How to Put Together a Strategic Technology Plan for Business
“Our goals can only be reached through a vehicle of a plan, in which we must fervently believe, and upon which we must vigorously act. There is no other route to success. “
-Pablo Picasso
To succeed in the world of business, you must have a number of plans. You need a business plan to understand your overall objectives, a marketing plan to identify how to obtain your goals, a financial plan to manage your money, a human resource plan to manage your employees, and a technology plan to manage the electronic features of your business.
Whether you are a small business with a few computers and a server, or a large business that has virtual machines in an off-site data center and a cloud backup solution, you must approach your technology with intentionality. To this end, Dynamic Quest helps many businesses develop a strategic technology plan, which forms the basis of their Information Technology process in the future. Here’s a quick breakdown of how we work through putting together a strategic technology plan for business.
Goal Setting
Since a technology plan is designed to determine what hardware, software and technical support will be needed in the future, the first step in putting together a plan is to consider where you want your business to be in that future. We ask our clients questions about what they see their business doing in six months, a year, five years and beyond. Planning for technology to support these goals means the technology plan will work with the business, rather than against it.
Needs Analysis
The needs analysis begins with a “gap analysis,” in which we evaluate the current state of your business technology and look for areas of improvement. This may include process improvement, simplification of communication, and a review of processes that have been in place for years. Nothing is sacred in this phase, and the goal is to find the areas where technology is slowing your business down, costing you time and money. This often proceeds into a “root cause analysis,” which goes beyond managing symptoms to identify and solve the core problems in your business’ technology.
Organizational Development
This stage in our strategic technology plan for business considers the organizational structure, the process you use on a regular basis, and the systems you currently have in place. What software do you use to manage your inventory? Do you use CRM software? Which members of your organization have access to sensitive information, and how is that protected?
Final Plan Production
Once we have worked with our client to gather all of the information above, we put together recommendations on improving the technology used in the business. By addressing current failures and future goals, the plan makes sure that upgrades and improvements also move towards an agreed-upon end which ties in with the business’ overall objectives.
If you are considering a strategic technology plan for your business, and would like Dynamic Quest to consult on the best path to reach your goals, contact us today to set up a meeting. Our experienced technicians would be glad to walk you through each step in our process.
