How to make your business more efficient with tech

All businesses strive to be more efficient, but often ‘improved efficiency’ becomes little more than a vague goal to strive towards or a buzzword in the office. So, how do you actually streamline your business? One thing you can do to see real results is to integrate the latest technology within your company, using smart solutions to boost productivity and save money. The experts from Syntax IT Support have some suggestions.

Internal communications

There are a range of tools available to help you improve communications within your business, whether you want to make video calls with clients or give employees an easy way to stay in contact with one another. Social intranet software is a great way to keep all employees in the loop on important news and projects, while private group messaging tools can bring team members together and help them be more productive. For conference calls, use Google Talk or Skype to conduct face-to-face meetings from almost anywhere, saving time and money by eliminating the need for travel.

Phone system

Could your existing phone system be updated to improve efficiency? If you’ve been using the same old model for years, it could be time to try something new. For a more efficient option, try a soft phone system that uses the Internet and Voice over Internet Protocol technology, which will provide additional features such as call forwarding and music on hold.

These modern phone systems even enable you to answer calls from home, making your work life more flexible. The monthly cost of a soft phone service may even save you money, so it could be efficient in more ways than one.

Password management

Effectively managing passwords across your business will not only improve security, but will also boost efficiency. Through misplaced or forgotten passwords, a huge amount of time and money can be lost – so perhaps it’s time to consider a more robust solution. Biometric authentication could soon replace traditional passwords, helping your business be more efficient and secure, but until this is a completely seamless and intuitive option, your safest bet is to ensure passwords are properly managed.

The simplest solution is to use a tool such as 1Password, which provides a place for users to store various passwords and other sensitive information in a virtual vault, locked by one super secure master password that only you know.

Calendars

Perhaps one of the most underrated and underutilised productivity tools is the calendar app, which enables you to enter tasks and appointments for the weeks and months ahead. As well as promoting efficient planning, your calendar app will also send you reminders, ensuring that nothing on your to-do list gets missed.

Employee management

Your employee management process starts from the time of recruitment, if we are being honest. Hiring employees who will fall in line with the company’s protocol and policies could prove to be crucial. To make sure that you hire the right people for the job and the company, background checks and employment verification for the prospective candidates might be necessary. You could hire professional services like Checkr to handle this aspect of your recruitment process. However, one must be mindful of the fact that employee management does not only stop at recruiting or at HR practices! If your business involves shift work or employs a lot of people, investing in good scheduling software could save you a lot of time. A tool such as TimeForce or ShiftPlanning will help you keep shifts filled and provide up to date information on availability, eliminating the risk of scheduling mistakes and saving you a headache.

The cloud

Making the move to cloud computing could save your business money and dramatically improve productivity. First and foremost, the financial model associated with the cloud is economical, involving a monthly payment with no upfront costs or nasty surprises.

The cloud will also keep your data more secure, will allow you to outsource IT work and encourages connectivity within the workplace, with file sharing and easy access to documents saving employees a great deal of time. You can find more examples of tools with these features on sites like https://kyligence.io/solution/accelerate-bi-on-big-data/ if you think this might be a worthy investment to your business. This flexible solution has a range of benefits and could be a great way to boost efficiency across your company.