Common Misconceptions about Technology in the Workplace

When you invest in a new technology solution, you might be wearing your rose-tinted glasses and expecting too much from the solution right out of the box. We all have expectations for what we want the solution to accomplish, but sometimes these expectations just are not realistic. Listed below are some common misconceptions people have about technology in the workplace, especially in regards to implementation.

The Latest Is the Greatest

Some people have a mindset that the latest version of a particular piece of technology will be the greatest thing since sliced bread, and while it’s true that software and hardware have come a long way in the past decade or so, the idea of “new = better” is not necessarily the most accurate. There are many businesses that cling to old technology simply due to the fact that the new technology is not as compatible with their legacy applications to the extent they need it to. This is not really an excuse, but just one example of why the latest might not be ideal for some organizations. This does not mean they are out of options, however. Today's technology does offer certain outs, but you will need to ask yourself whether or not the technology addresses your company's specific needs and if the implementation is worth it.

My Staff Know How to Utilize Technology

Employers often believe that the people they hire to fulfill a certain task will be able to adapt to the use of technology in the blink of an eye. All it takes is a short tutorial and they’re on their way to making you money, right? Wrong. Some people have enough intuition to pick up technology like this, but it’s dangerous to assume too much, especially for productivity. Many employers are under the impression that young people, too, have greater technology skills than their older contemporaries, but again, this is not the reality. You should provide adequate training to all employees who are using technology for your business so that everyone has minimum baseline knowledge of what they are doing.

It Can’t Happen to Me

This is perhaps one of the most fatal unrealistic expectations to have. You see the stories in the news all the time with headlines detailing hacking attacks and other issues that threaten operational continuity. SMBs often have a mindset that these types of problems are so large-scale that they can’t possibly be targets, but they are wrong. All businesses must be prepared to handle a hacking attack, no matter their number of employees or clients serviced.

Don’t let your unrealistic expectations for your technology sink your chances of being productive with it. To learn more about how you can achieve great things through the use of business technology, subscribe to Macro Systems’ blog.