You know that managed IT security keeps your company's important data secure from malicious attacks and theft, but did you also know it's a crucial part of your business continuity planning? Robust network security ensures your business can sustain itself under a wide variety of threats, giving you peace of mind that no matter what lies ahead, your company can survive it.
Managed IT security can help your business:
Stay Connected to Critical Applications and Processes In an Emergency
In today's ultra-connected world, it's impossible for your business to operate if you lose access to your network and its applications. The longer your downtime, the more it costs your company to recover if recovery is even an option at that point. Managed IT services can help you make sure you still have access to those critical apps even in the event that your network goes down or your workforce becomes remote.
Maintain High-Level Security Over Access to Data and Resources
Your network is likely accessible by multiple devices in multiple locations, meaning that there are many avenues into your network for would-be bad actors to take advantage of. Good network security helps you implement end-to-end encryption to ensure that your data remains inaccessible to hackers even as it travels across a vast network with multiple connections.
Protect Your Supply Chain and Crucial Vendors
Few companies consider the potential harm to their supply chain and critical vendors during a security breach, however, it remains a significant problem for businesses with poor network security. If your supply chain is interrupted or your vendors are impacted by an event that occurred on your network, this can cause issues with manufacturing, distribution, and other important segments of the supply chain. By implementing managed IT security, you can go one step beyond protecting your business and offer protection to your vendors and supply sources.
Avoid Gaps In Service Provided to Customers
If your business offers a service to your customers, network breaches pose a risk of interrupting that service. Managed IT is critical to avoid gaps in service, particularly for utility and Internet service providers.
Develop a Responsive, Agile Workforce That Can Rapidly Adapt to Changes
Today's business climate demands more out of your workforce. Many companies have transitioned to remote work in a hurry, making it necessary for workers to quickly adapt to drastic changes in their routines. Employees need to be able to access to important applications from their homes and mobile devices easily, and ideally be able to move between devices and locations as needed without impacting access to data. Businesses that aren't able to do this have a more difficult time scaling their workforce and responding to challenges that require an agile, dynamic team.
Managed IT security helps ensure that your company's important data is accessible to employees wherever they are, while still protecting your applications and proprietary information from unauthorized parties. When your team is able to adapt to change quickly and maintain productivity, the survivability of a number of potentially catastrophic events increases.
Protect the Value and Reputation of Your Brand
Your brand is your hallmark and how your community recognizes the products or services you offer. Consumers are no longer looking for the cheapest products or products with the most features; brand awareness and loyalty plays an even larger role than ever before. Many consumers will choose to purchase products and services only from brands they support and will make a conscious effort to avoid brands whose vision and mission do not align with their own.
Comprehensive business continuity planning is critical to protect the reputation and value of your brand. Companies that have suffered security breaches or have struggled to transition to a remote or low-contact business model in the wake of the Coronavirus pandemic are at an even higher disadvantage when consumers begin to actively shop from competing brands. Good security and network management plays a critical role in creating a brand with longevity.
Build Customer Confidence
The confidence customers have in your products and services goes hand in hand with how they regard your brand and the value they assign to it. Consider creating a marketing initiative that educates consumers on how your company's networks have been modified to allow for greater flexibility and security to help bolster consumer confidence in your brand. Help potential customers understand how these changes impact them as the end user and how your business can cater to their needs even in the face of significant obstacles.
Create an Advantage Over Your Competitors During Uncertain Times
You can be sure that your competition is doing exactly what you are: scrambling to adapt to unprecedented changes to the way business is done. This is truly a situation of 'survival of the fittest' for companies, and those that don't take action to rise above challenges will at some point begin to fade away. Your company can use this opportunity to create an advantage over your competition, who may not be as fast or as thorough at adapting to remote work or low to no contact interactions with customers.
When your business can easily scale and has the flexibility to continue working from nearly anywhere with a diverse, energetic team, your products and services will begin to stand out on their own. Customers are looking to support companies that have responded to the pandemic appropriately and have modified their business model to allow them to more easily adapt to radical changes, and ideally, yours is one of them.
Get Help With Business Continuity Planning -- Contact Response I.T. Today
Response I.T. is committed to helping local businesses protect the future of their companies. Contact us today to learn more about how cyber security plays a role in business continuity and how we can help your company create a plan that works with comprehensive managed IT services.
Serving Southeastern Ontario, including Kingston, Belleville, Brockville, and surrounding areas.