Technology can help businesses achieve their growth objectives, but it can also create problems. Is your business suffering?
It’s certainly an exciting time to be working in the automotive sector as the various takeovers, mergers and private finance deals in these pages will testify. However, change brings challenges as well as opportunities. Technology can help businesses achieve their growth objectives, but it can also create problems. In fact, your organisation could already be suffering from some potentially fatal issues that aware of. As tech moves at such a pace, it is almost impossible to keep track of every problem.
A piece of software, for example, may no longer be operating properly, but the faults go unnoticed because no one uses it regularly. This can go on for years and, all the while, you’re still paying for it.
If you want to ride out the wave of profitability hitting the industry, you need to identify any existing technology problems within your business – from how digital is influencing workplace culture to more specific IT infrastructure issues – and sort them out fast.
Here are three of the most common issues affecting organisations operating in the aftermarket and beyond, as well as some suggestions on how you can solve them quickly and cleverly.
WORKBOOK
The fear of missing out (known in horrible management jargon as ‘FOMO’), plagues many workplaces and across all industries. People need to stay constantly in the loop and this is made possible with easy access to mobiles. Unfortunately, employee productivity suffers in the process. According to a phone insurance company, the average Brit spends 23 days a year using their smartphone – which is more than most annual leave allowances!
Some businesses react strongly to this problem and ban the use of personal mobile phones or social media platforms during work hours. The downside of such an extreme policy is that it damages an employer’s reputation and good workers will soon start to look elsewhere for job opportunities.
The truth is, where there’s a will, there’s a way. A social media ban is almost impossible to enforce and will require many more resources to manage. Instead, take a more strategic approach and encourage your employees to use these platforms to build better relationships with customers. More and more salespeople are using Twitter, LinkedIn and Facebook to successfully reach customers. This tactic is known as ‘social selling’ and it involves sharing business-relevant content to attract leads and engage directly with existing and prospective customers.
DATA SILOS
Data ‘silos’ are the death of business intelligence. If your marketing, finance, HR and sales departments all use different software systems to house and manage their data, then you have a serious silo problem. This separation of customer and company information within one organisation inhibits collaboration and creates a disconnected customer experience.
When departments are working against each other, it’s impossible to achieve common business goals.
An example of this sort of inefficiency is when the sales team can’t access the marketing team’s campaign results to identify new lead opportunities. Or, when the marketing team contacts a prospective customer with irrelevant material because they can’t view the sales pipeline.
Data silos are very bad for business and, unfortunately, very common. Your business needs one system and a uniformed process to manage its data. As soon as any information is updated, the change must be immediately visible to all internal stakeholders.
A consolidated information ‘bank’ improves collaboration and efficiency, and ensures that all departments have access to correct data.
Your company is very likely gathering significant amounts of new information daily. This data is a valuable commodity, but the longer you leave it stored in silos, the less it’s worth. Fresh data doesn’t stay fresh forever. Make sure you have a master system in place when you de-silo your data. With unique identifiers for each account, data integration will be painless and important information will remain rich and relevant.
OUTDATED SOFTWARE
Technology could be described as ‘here today, gone tomorrow’. Many popular devices and software systems are outdated within a year or two. The only way businesses within the aftermarket can keep up is to audit their technology regularly. The market moves quickly and some of your competitors are just as fast – a good spring-clean will help you stay one step ahead.
You may be surprised to learn that some of the systems you run have been discontinued and therefore no longer qualify for update or maintenance support. Employees may also have stopped using certain packages that are no longer relevant – yet you’re still paying for them.
Outdated or irrelevant legacy software puts your business at risk and increases running costs. The longer you delay updating your software, the more expensive it becomes to maintain, improve or expand the technology. Experts like to stay up-to-date with new systems, so old software is made more cumbersome by the lack of people who understand how to manage it.
Take time to review your current software and hardware. Assess your company’s technologies and determine what works and what doesn’t. Find out what processes are improving efficiency within your organisation and which ones aren’t. To really work out how technology is helping or hurting your business, you also need to get input from all your staff, especially the end-users.
To prevent technology from killing your business, you need to make it work for you. It’s no good just adopting the latest software packages every time they’re released – what technologies will help you achieve your objectives best? In a highly competitive market like the automotive aftermarket, the right technology can keep your employees engaged and motivated, and help you improve your profits and productivity in the process.
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