Technology is ever changing and the speed at which it evolves is increasing. New tools, systems and applications are constantly being developed. This will mean businesses have new processes and tools to embrace in order to survive and thrive within their own industries. Adopting new technologies and adapting to a changing IT environment can be tricky, time consuming and costly, which is why many organisations choose to use external IT support services, to help them with planning for the challenges to come. So what does the future hold for IT support?
Continuation in remote and hybrid working practices
According to ONS data, the number of people working from home and at their place of work has risen, whilst the number of those working exclusively from home has fallen. This suggests that even after Covid-19 restrictions were lifted, hybrid working has remained a popular practice. We can assume that as infrastructures and working practices are in place to support this way of working, it will continue to be normal for many businesses. With sustained and possibly growing numbers of hybrid workers to support, there comes an increase in vulnerabilities so this is something that IT support services will need to address going forward.
Greater focus on cybersecurity
As life and work becomes increasingly digital, the number and extent of cyber security risks will also grow. The future of IT support is without doubt going to be more focused on cyber security, both in terms of growing awareness of risks and increasing the capacity to mitigate and deal with cyber attacks. Some of the cyber security issues that we envisage will form part of our future IT support including:
- More complex networks and infrastructures will result in more ways for cyber criminals to attack.
- Third party vulnerabilities will continue to grow as it becomes more difficult to put robust security practices in place when you are not dealing with end users.
- Smart devices, equipment and buildings will present further risks as people increasingly connect to internet enabled things that are not necessarily computers or mobile phones.
- Cyber threats will become more sophisticated, harder to detect and more impactful, meaning even more resources and time will need to be allocated in order to keep on top of and learn from the latest threats.
Increased use of virtual IT support
With video conferencing becoming normal practice during the Covid-19 pandemic businesses are now well versed in jumping on video calls to manage client meetings, employee productivity sessions and new customer introductions. There is no reason why some IT support will not be delivered in this way going forward, giving businesses access to face to face support without the need for anyone to travel.
Experienced users better able to identify and report issues
As users become better educated and experienced with the systems and tools they are using, thanks to better in-application guidance and a growing interest in IT, they will be better able to report issues to IT support teams. This means that when issues are logged not only are they better defined in terms of what the issue is, but it allows technical support teams to identify and resolve the problems more quickly. This will lead to less downtime and less inconvenience.
A proactive approach to IT support
At Matrix IT, we have always prided ourselves on our proactive approach to IT support and this is something that will stand us in good stead going forward. The need to prevent issues rather than resolve them will become even more vital to business survival and success. IT issues such as cyber attacks and poorly performing systems cost businesses time and money, something that can be ill afforded as the economy continues to show signs of stalling and UK inflation has reached a 40-year high.
If you want a future-proofed approach to your IT management, contact us today on 01329 888444 or click here to request more information about our IT support services and how we can tailor them to meet your business needs.
