All businesses need to model themselves after others to be successful. Some might use specific businesses as examples, and some might use business leaders. One place that you might never think to look, but which can be very helpful, is information technology. These are three important things any business can learn from IT.
1. Problem Solving
If you’ve ever had a good experience with calling IT, you were likely very impressed by how much professionalism the other person showed and how they were able to solve your problem. They hopefully explain things very clearly and helped understand the solution. Problems are going to arise in all fields, but what matters is tracking down the solutions so problems don’t mutate into something worse.
IT can teach you to have a problem-solution approach to your business. When something needs fixing, it should be solved right away. Some issues might take priority, but your overall goal should be to never let anything linger unresolved. Solving one problem can help to prevent future ones from happening.
This can also help keep people from passing the buck. Problems don’t get solved by people just dumping them onto one another until it comes back to the same person. They require people to take responsibility for what is there’s while also accepting help when it’s available.
2. Keeping Up With Trends
Working in IT requires staying in touch with changes that are happening in the technological industry. An IT rep who hasn’t been following the technology world for the last few years or even months is going to be very unhelpful because their frame of reference is lacking. The same applies to people working in other fields, even ones that don’t see changes at such an accelerated rate.
To stay competitive and to keep your business reputable, you need to know about all the changes your industry is undergoing. If you’re in agriculture, you need to be aware of new irrigation techniques. If you’re in fashion, you need to know about which looks are gaining traction. It’s really not too hard to stay in the loop, especially not if you have a dedicated team who’s able to keep each other afloat about any crucial developments.
Once you learn of something, you must also work to understand it. Think about how it relates to what you already know and what new concepts it’s introducing. Among other things, technology methodologies and principles taught through things such as agile coaching can be implemented across different industries and business needs. In the end, there are more ways to research something than ever. Not understanding something right away is common, but you need to make sure you’re not stopping there. One cannot have expertise unless one is an expert, and you need to do all you can to grow your knowledge about your industry at every possible moment.
3. Customer Satisfaction
All businesses need to be able to keep their customers happy. People tend to not be in the best state of mind when they call for IT support. However, those feelings can be brightened if they’re able to get help from someone with a mind for customer service.
Develop systems of customer service for all your employees to follow. It doesn’t matter if someone is an executive or has just started with an entry-level position. Anyone who works there needs to know that their conduct reflects upon the business, and anything that falls out of those guidelines is not to be tolerated.
Whether conducting business face-to-face, over the phone, or via email, businesses need to be able to develop friendly relationships with their customers. There needs to be the right mix of professionalism and easygoingness. Many IT people are effective at this, able to make you feel relaxed in a stressful time. Go over what your employees can do in these situations, such as choosing the right tone of voice and using phrasing that is positive. These are little things that make a big difference, especially when it comes to giving your business a good reputation.
The lessons of IT are ones that people in the field are reminded of on a regular basis. They teach them about their work and about themselves. If you’re going to have a successful business, all of these lessons are important to know. Whether or not you’re dealing with computer repair and internet connections doesn’t matter.
