The IT department has become an important part of the business hierarchy, as more enterprises realise the need for technology in the workplace and the opportunities that digital spaces provide. Their role? Ensure that your technological resources are operating at full capacity in order to increase the efficiency of your other departments.

Refining your IT department is an important facet of business process improvement that has long-term and far-reaching effects in your company. To get you started, here are some ways you can help upgrade your IT department.

Map out schedules

Your IT department should have a lean, optimised schedule in conducting their everyday operations. Work with the department and your operations manager in creating a schedule for every aspect of their work.

Map out when updates, apps and programs should be rolled out. Follow and stick to a routine in upgrading a system, backing up files or inspecting hardware. Your IT department is going to support various aspects of your business - make sure that they have the time and resources in doing their job without interrupting the workflows of other departments.

Identify their role

Identify the department’s goals and objectives right from the start. Setting clear expectations and the role they play in the context of your business lets them know how crucial they are in achieving the company’s goals.

The IT department helps in streamlining the tech resources and infrastructure that the other departments use to operate and communicate. They help bridge the technological gap between other departments and their goals, which leads to the next point on this list.

Define priority areas

The main problem that most IT departments encounter lies in getting encumbered with lots of requests from various departments at any given time. When they’re getting swamped with “very important” and “extremely urgent” requests, they should have a clearly defined list of priority areas.

The department doesn’t always have the time and resources to deal with a lot of things at the same time. As a support unit, it should have access to information regarding the size, requirements, schedules and importance of the projects that everyone else are handling.

Empower others

While the main role of the IT department is to ensure that the tech resources in your company are operating at peak conditions, they should also take time to test new technology, apps, and programs. Your IT department should be responsible in finding apps and technology that would support and reinforce your other employees in being more effective and efficient in their work. This could include:

• Customer Relationship Management softwares SalesForce, SugarCRM and the like;

• Project Management apps like Basecamp and Microsoft Project;

• Email marketing service providers like Mailchimp and Benchmark; and

• Emerging technologies and hardwares like cloud computing, cybersecurity, wearable tech, etc.

The IT department plays a crucial role in most businesses by providing support and pushing technological frontiers. Without them, your other departments won’t operate at full capacity and can’t use technology to become more efficient in their roles.

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