Technology is just a tool. In terms of getting the kids working together and motivating them, the teacher is the most important.
April 26, 2020Solaris Technologies is a software company which has delivered software services to many clients and helped them to scale up their business in the most flawless manner. We believe that for companies to excel in the fast paced environment of the changing industries, they need to adapt to the changing technologies and become accustomed to using smart solutions for all of their problems. The transformation towards digitization is the incorporation of digital technology in all of the different areas of a business, making changes on a grass root level regarding how you operate and deliver quality work to clients. It is not just a change in the tools being used, it is more of a cultural change as well that pushes the organization to make amends to how things were previously being done. As an organization getting used to these changes also means getting used to experimentation, getting comfortable with failures along the way.
Transformations encircling digitization are crucial for all businesses, no matter the size of the company; no matter if it is a startup or an enterprise. It is upon these transformations that the future of the company stands. They determine the road upon which the company will travel and it will be an essential deciding factor in whether the company will prosper and go beyond the average competitor or stay in the mediocre lot and maybe even get lost in the crowd over time. The message delivered due to the digitization is as clear as it can get. It will manifest itself in every panel discussion, every meeting, every article, and every work being completed regarding how to stay on the top of your game, stay competitive and relevant as the world swiftly moves towards digitization.
“To all users of technology who are willing to take a chance, make a choice, and try a new way of doing things so that we can nurture and enjoy a happy, healthy planet.”
― Katherine Murray, Microsoft Office 365: Connect and Collaborate Virtually Anywhere, Anytime
A lot of business owners who do not have a digital background get confused about what digitization and smart solutions actually means. It can be quite confusing for someone who is new to these concepts and has no experience with technology or has very little interaction with technology. Is it a fancy way of saying cloud? Does it require specific steps? Can we do it on our own? Do we need to hire someone to do this for us? And most importantly, is it really worth it to go through the hassle of changing old ways? All these questions are valid and sensible. So what are smart solutions after all?
This article aims to answer some of the common queries that arise in the minds of business owners around smart solutions and aim to create some level of clarity. As technology plays such an integral part in an organization’s capability to evolve with the evolving trends of the market and continuously add value to the clients, it is important for the company heads to learn about the digital transformation.
“Just like the way a beautiful butterfly can’t come into life without its transformation cycle from egg to larva, caterpillar to pupa and finally to a brilliant creation, to become a successful digitally transformed organization, similar transformational stages are essential.”
― Enamul Haque, Digital Transformation through Cloud Computing: Developing a sustainable business strategy to eschew extinction
One must also keep in mind that organizations today are fundamentally different from those in the past. Companies are moving from on the road approach to a more remote, on the road approach. It is not uncommon for companies to feel stuck in their work as they shift to smart solutions. One must realize that they are not the only ones who go through these issues. One of the most difficult questions in smart solutions is how to get over and beyond the initial speed bumps faced by the vehicle of the company. The journey from vision to execution is not a steady slide where everything is executed smoothly without delays and barriers. A lot of people end up believing that they lag behind and are far behind from their peers in the process of transformation. However, this is hardly ever the case.
“Every IT organization has to set its own pace; explore its own set of the best and next practices, build business competencies, and elevate digital maturity.”
― Pearl Zhu, 100 IT Charms: Running Versatile IT to get Digital Ready
What are smart solutions?
As smart solutions can and probably will look different for each and every company, it can be really difficult to pinpoint an exact definition that can be applicable and generalized over all the companies. However, in general terms, we define digital transformation as the integration of digital technology into all areas of a business resulting in fundamental changes to how businesses operate and how they deliver value to customers. Beyond that, it’s a cultural change that requires organizations to continually challenge the status quo, experiment often, and get comfortable with failure. This sometimes means walking away from long-standing business processes that companies were built upon in favor of relatively new practices that are still being defined.
Smart solutions should always start with a problem statement, a very well thought out goal, a clear opportunity for betterment and growth. This is essential as it provides the company with a purpose and assists in the reduction of friction towards the change. A smart solution can increase a company’s productivity by multiple folds or elevate profitability. It can also drive the company to become the best at what they do and excel in their respective field by utilizing digital technologies that were unavailable in the prior years.
“Information tech in the era of the personal computer and network is today’s equivalent of a Love Bug that not only works but creates a new image of work that allows corporate and other organizational cultures to imagine a cool new vision of themselves. Information technology, in other words, is an institutional desiring engine.”
― Alan Liu
As a person in charge of leading a team, one may think about what smart solutions will mean to the company and how the company will articulate it. Solaris Technologies understands that there is no one way of describing smart solutions, however, they tend to discuss it in the terms of customer centricity. The company describes how they always talk about design, innovation, business models and technology, however; enwrapped inside these topics and softwares, is the concept that all of these are enablers of success now. Any smart solution needs to be customer centric rather than technology centric as the motto is not to incorporate more technology but to make the work more organized and smooth.
Smart solutions are solutions that revolve around making the work efficient. Smart solutions refer to solutions that promote smart work paired with hard work. This helps to save time and unnecessary time delays. In the center of all such solutions is culture. Solaris Technologies believes that smart solutions are not attainable unless you have a culture that promotes the integration of these solutions and an openness towards change. However, if culture and growth is not at the heart of the company, then the integration of any new smart solution will not just be a hassle, it may simply not work. It is important to first understand what smart solutions mean in the context of your company as Solaris Technologies did. It does not matter if you are a tech company, in the food industry or in a financial institution; smart solutions can help the company to take your company up a notch.
“The library of the future may very well be twofold: an underground repository for precious old books published prior to 1980 which no one sees or handles, plus a crisp reading disk to which chips from any library in the world are delivered electronically as you dial for them.”
― James Michener
Smart Solutions is a messy word. Say ‘smart solutions’ to one person and they think going paperless and shifting to digitalization; another might think of artificial intelligence and another might imagine robotics, yet it might be a completely different thing all together. Leaders and managers need to be fully aware of this reality as they drive their conversations accordingly; keeping in mind the digital transformation and the incorporation of smart solutions.
Why do smart solutions matter?
There can be multiple reasons why a company decides to take up smart solutions. But by far, the reason that is most likely and most reoccurring is that they have to. A lot of companies are reluctant to initiate new things and modes of work, which is why they may only shift to smart solutions if they feel that there is no way around it. It is not something most companies do out of their free will or passion to grow, it is done as a survival issue. In the wake of the ever changing industry and the fast paced changes revolving around digitization and technology, a company’s ability to adapt swiftly to any disruption in the work is critical, ranging from disruption in the supply chain, rapid changing expectations from the customers or a dip in available work and clients.
“Our brains do not generate consciousness since our minds are embedded into the larger consciousness system. We humans are deep down information technology running on genetic, neural and societal codes. Self-transcendence from a bio-human or cyber human into a higher-dimensional info-being might be closer than you think.”
― Alex M. Vikoulov, The Syntellect Hypothesis: Five Paradigms of the Mind’s Evolution
When incorporating such a change in the office, it is always too early to predict which of these changes will stick in the long run. However, it is no secret that there is a rise in technology and this change has been accelerated in the last decade. It is important to shift to smarter solutions as they allow a company to prosper even when times get tough. This is quite essential as it is not possible to make changes in the moment and they need to be incorporated beforehand for the team to be well equipped beforehand for any changes to come.
As a tech company, Solaris Technologies realizes the need to incorporate smart solutions and how companies can focus on technology based smart solutions to ease their way into advancement. Solaris Technologies focuses on creating a clear understanding of how technology can be utilized to increase productivity, effectiveness, attraction and even sustainability in the corporate environment of the work space. Smart solutions are solutions that are sustainable; they allow the company to prosper when times get tough and help the productivity to rise no matter what the circumstances may be.
“Before you become too entranced with gorgeous gadgets and mesmerizing video displays, let me remind you that information is not knowledge, knowledge is not wisdom, and wisdom is not foresight. Each grows out of the other, and we need them all.”
― Arthur C. Clarke
How Smart Solution Works?
There are many smart solutions that Solaris Technologies incorporates in their work and also suggests to their clients. Now that we have cleared that smart solutions are different for each individual corporation’s needs, we can understand how these different smart solutions can come into play. First and foremost, it is essential that the people working in a corporation are open to the use of new smart solutions. One may think why this is such an important thing. It is essential as a company can have the most advanced solutions lined up for them however, if they are unwilling to utilize them, they are pointless. You can have the best software but if you don’t learn how to navigate it, you will never be able to reap their fruit.
“The test of the machine is the satisfaction it gives you. There isn’t any other test. If the machine produces tranquility it’s right. If it disturbs you it’s wrong until either the machine or your mind is changed.”
― Robert M. Pirsig, Zen and the Art of Motorcycle Maintenance: An Inquiry into Values
One smart solution that Solaris Technologies is always hooting for is an internal communication system. When things are done verbally without any documentation, there is room for a lot of mistakes and even more blame games. Since there is no written documentation of how things were processed and where the work got off the trail, it is not easy to pinpoint exactly who is responsible for any delay in the work. When a company moves from verbal to digital solutions for communication, this creates a more organized flow of how work progresses. No detail or information is missed or skipped as everything is in written form and the person receiving the information can go back and check whether he or she has covered all the required details of the work. This also instills a feeling of responsibility as everyone understands that they alone will be accountable for the work that they produce and the mistakes that occur. This also makes it easier to keep track of all the different projects that are happening simultaneously in the office without overlooking any of the minor services that need the team member’s attention.
“Science and technology multiply around us. To an increasing extent they dictate the languages in which we speak and think. Either we use those languages, or we remain mute.”
― J.G. Ballard
A very simple thing that a company can use is Skype or Slack or any other proprietary business communication platform. These are easy to navigate and they can be quite beneficial for the company. There are many free options available for the company to use if they want to avoid going out of budget or spending on a new software to incorporate in the company.
Such smart solutions are a great way to pace up work and add satisfaction to the lives of the team members by making work easier to complete. Another very simple yet smart solution that companies can utilize is the cloud. Since data that is saved in the hard drive is at a constant risk of being corrupted or lost. If anything happens to the system this data might not be retrievable and all the efforts and hard work will go to waste. This is why having a cloud based backup is a more sensible way of storing important documentations of the organization. Using such a system also allows users to access the data anywhere that they are around the world and does not constrain them to a specific system. This allows more flexibility for the team members and more efficiency in the progress of the company’s work. Shifting data on the cloud also allows the data to be shared by multiple users at the same time. This is quite efficient as the data is easily shared with multiple team members and everyone can access the same data on the cloud without wasting any time.
“Technology is just a tool. In terms of getting the kids working together and motivating them, the teacher is the most important.”
― Bill Gates
Conclusion
There are many technologies that can be utilized to create smart solutions for an organization. It is just a matter of knowing exactly what you need and how to get it. In today’s world, there is a solution available for literally every issue that a company might be facing and for solutions that are not available on the market, there’s Solaris Technologies. Solaris Technologies is determined to create innovative smart solutions for their clients and make sure that the work being done in the client’s organization is done as efficiently as possible by avoiding delays as much as possible. In the changing world it is not feasible to stick to old ways if you wish to see your work excel and progress in this cut throat market. It is important to realize that the smart solutions act as a tool and they should be treated as one as well.
“It’s not technology that limits us. We’re the limitation. Our technology is an expression of our intelligence and creativity, so the limitations of our technology are a reflection of our own limitations. We can’t fundamentally advance technology until we fundamentally advance ourselves.”
― Christian Cantrell
It should not be expected that simply by having a tool, the work will be magnified. Just as having a lawn mower does not mean that the grass will always be cut, having smart solutions will also be useless if you cannot incorporate them. As a lawn mower makes it easier for the person to cut the grass and get the work done more easily without many delays, the same way a smart solution will help the team members of an organization to get the work done more swiftly and help them to avoid any unrequired hard work by letting the software or the program do the hard work for them. As much as people look up to working hard, it is also important to realize that hard work should only be done where required and not in places where there are easier and quicker alternate options available. With smart solutions, the world can move a lot faster towards advancement and the industry will notice a huge boom in growth. This allows company owners to come up with better products, better solutions and better services for their clients. The use of smart solutions also allows companies to be on top of the game and be a notch above from the competition in the market. Solaris Technologies has played a huge part in the work lives of their clients by providing them with cutting edge technology and up to date softwares that allow these companies to make it to the top a lot faster than they would if they would stick to the conventional ways.
