Back when I launched the company, “LAN” stood for “Local Area Network,” an acronym that’s had its day. Local is now global, and that’s opened up a world of opportunities in the way we and our clients work together.
Our new tagline is “Loyal, Accountable and Nimble” and while we’ve always been all three, technology has evolved to make it easier for us to offer forward-thinking solutions to those who’ve entrusted us with helping run their businesses.
For instance, back in the day, we had to be physically at the client site to complete most tasks — and that could be inconvenient for them if we were needed after hours. Now we can support our clients wherever they are whenever they need us.
Much of that is thanks to cloud solutions. This innovation means on-demand availability of system resources, especially stored data, via off-site network infrastructure. It’s a way of running IT systems that is streamlined, less cumbersome and, ultimately, of greater value to businesses.
Another change we’ve seen in the past 20 years is the elimination of large capital costs for servers and enormous, multi-user disc-based software packages, such as those from Microsoft. Most of these business essentials are available via monthly subscriptions, meaning amortization of costs and a much more manageable IT budget.
Speed is another gift that’s come with tech progress. I can still hear the beep-squeal-ping-ping-ping of dial-up modems, and I don’t miss that sound one bit. Lightning-fast internet speeds have made it easier and less expensive for businesses to connect to the world. And that means businesses can offer their services worldwide, instead of just locally.
Of course, if COVID has taught us nothing else from a tech perspective, it’s the necessity to be able to connect teams in real-time — through Microsoft Teams, for instance — without losing the human experience. Let’s face it, during a panic-generating pandemic, there’s something comforting about seeing our video-conference-mates’ choice of sweats and bookshelf materials!