Is there a sign on your desk that says “Chief cook and unwilling IT Manager?” Like it or not, being an entrepreneur today means you need to understand the technology that runs your business. As great as technology is, there’s a lot that can go wrong and will.
Here are a few of the technology traps you need to avoid, according to USA Today:
Lack of security: Ready for your wake-up call? The FBI is investigating more than $100 million in small business and financial theft, USA Today reports. Make sure that you have great security software to protect your customer lists, account numbers, password, bank information, data, contracts and any other vital business information. Don’t stop there. Have a policy in place to ensure your staff does NOT download updates outside of the normal process. Watch your social media accounts; they are ripe for social networking scams and fraud.
Looking Small: You can look big and professional on the Internet, even if you are relatively small offline. Make sure your website looks professional and that you have an active social media presence (see: Seven tips to help you get started on Pinterest).
Not backing up: What can I say? All you have to do is lose your data once and you’ll be converted. But don’t wait for that disaster. Make sure to schedule regular backups, automatically, remotely and online.
Here are a few of my tech traps hot buttons:
Not protecting employee’s phones: Smartphones carry so much sensitive data having one lost or stolen, which is highly likely (see: Mobile phone loss could cost US consumers over $40 billion this year, study says) is a major risk to your business. Make sure company smartphones have password protection. Also enable remote swipe capabilities and ensure operating systems are secure.
Assuming everything will work together: Don’t! As compatible as technology is today, not everything is really plug and play.
Don’t be seduced by leading edge: Just because it’s the latest and greatest technology, it may not be what your business needs. Think about what you need technology to do and then purchase accordingly.
Anything else you’d add from the “tech lessons learned file?”