How does a business grow? A difficult question, and one that has no definitive
answer. In truth, it is trial and error. It requires consistent attention, a
whole workforce’s dedication and most importantly, collaboration between internal
teams. We live in a digital world in which both small and global companies are
heavily reliant on technology to maintain the everyday running of their
businesses, as well depending on it to help them reach their goals.
Traditionally, when considering technology in the workplace we would
assume it was very much the IT department’s territory. A recent survey commissioned by Dell Inc suggests this is
a notion of the past. Leaders of IT departments are now insisting they are
present and at the forefront when it comes to contributing to business strategies
and budget allocations. The survey indicates that both CEOs and IT managers
should be integrating more because of the increased need for technology to be the
first spending priority, which is what will allow them to gain significant growth.
This notion places a high importance on data storage. FileMaker
developers are consistently advancing and streamlining databases
so they are no longer just a storage solution, but also people with the ability
to manage and maintain the running and efficiency of any business.
How to Better
Utilise Your Two Key Teams
As well as using your internal databases as a resource for planning
business strategies, we must also consider another key team within a business:
the marketing department. Their priority should be research and development as marketers
are adapters of new services and technologies (habitually full of enthusiasm
and innovation). A situation I have encountered at work is when marketers’
enthusiasm can be lost or misunderstood by corporate associates who simply do
not understand, or who are stuck in traditional methods, scared of disrupting a
pattern they are all too familiar with.
Risk is never really an option for the decision maker. It is imperative
we work towards a collaboration that demonstrates the value of these two teams integrating,
as they both consistently have the customer in mind. It is the responsibility
of both IT and Marketing teams to have the skills needed to analyse complex
data, converting this into insights and eventually actions that deliver results
and therefore, growth. If your business is not currently utilising the data
accumulated from your internal systems (a system you are likely paying a
considerable amount for), nor the knowledge from both IT and marketing, you may
be missing a huge opportunity to integrate these two important teams.
The Importance of
Innovation and Collaboration
Allow your IT team to help Marketing secure their data - it is an
incredibly important asset to any company. This collaboration can be easily achieved
by hold joint meetings with both departments.
Where previously the Marketing department has proposed an innovative
idea but failed to support it with an actionable project plan, your tech-smart
IT team may be able to offer an efficient and cost-effective solution in their
aid. Marketing will always want to bring the next big thing into any company,
and IT is programmed to build and maintain such things.
Like any re-structure or team change, obstacles will occur. Business is
trial and error, after all. As long as you recognise some ideas will take
flight far quicker than others and your teams will need to integrate, your
expectations will be realistic and you will not be disappointed. The working pattern of an IT team member can
often be very exact and therefore, time is required for implementation and so
forth. Marketing however, generally works at a fast pace, similar to the tech industry
itself. Their consultative, creative and positive
mindset could complement any IT team’s approach.
Before you take the decision to resource external developers, have an
internal conversation. Money and time could both be saved, and I have no doubt
this is a gap a lot of large and smaller companies could fill.
Comments
Post a Comment