Basic IT considerations for new startups

Starting a new business is exhilarating, but it also brings with it a unique set of challenges. One of those, can be dealing with the sheer, overwhelming things you need to think about. 

It's 2019, and technology is a necessity for every business, but we don't want IT considerations to contribute to the overwhelm. It can be really easy to miss essential elements of your IT system off of your budget so we thought we'd put together this post about hardware considerations which you can refer back to. 

At a very basic level, the majority of new businesses will require computers, phones, a server (whether physical or cloud-based) and printing equipment. 

PCs, laptops, and printing equipment

Whilst it might be nice for everyone to have a business PC, laptop, and personal printer, it might eat up a large proportion of your budget unnecessarily, which could be better utilised elsewhere. It's good to spend a bit of time asking yourself some questions to get to the bottom of the hardware you will actually need. 

• What does everyone require to perform their roles to the best of their ability?
• Where does everyone sit - is it possible to have multiple people sharing the same printer? If it is possible to share, will anyone be printing out sensitive information requiring a need for a secure solutions such as printer cards?
• Will members of the team be working remotely? If so, do they need a PC and a laptop, or can they connect a laptop to their monitors whilst in the office?
• Cost. Although it's nice to buy things outright, there are other options. Have you considered managed hardware, which is similar to leasing hardware on a monthly basis, but the maintenance, upkeep, and security of the devices is accounted for in the monthly price? This can bring costs right down, again allowing you to invest your budget in other areas.

Leased hardware vs managed hardware: what's the difference? >>

Servers

Physical server equipment can be expensive, so do you need to have something onsite, or can you run your business using the cloud to start with? With this, there are so many considerations, we recommend having a chat with an IT professional so you ensure you're going with the right solution for you. That doesn't have to be us, but if you want it to be then get in touch and we can have a chat to you about your requirements. We also offer physical servers on a managed hardware basis as mentioned above, so you don't have to be faced with a scary outlay.

Phone systems

With traditional phone systems, it can make it more time intensive and more expensive to add a new line. This is definitely a cost to factor in when considering your growth strategy. VoIP phone systems only require one good internet connection, the handsets are cheap to install (some suppliers, like us, offer initial hardware for free) and they offer some great features which help the smallest of businesses compete in the arena with their larger competitors. We've written extensively about VoIP before, you can find our ultimate guide here. 

If you'd like to have a chat about what else you might need, please do get in touch and we'll be happy to discuss your needs and make some recommendations.