Office Expansion? Don't Miss These IT Essentials

Are you planning to expand your office?

If so, take a moment to celebrate the accomplishment. After all, with over 30% of all new businesses failing within the first two years of being open – expansion is no small feat.

And if you are expanding, make sure you plan properly. Otherwise, you may find that your venture can become unsuccessful. Some business owners think they can simply duplicate what they currently have to grow their office or business.

Sometimes that’s fine. But it isn’t always the case.

One area that warrants special attention is your technology. If you want to ensure that your newly expanded office has the proper access to the tools needed for success, make sure you have the following IT essentials ready to go.

An All-in-One Printer/Fax/Scanner/Copier

Even in an age where the cloud and email have begun to take over, there are times when you must deal with paper. You are going to be hard pressed to find a business that doesn’t occasionally require a printer, copy or fax machine.

As a result, you can save money and get what you need with an all-in-one device. This will work as a personal machine, or as a shared printer in a small office or workgroup.

It’s useful because it consolidates space and costs into one useful device.

Better Wi-Fi Access Points

Is your business dependent on Wi-Fi for network and internet access? Chances are, the answer is yes – it’s an IT essential for most. It’s crucial you have great wireless signal coverage.

Investing in a business-grade wireless access point (WAP) or two will allow you to cover your entire office with quick and reliable Wi-Fi. You should still take care to ensure that your wireless network has the proper protection to prevent would-be criminals from accessing your company data.

External Hard Drives

If you want to add some much-needed flexibility to your business, then consider investing in a few portable external hard drives. You can find these with USM adapters for USB 3.0, Thunderbolt and FireWire. These can also be used with both Mac and PC environments.

Take some time to find one that will work for your specific application, as there are several options available on the market today. These drives can be protected and encrypted to add a necessary layer of security.

Related: 5 Ways to Back Up Your Data

Of course, they’re always helpful for small-scale data backup purposes, too. While not ideal for mission-critical data, they’re certainly better than nothing.

Accounting Management Tools

Being able to effectively manage accounts receivable and payable is a crucial part of operating any type or size of business. You will find that using a pre-designed tool to help with this can take an otherwise complex process and simplify it.

Now that you are expanding, you likely can’t continue to do things the way you always have – especially if that means managing your accounting practices manually.

With financial management software, located in the cloud, you gain the benefits of amazing IT essential tracking tools, financial transaction processing and superior collaboration.

Custom App Creation

Now that you are expanding, there’s no better time than to create an app for your business. With the rise of mobility technology and increasingly app-connected employees, it’s never been a better time to start.

With the right tools and assistance, you can create beautiful, simple, database-backed apps by using the templates provided. You can even create apps that can be published on the web. This is a great way to promote and celebrate the expansion of your business.

Next-gen VoIP Phones

Are you ready to ditch the high costs of your local area copper phone service provider?

If so, now is the time to invest in internet VoIP phone systems. These IT essentials offer a wide array of features for a price that’s much lower than what you pay to a regular telephone company.

Also, with VoIP, you can easily grow your phone system as you expand. This is done without additional charges or huge setup fees. As a result, it’s a much smarter option for growing your business.

Multi-screen Systems

Do you want to improve efficiency in your newly expanded office? If so, then consider embracing multi-screen systems for your employees. Deploying two or more monitors within your operating environment is a great way to allow employees to better handle workloads and multitask in general.

Virtual Workspace

Do you have staff that are often in the field, but still need the ability to reliably check in and share information? Is your newly expanded office going to need access to other remote locations? In either of these situations, the solution is a virtual workspace. You can allow your workers to connect to company data securely – regardless of where they are. This will make the entire business more efficient and productive in the long run.

IT Essentials that Fit Your Business Needs

There are several IT essentials to consider if you are planning to expand your office or business. We’ve given you just a few to think about.

While office expansions are a sure sign of success, they also introduce new risks. Be sure to work with a technology expert that can guide you, helping you avoid potential pitfalls of your new expansion.

Looking for someone to talk to? Look no further than AnchorSix – we can help you prepare and deploy the right technology for your growing business.