Disruptive technology is a buzzword, but for the forward-thinking business owner, it’s a reality that must be factored into every operational decision.
Management must remain cognizant to changes in technology that could pose either a grand opportunity, a competitive challenge or an outright threat.
Preparation for disruptions to the way business is conducted requires managers to ensure training protocol is well matched to the needs of a digitally dependent workforce. But training is only one factor. Nimbleness will be a much-coveted ability as the pace of technology continues to roil one industry after another.
The timeline for adopting new technology has grown shorter, leaving less time for managers to implement sound procedures required for daily, secure operations. Companies may skirt high-profile hack attacks for a time, but the trend is clear. Cyber security is on everyone’s mind these days. What company would have envisioned the damage cyber criminals half a world away could do within such a short span of time? Moving to the cloud yields many benefits, but security breeches pose a huge potential to drain productivity and tarnish a firm’s reputation.
Here’s a great article that covers some of the risks businesses are facing as a result of disruptive technologies, along with suggestions for managing those risks.