By Emily Jones
A new year brings new opportunities—and technology is no exception. Each year, advancements in technology offer numerous ways to make your business more efficient, effective and competitive. New tools can create capabilities you never had before. New software can provide valuable insights. And new artificial intelligence features can enhance productivity like never before.
The technology opportunities seem endless for today’s companies.
With so many new technology innovations and opportunities on the horizon for 2025, where do you begin? How can you keep up with modern advancements and position your company to take full advantage of them? How should you prioritize pursuing all of the wonderful new opportunities that are available? And how can you develop a technology strategy that leverages these innovations to set your business up for success in the coming year?
The truth is that—even with all the new technology opportunities on the horizon—the best way to make the most of technology for your company actually isn’t to onboard all of the newest and shiniest solutions.
Ultimately, the best way to strategize your technology for the future is to fully grasp where your systems are today. After all, knowing where your organization’s technology stands is the precursor to effectively improving it.
Get the Full Picture
Without a full picture of your current IT operations, you can’t determine if a new AI tool will benefit your organization or just add unnecessary costs. Without identifying potential vulnerabilities in your systems, you won’t know which cybersecurity measures are most beneficial and which might be redundant. Without reviewing your current IT infrastructure, software, policies and growth initiatives, you can’t assess if they ensure sufficient business benefits and continuity in unforeseen events or if you’re currently exposed to risks.
That’s why gaining a robust, objective and clear picture of your current information technology and data security is the most important technology move you can make for your business in 2025. Only after you’ve outlined your current situation and your unique organization’s goals can you best identify which areas to prioritize within your technology.
Annual Technology Review
At least once each year, it’s important to review all of your technology hardware and software and conduct an inventory of your assets. Consider your cybersecurity compliance obligations, assess your proactive cybersecurity prevention measures and fully record how your organization interacts with and stores data. Consider your IT-related policies and review your procedures for responding to a breach. And beyond these individual assessments, consider how each of your assets interact and integrate with each other for a comprehensive look at your company’s IT landscape.
The new opportunities of a new year are exciting, and we’re all looking forward to seeing what technology advancements can positively impact our companies in 2025. New tools are being developed every day that promise game-changing solutions for companies, and many may be great additions to your organization. But remember, to effectively implement improvements to your company’s technology in the future, you must begin with fully understanding your current technology position today.
Emily Jones serves as the Principal Practice Leader for Warren Averett Technology Group.
