Back to School Shopping: Modernize Your Tech

It’s not fair that only kids get to buy all the fun back-to-school fundamentals—pencils, folders, spiral notebooks. While we probably can’t make business technology shopping rank with getting a new Batman lunchbox, we can help you determine what your business should be considering as your team heads back to the serious work of Q4 in a few weeks after more leisurely effort during the hot summer months.

Replace Your Legacy Technology

Modernizing business technology is a perfect fit if your organization is looking for ways to enhance efficiency, security, and competitiveness – and who isn’t? The pros of swapping outdated, even obsolete, technology are many: cost savings, improved performance, scalability, increased security, a better user experience, and more.  But the real advantages go much deeper.

Business tech updates enable your team to compete more effectively. In a recent article in Forbes, the author called out the impact modernization can have on the customer experience, operational efficiencies, and cost savings. Have you considered the competitive advantage of having a digital transformation strategy?

Modernized Tech Helps Organizations Hire Better and Faster

Legacy technology replacement planning can make your organization more attractive when it comes to hiring talent. In 2022, global management consulting firm Bain surveyed workers to uncover what attracts and retains talent at various organizations. They uncovered that more than 80% of employees say using modern tools and methodologies is very important. The reasons vary, but most employees cite the important role of effective technology when it comes to being innovative, effective, and productive. Keep in mind, most people enjoy far more advanced tech solutions in their own, from cutting-edge laptops to lightning-fast internet, and over the last decade or so, expectations of similar IT capabilities in the workplace have increased dramatically. Don’t be surprised if your recruits for key roles ask questions about your current business technology essentials and then about future digital transformation investments with an eye on understanding how important innovation is for your organization.

Keeping Up with Jones Means Modernized Technology Investments

We all know that customer experience is key for differentiation in the marketplace – we all need those 5-star Google reviews. To take full advantage of a customer’s lifetime value, a measure of the revenue generated over their relationship with a company, businesses must stay ahead of the competition, and that can mean constantly evaluating and investing in business tech upgrades. It doesn’t take much to lose a customer – a cyber attack or data breach, a few bad reviews about slow order fulfillment, an email, phone message, or web form request that slips through the cracks, etc. Many customer experience debacles can be avoided with upgraded IT, which makes your technology modernization plan an essential part of your business success roadmap.

Other Top Reasons for Modernizing Legacy Systems

While security alone is a compelling reason for legacy system replacement, your tech refresh strategy will resolve other costly concerns, including:

• Maintenance: Legacy systems require ongoing maintenance and support, which can increase costs over time. Obsolete IT solutions also need ongoing investments to remain stable and usable because of a lack of support from vendors once a solution reaches end of support.
• Scalability: Outdated systems can be difficult and costly to scale to accommodate growing demands, and often require significant investments to remain integrated with newer hardware or software products.
• Compliance: Old technology is among the top reasons organizations find themselves out of compliance. Not only do regulatory agencies frown on the security gaps in legacy systems, these solutions often lack the functionality to meet reporting and other documentation requirements.
• Compatibility: Legacy systems may not be compatible with new systems and tools.
• Usability and Efficiency: Obsolete solutions suffer from interoperability, stability, and reliability issues that can slow down business processes. As the skills of your workforce increase, outdated software and other IT solutions may lessen their capacity.
• Mobility: Today’s businesses revolve around mobility and accessibility – there’s an app for about everything! Many legacy applications are device-dependent and are not accessible by mobile devices. This is a great example of why cloud-based applications outperform in-house systems.

What Modernization Should Be Part of Your Q4 Strategy?

One sexy technology that gets a lot of attention is generative AI. The use cases for this powerful technology range from creating new opportunities to scale your marketing efforts to research and data analysis to automating the customer experience. In fact, research giant Gartner predicts that by 2025, AI will be a top five investment priority for more than 30% of CIOs.  Other breakthrough technologies on the horizon include sophisticated cybersecurity solutions, sustainable tech, and even the next step in cryptocurrency.

While IT upgrades for Q4 can’t compare with the new sneakers and a cool backpack we all looked forward to as kids, having clarity about what you need to start doing for a successful business tech overhaul can be exciting. If you are looking for insight on how cloud computing can support your digital transformation or any guidance on the right cutting-edge tech for your particular business focus, Exigent can help.

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