No matter what industry you serve, there’s one clear fact: your business can’t function without IT. Information Technology benefits organizations from the ground up, from your ability to call a customer to ordering the snacks for your break room.
What is Information Technology?
Information technology (IT) is the study and use of computers or any kind of telecommunications that store, study, transmit, send, retrieve, and manipulate data and information. IT is a combination of the people, software, internet, and hardware that automate and perform core, essential tasks within an organization.
IT professionals, commonly known as IT techs or technicians, study and work with organizations to help them understand what types of technology they need and the advantages of IT, then help those businesses set up their technological solutions, maintain them, and service them.
Why is Information Technology Important?
Information technology is an important part of every business, regardless of size. Whether it’s the point-of-sale machines at your cash register or the PCs your salespeople use to connect with potential customers across the globe, the advantages of IT play a major role in nearly every decision you make. IT influences how you gather and use data, how you hire and track employees, how you communicate, and even how you advertise.
What are the Information Technology Benefits for Business?
Information technology benefits everyone personally, from the way you shop to the way you gather information. It plays an important role in organizations, too, streamlining processes and keeping your business connected and running smoothly.
Let’s look at the advantages of IT as they affect your business.
1. Increased Data Security
IT has forever changed the way businesses store files. It is safer to store information in a secure computer database than to leave it (and lose it) in physical files.
One of the advantages of information technology is the ability to encrypt data, to require authentication to access it, and to lock it away under layers of security so bad actors can’t easily get to it.
Your business will have some level of protection from lawsuits stemming from data breaches if it is proven that it has taken the appropriate cybersecurity measures.
2. Information Technology Can Help Your Business Save Money
One of the biggest information technology benefits will be seen in your organization’s bank account: IT saves businesses money. How?
IT can increase productivity by streamlining processes. Routine reports and tasks that would traditionally require manual research and documentation are available at the click of a mouse.
IT will save money on postage. Seems a simple concept, but the old days of physical mailers are a thing of the past. Email is faster and more efficient than standard postal solutions.
IT saves money by simplifying, migrating, and outsourcing high price functions such as payroll, supply chain purchases, and even customer support.
(related read Seven Ways IT Services Will Save You Money)
3. Information Technology Benefits Communication
We discussed saving money by not having to send physical communications through the mail, but consider this: cloud computing now allows your employees to communicate with each other, with customers, and with the world. Smartphones and VoIP have cut the cord of traditional landlines and allowed unprecedented freedom for employees to work from anywhere, and email is an instant interaction that gets immediate answers.
You can communicate with customers and prospective clients via social media and targeted ads, and, thanks to information technology, you can sell your products to a much wider audience than ever before.
4. Improved Productivity
Your workplace will see the advantages of information technology in increased productivity and efficiency. These advantages include:
- Instant access to files
- Immediate feedback on collaborative projects
- Videoconferencing and real time communication
- Project management tools
- Do-it-yourself portals for payroll, password management, and more
- Automated processes and data analysis
- Faster results and faster task resolution
5. A Wider Talent Net is One of the Biggest Advantages of Information Technology
If there’s one thing businesses have learned, it’s that remote work is the face of the modern workplace. Remote work is an information technology advantage all its own, but it has even wider implications. Your talent pool just got a lot deeper.
Traditionally, you were limited in your hires by geographical location. Now, with information technology fueling businesses, you can hire the best fit for your job posting…wherever they are.
6. Achieving Coordination and Uniformity
With informational technology, tasks can be organized, coordinated, and uniform. It’s far easier to follow procedure when there is a procedure, and information technology provides a framework for tasks and projects that everyone on the team can follow.
What Informational Technology Benefits is Your Business Enjoying?
Integris is a pro when it comes to showing businesses the information technology advantages they could be using right now. Want to chat with a friendly tech and see if you’re getting all the information technology benefits you could be? Schedule a quick, risk free conversation with us and make sure your business is where it needs to be.
Not ready to chat? Download our free IT Buyer’s Guide for a comprehensive look at the world of buying IT services, pricing, considerations, and more.
