Business innovation is a very important goals for many organisations nowadays. It is crucial for companies to uphold a competitive advantage – this in turn helps maintain customer engagement, satisfaction and retention. We spoke with a provider of small business IT support from London, who described the way in which professional business IT support services can help businesses drive innovation.
IT support is a crucial part of business in the modern world. Technology powers most business processes; it connects organisations and people from all over the world, and it gives customers unprecedented choice – this in turn drives competition, and furthers the need for businesses to leverage technology.
Culture of Innovation
In order for businesses to drive innovation, there needs to be a culture and strategy to support it. We discussed this with TechQuarters, who stated that create a culture of innovation in a business requires certain steps, such as…
- Develop an Innovation Strategy – Set out guiding principles for growth through innovation and clarifies expectations for problem-solving at all levels of the company.
- Accept Failure – Part of the innovation process is creating a culture that encourages risk-taking and learning from mistakes.
According to TechQuarters, innovation culture can be encouraged with modern approaches to technology and IT. As modern IT aims to optimize communication and collaboration, as well as make business processes quicker and more efficient. All of these principles help to facilitate innovation.
Open Communication
It goes without saying that communication is crucial to business. But for businesses that want to drive innovation, it can take on a whole new level of importance. Open communication across the business is key to initiating conversations and ideas-sharing environments. For instance, TechQuarters uses collaboration and communications platform, Microsoft Teams, as their primary mode of communication. They have had many successes providing business IT support in London, thanks to the innovation they have championed through open communication and collaboration.
Experimentation
Innovation cannot happen without experimentation. As mentioned above, risks need to be taken; necks must be stuck out. But what does experimentation in business look like?
- Market Adjacencies – Consider what new products or markets are relevant to your current operations. Modern IT solutions such as Infrastructure-as-a-Service (IaaS) and Platform-as-a-Service (PaaS) can make it easier for businesses to test new products or services. For example, TechQuarters noted that when they provided IT support for Estate Agents during the COVID-19 pandemic, the exploration of new products (such as videoconferencing solutions) helped their customers innovate new solutions to account for the pressures of COVID-19 – such as virtual viewings, digital contract signing, and more.
- Customer Collaboration – The objective of innovation is usually to develop a better business model, or to discover new value for the customer – in either case, the customer’s input is highly valuable.
Workplace Design
The workplace is where innovation happens, plain and simple. What is not plain and simple anymore, is what a workplace should look like. Since the growth of remote working, and consequently, hybrid working, it has become increasingly important for organisations to invest in their workplace. Some ideas for businesses to consider include…
- Connecting Employees – Whether it is through designing office layouts that are more conducive to knowledge and ideas sharing, or setting up active learning and social events for remote employees.
- Giving Credit – Creating a workplace where employees feel seen and valued is crucial t encouraging people to speak up and voice ideas – those ideas could be the key to something revolutionary.
- Tools & Software – The right tools and software can make the work of employees more efficient, and more intuitive. In turn, this can give users more time and space to experiment and explore.
These are just a few examples of techniques and principles that businesses can implement to drive innovation. Implementing these techniques can help create a culture of innovation within the workplace, leading to competitive advantages, improved customer focus, and higher employee satisfaction and retention.
