There’s no question that businesses of all sizes are carefully evaluating their financial decisions right now. Economically challenging times call for even greater attention to operational efficiencies and most businesses can’t afford to misjudge their needs or underutilize existing resources.
Fortunately, what many businesses are learning during this downturn is that there are even more ways their IT investments can create value and help them reduce costs. For instance, companies often buy software through volume licensing agreements but don’t fully leverage all the technology or services available to them through the agreements. As a result, they could be missing out on significant cost-saving benefits, simply because they don’t entirely understand the capabilities of their investments.
Some IT partners specialize in helping customers maximize their IT investments. Others are even more specialized and focus on software asset management consulting, which educates businesses on processes for tracking and getting more return from the technology they already own.
Additionally, businesses are proactively investing in new technologies. Making additional IT investments in a down economy can feel counterintuitive, but there’s also tremendous opportunity in making these investments, as they can save businesses money, sharpen their competitive edge and are usually packaged with aggressive sales incentives.
Other businesses are reevaluating how they access their software. For instance, some companies are already realizing the benefits of a “software + services” model in their IT environments. A software + services strategy provides businesses flexibility and the option to choose which software they access through the cloud, and which they maintain on-site. This hybrid approach is increasingly popular with small and midsize companies because it enables them to take advantage of enterprise-class software hosted in the cloud, which doesn’t come with an enterprise-class price tag. Furthermore, it reduces these business’ need to manage hardware and software on-premise.
As we discussed a few months ago, unified communications solutions also are saving businesses money. According to Forrester, unified communications can reduce a business’ travel needs by 10 percent to 30 percent. For example, Microsoft’s Finance organization recently elected to cancel an annual conference with 700 attendees from across the globe. By holding a virtual meeting instead, the company saved more than $1 million in travel and event expenses. If a unified communications solution is not a fit for your business operations, consider using Office Live Meeting to enable collaboration instead of in-person meetings.
Finally, business intelligence solutions are enabling companies to cut costs by helping them determine where wasteful and expensive inefficiencies exist. For example, a company dashboard created as part of a business intelligence solution could reveal opportunities to lower company energy costs, benefiting the company and the environment.
With better insight into financial and operational performance, a business can better understand variances and interdependences, as well as pinpoint sales trends and cost-cutting opportunities. Furthermore, business intelligence solutions automate routine processes, cutting labor costs and giving employees more time to focus on business priorities.
Economically challenging times, though difficult, also provide unique opportunities for business leaders to evaluate their operations and make investments that better position them for growth when the economy rebounds. Take some time to assess how your business can use IT solutions to its competitive advantage, keeping in mind that innovation and business growth always go hand-in-hand.
Jane Dickson is West Region General Manager for Managed Partners of Microsoft’s Small and Mid-market Solutions and Partners (SMS&P) group.
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