6 Common Business Challenges in Tech
Solutions for Staying Ahead
In a quickly evolving tech landscape, businesses are constantly striving to balance innovation with operational efficiency while navigating the complex web of new technologies. From overcoming internal communication gaps to aligning tech solutions with business outcomes, companies face a range of challenges as they scale and adopt new tools. This article dives into six common pain points highlighted by industry leaders and offers actionable solutions to help businesses thrive.
1. Balancing Innovation with Operational Efficiency
The Challenge: Balancing the excitement of new technology with core business objectives can be a major hurdle. Rick Rausch noted, “There’s a lot of data you got to collect, keeping it organized and sorted while working through what sorts of technologies they need.” Similarly, Simon Bonk emphasized that companies sometimes “focus on the solution and focus on the technology... it’s about what it is that you’re trying to solve for.” Both statements reflect a broader challenge of keeping sight of the core problem while adopting new technologies.
The Solution: The key to addressing this issue is disciplined prioritization. Bonk highlights the importance of identifying the core problem before exploring technology solutions. Many organizations have successfully adopted a gradual integration of tools to prevent overwhelming their operations.
Industry Insight: Lean innovation is a valuable approach here. Implementing small, incremental changes allows teams to maintain operational efficiency while innovating. Tools like Kanban for visualizing workflows or Agile methodologies help teams focus on solving core problems first. Additionally, cross-functional collaboration ensures that tech decisions involve input from all relevant stakeholders, not just IT, creating a more cohesive adoption process.
2. Communication Gaps Between Teams and Stakeholders
The Challenge: Getting teams to embrace new technology or communication tools can be tough. Ricky Martinez pointed out, “Most companies... are very reluctant to embrace this idea that their company has to be social on a media platform.” This hesitation, combined with poor internal communication about why certain tech is adopted, is a major bottleneck for many businesses.
The Solution: Martinez advocates for modesty and clarity when introducing new technology. His company tests small internal tools before launching client-facing services. Additionally, educating teams about the functionality and benefits of new tools ensures smoother adoption.
Industry Insight: Implementing structured communication strategies using tools like Slack, Asana, or Microsoft Teams can close communication gaps. Offering regular workshops or short training sessions can also ease resistance. Sara Fogel suggested a “fail-fast, learn-fast” mentality to reduce hesitancy in trying new tools. Co-creating solutions with users, as part of a design thinking approach, can lead to higher buy-in and smoother implementation.
3. Misalignment Between Business Outcomes and Technology Solutions
The Challenge: Finding the right tech solution to meet business goals can be tricky. Rudy Augsburger remarked, “Most people do not encrypt... their priorities are wrong,” while Srikant Rachakonda noted the challenge of implementing automated compliance solutions, saying that “the frameworks are daunting to implement but essential for growth.” Both highlighted the struggle of aligning technology with business outcomes.
The Solution: Rudy and Srikant both tackled this by simplifying their services and focusing on customer education. Reframing complex needs like cybersecurity and compliance as essential long-term investments, rather than short-term burdens, helped customers appreciate the value of these solutions.
Industry Insight: Introducing business intelligence tools like dashboards to map out the ROI of each technological investment can help clarify its value. Automating onboarding processes with AI-driven solutions can also simplify complex systems like compliance frameworks. Focusing on outcome-driven KPIs ensures that teams stay aligned with the business value a technology brings.
4. Scaling Challenges in Small and Mid-Sized Businesses
The Challenge: As businesses grow rapidly, scaling can create bottlenecks. Sean Hector highlighted this, saying, “We’ve grown by 70-80% and this year we’re targeting to reach 100% growth,” noting the difficulties of building infrastructure to support such explosive growth.
The Solution: Hector focused on building scalable processes, developing career paths for employees, and automating parts of the sales process. Streamlining operations with these enablement tools helps maintain momentum while scaling.
Industry Insight: Automation is crucial for scaling efficiently. Tools like Salesforce (for CRM), HubSpot (for marketing automation), and project management platforms like Trello or Jira can help small and mid-sized companies grow without overwhelming their teams. Cloud-based infrastructure, such as AWS or Azure, offers flexibility, allowing businesses to scale up or down as needed. Continuous improvement, driven by employee feedback and training, ensures teams can keep pace with rapid growth.
5. Resistance to AI and Automation
The Challenge: Despite the benefits, AI adoption has been slow in some industries, including telecom. Scott Argue pointed out the hesitation many companies have, saying, “There’s apprehension... everyone needs to find a way to drive cost out of the business,” suggesting that while AI is necessary, there’s fear that automation could eliminate jobs.
The Solution: To overcome this, Argue’s team focuses on educating staff about how AI can assist rather than replace their roles. Starting small by introducing AI tools internally and scaling up as employees become comfortable has proven effective.
Industry Insight: Addressing fears head-on with transparent training and showing how AI can support, rather than replace, human workers is crucial. Implementing AI for routine tasks, rather than strategic decision-making, can help ease teams into adoption. Upskilling programs can also reassure employees that their roles are still valuable in an AI-enhanced workplace.
6. Customer Education and Product Understanding
The Challenge: Customers often struggle to fully understand the products or services they’ve purchased, limiting their engagement. Rick Rausch remarked that clients “know a lot about what they know, but not quite enough about the products and services that you have.” This gap in product understanding can hinder customer satisfaction and loyalty.
The Solution: Rausch and Sean Hector both stressed the importance of customer education. By providing personalized onboarding and support, they helped customers better understand and engage with their products, boosting long-term satisfaction while lending to stickier clients.
Industry Insight: Content marketing strategies like webinars, video tutorials, and customer success stories can be valuable tools for educating customers. Learning management systems (LMS) that guide clients through product features step by step can also improve customer experience. Additionally, interactive FAQ sections and AI-powered chatbots allow clients to get quick answers, increasing their comfort with your product.
Final Thoughts
Navigating the challenges of innovation, communication, scaling, and customer education can be daunting for any business. However, by focusing on disciplined prioritization, fostering collaboration, and implementing structured processes, companies can effectively balance operational efficiency with growth. Each of the solutions mentioned above is a practical step toward overcoming common hurdles and positioning your business for long-term success.
By adopting the right technology and strategies at the right pace, businesses can stay ahead of the curve, while ensuring that teams, stakeholders, and customers remain aligned and engaged. If you’re looking for support to help your team overcome any of these challenges reach out to us! Let’s talk about solutions that fit your challenges.