It may seem a strange question to ask, but is an office refurb essential to the running of your business? We’re guessing they’re not; especially if resources are tight. So, what are your priorities when it comes to business expenditure?
Unless you actually are a carpet business, carpets, and all the other nice-to-have office furnishings are not, in economically challenging times, going to keep your business going.
The priorities for business expenditure
It’s all about setting priorities, for the resources you have, to mitigate the risks your business faces – the risks not only to your continued business operation and quality service to your customers, but to your legal compliance.
Clean, serviceable carpet may go some way to ensuring the health and safety of you and your team, but, the bigger risks faced are to do with the computer systems underpinning your operation, and the correct handling of the data you hold on those systems.
A fine for breaking GDPR or nice, new carpet?
If you are considering any sort of office refurbishment, and think that your business really NEEDS carpets, desks, or new artwork, think again.
In short, you need to prioritise your computers and systems. Ask yourself how old your machines are. What’s the state of your tech?
For instance, if you’re continuing to run Windows 7 on old laptops and computers, your priorities need to change - fast.
Windows 7 is now completely unsupported, and has been since 14th January 2020. Without any security updates, computers running Windows 7 are, not only, posing a vulnerability security-wise, but break GDPR by processing and storing any personal data on them.
How much is a GDPR fine?
GDPR regulators can fine any organisation in the world that target or collect data from within the EU. The fines can be anywhere up to the maximum of either 20m euros (£17.29m) or 4% of global revenue, whichever is the higher, and are used to fund public services.
With customers and the general public increasingly in the know about their rights when it comes to their personal data, there is no slipping by just because you are a smaller organisation. The GDPR rules apply, no matter what size of organisation you are.
Your integrity and reputation
Up-to-date computers and laptops, and other devices used for business, that are fully supported and underpinned by reliable, compliance-rich IT support, will see your service to your customer base is robust, as secure as it can be, and fit for delivery great service to them far into the future.
Your customers will experience you as a reputable provider; trustworthy and someone they want to do business with. Why would you want to risk that for refreshed furnishings?
Your customers don’t care about your carpet
Had enough of the carpet analogy?
It’s the quality of your tech and systems, that keep your business operating the way it should, and with due care and attention to your customers’ data and service, not your soft furnishings.
Unless, you are, as we said, a carpet business.
Although the point still stands about tech being one of the most important supports to your business... even if you are a carpet business.
< Read more articles on our IT Academy
Business services like IT support, when they work properly, are a true partner to business. Here’s what it’s like when your IT support is a true partner.
If it can happen to McAfee, UNICEF and eBay…
It’s a wake-up call for brands – the SubdoMailing attack sees 8000 household names’ domains hijacked and exploited. Here’s why and how to protect your brand.