro level

Without a strategic technology plan, you may experience a mish-mash of systems, which overlap in functionality, and don’t integrate properly. A strategic technology plan allows you to make decisions in consideration of your specific needs within the overall technology environment.

365 Technologies Inc. can help you with myCIO

We understand how important a strategic technology plan is to your business’ growth and success. Our 365Care+ solution includes your own Chief Information Officer, called myCIO – a real, live human being, available by phone, email and for in-person meetings to advise you on your strategic technology decisions. Once per quarter, myCIO will meet with your organization’s key stakeholders to conduct a strategic technology review to ensure you’re on the right technology path.

If you’d like more information about how we can help your organization create a strategic technology plan, give us a call at 204-488-3655 or email sales@365tech.ca. We’d love to help you.

Learn more about our 365Care+ solution here.