Are You a Business Owner?
When you have a business to run, your time is better spent making money, not dealing with IT-related issues. You may have employees who are responsible for the computer systems. You may have outsourced those functions, or you may be looking for a solution.
Do Any of these Situations Resonate with You?
- Poor response time, lack of response, or unresolved issues. You’ve outsourced your computer support but every time you call your provider, it takes days for them to return your calls. The provider’s solution is to prepay for support by signing a “block time” contract to get better service. Often, you have to call them back again and again to resolve the same issues. You may see a different technician every time, and the problem must be explained yet again. You try different providers and each one wants you to buy more equipment or software to solve the issues. You can’t justify hiring your own internal staff, but you’ve come to expect that all computer support providers are alike.
- Costly and unacceptable downtime, loss of data, or ongoing issues. Your company is very dependent on the existing computer systems. The financial impact when those systems are down is considerable. Employees may be standing around, unable to do their jobs. You may not be able to ship product, receive orders, or get access to critical information. You’re wondering if everything is being done to ensure that these assets are protected. Is your company being proactive about your current systems or do you just react to problems? Your current IT staff assures you that there’s nothing to worry about. Maybe you only have one IT person and all the knowledge about your systems is stored in their mind. What if they leave? You know you could call upon your CPA firm to perform an audit for your accounting processes, but shouldn’t IT have some sort of checks and balances system?
- You've outgrown your current level of expertise. Your company’s computer systems have grown from a few PCs to a complex network with many personal computers, servers, and other components. Your current IT provider has been a great help in the past, but you're running into requirements that are no longer his or her area of expertise. You're ready to move to the next level. Or, you may have been outsourcing your computer support and are at the point that you think you need to hire a full-time system administrator. You’re unsure of the skill sets you need for your internal support or how much you should pay. You look at resumes. You interview people. They all tell you they can do the job, but you’re not sure who really has the ability to perform because that’s not your area of expertise.
- Confused by all of the choices. You realize you have a need for a customer relationship management system, manufacturing system, or other business application. There are plenty of vendors willing to tell you their solution will do everything you need and sell you their solution. You want to make sure that you’re not just jumping on the bandwagon because the features look really sharp. You want to make sure the system will work for your unique way of doing things. You’re concerned whether the system is flexible enough to support you as your needs change. You want to make sure you receive a return on your investment. It may be difficult to compare various proposals and know whether a hosted solution might be more cost effective.
- IT expenditures are not providing a return on investment. You take the time to write and update your strategic business plan but your company’s computer systems don’t seem to compliment your business goals. They aren’t contributing or improving your delivery of products and services. They’re only slightly improving operations. You continue to spend money, but are feeling like the systems are an unwanted expense, a necessary evil. There’s no IT planning or budgeting.
- You have a false sense of security. Your IT systems seem to be running along just fine. You may gauge the health and security of your systems on the fact no major problems have occurred, leaving you with a false sense of security. You've read and heard horror stories about company data that has been stolen. You may be in a field where HIPPA security is required. Your software vendor has certified the software as compliant but is that enough?
Achieving Success
Business owners who find success working with Micro Visions often share these characteristics:
- Expect high standards of excellence. Work should be done right the first time and band-aid approaches minimized.
- Understand the value of planning, not just reacting. Prefer to prevent problems.
- Value a trusted partner who advocates for your company's best interests.
- Prefer building long-term relationships and value knowledge, consistency, and commitment.
What's the Next Step?
Now that you know with whom we work, the various issues that many business owners experience, and what characteristics our clients typically possess, find out more about how we work.