Technology is changing much of the world we know.

From medicine to industry to military,

technological applications are taking over. Barring any earth-shattering events, technology seems
like it is here to stay. It is humankind’s effort to make the world function with efficiency.

One of the areas most affected is business. Technology has almost completely transformed the
business landscape of today. Small businesses particularly are taking advantage of technological
innovation at affordable prices.

This article explores modern technological innovations changing the landscape of small business
operations management.

5 Technological Innovations Changing Small Business Management

Small businesses form the backbone of the American economy. Entrepreneurship is part of the
American Dream. The ability to achieve success from rags is appealing. Using nothing but your wits,
determination, and hard work to do so is an almost romantic concept.

Luckily, technology is making life easier for small businesses and entrepreneurs. It is helping them to
realize their version of the American Dream. The slide towards innovation began early, ever since
the internet became available to the public in the early nineties.

Over the years, technological innovations have come and gone. But, some of them have stuck
around. These 5 technological innovations are helping small businesses achieve success:

1. Management Reporting Systems

2. Virtual Reality

3. Virtual Assistants

4. 3D Printers

5. Remote Collaboration

Let’s discuss these innovations in more detail below.

Management Reporting Systems

Management reporting systems have been around since the early days of the computer. But the
versions we have today are much more advanced than their predecessors. Management systems
make it easier for managers to assign work to their subordinates. They also make it easier to manage
work queues and reports and make business decisions.

Many management systems are all-in-one solutions for smaller businesses. Others are scalable to
your needs as your business grows in size and operations. Management reporting systems also
reduce the amount of paperwork your business generates. All your business data and information is
within easy reach.

Virtual Reality
What comes to mind when you hear the word Virtual Reality? A VR gaming headset? A VR cinematic
experience? Both are very good examples of VR in commercial use.

But VR also has many applications in businesses, especially small businesses. Over the years,
technology has become more accessible and affordable. Design or engineering business functions
stand to benefit the most. Why? VR eliminates the need for complex physical models. Instead, your
designers and engineers create virtual models. 3D walkthroughs and models tend to appeal more to
many customers. They are also easier and cheaper to create in VR than in the physical world.

Virtual Assistants

Virtual voice assistants are very common these days. Some of the most popular ones are Bixby, Siri,
and Google Assistant. There are also smart home assistants like Amazon Alexa in many homes across
the country.

But did you know voice assistants have a place in many small businesses as well? Investing in a voice
assistant can be a good move considering today’s business world. Voice assistants can make
calculations, set up appointments, and even place orders. For a small business owner, there is no
end to work in sight. So, a voice assistant can help share some of the load by taking on mundane,
simple tasks.

3D Printers

3D printers have been around long enough for some of the novelty to wear off. But they are still one
of the most important inventions of our time.

They are also much more accessible to businesses now than they were a few years ago. Some
innovative 3D printers can be a solid investment for small businesses. Many printers generate
gorgeous 3D prints using plastics or inks. Others print in 3D using other materials like metals.

With the 3D printer, you can print almost anything if you have the right plans and materials. Small
businesses can use them to print anything from souvenirs to repair parts to tools.

Remote Collaboration

In the Digital Age, physical distances are almost nonexistent. Technology has made the world a much
smaller place. Businesses have access to international markets. This is possible through the power of
the internet and logistics companies.

Businesses also have access to human resources and talents outside their country. They can expand
the areas they operate in. Thanks to remote collaboration software you can manage your global
team with efficiency. Most of the time you can do it with much more efficiency than you could
manage the old-fashioned way.

Cloud-based remote collaboration software is the way to go for diverse teams. They reduce the need
for expenses like equipment as well as travel costs. They also make it easier for businesses to
operate beyond their physical limitations.
Remote software makes physical distances immaterial. You can manage all your business devices,
networks, and servers with ease. You can track remote teams as well as offer support to your field
operatives. You can collaborate and communicate with employees that are in different physical
locations.

Most important of all, you can do all this in the cloud. As technology evolves, we may see even more
changes. How many will become common across

The business world stayed pretty much the same for a century or so after the Industrial Revolution,
but it's probably pretty safe to say that's never going to happen again. The exponential rate at which
technology is developing, mutating, and adapting, especially throughout 2020, is so fast that you
can't help but be swept away in a tidal wave of progress—whether you're ready for it or not.

You might not think we've come that far, but if you had access to a time machine and went back less
than 10 years, you'd be shocked to see:

 A lack of centralized work communications to maximize efficiencies regardless of location

(think Slack).

 The relative non-existence of new formats for marketing businesses like Instagram.

 No Internet of Things or voice searches for products and information.

 Non-usage of short-form video sharing for personal and business.

Technology has changed every aspect of the way any business operates, and never before in history
has that change occurred so fast.

→ Watch Now: How Modus Helps Toro Drive Sales [VIDEO]

Below you’ll find eight ways in which technology has fundamentally changed business (for better
or worse). And we’ve added two bonus technology changes too...

1. The Way We Communicate + Share Information

Communication and the sharing of information are critical for every business. Today's environment
offers more ways than ever, and the technology available makes it faster, easier, and more efficient.
With applications like Slack, Zoom, Microsoft Teams, social media platforms, chatbots, and more
being leveraged daily, there are pros and cons for all of us. Sales enablement provides the ability to
track buyer-seller conversations and receive analytics based on user behaviors. Deeper intelligence
makes it easy to obtain customer information and use it to enhance the customer experience.

Communication is effective when technology digs into customer information to help us create
personalized messaging. Automated communications using a variety of channels help businesses
boost marketing productivity and reach customers, as well. But we need to be mindful that, taken
too far, we could lose the ability to build customer relationships—and lose the human touch in our
brands.

2. Mobile-First Business Environments

Mobile-First is here to stay. Smart devices or tablets with the right software allow for remote
management of every aspect of your business. Everything from your sales enablement, content
marketing, and customer relations through back-end processes like shipping and invoicing are all at
the click of a button. But mobile isn't just for you—it's also for your consumers. With the rise of
Generation Y (Millennials), more people are using mobile devices to buy, sell, shop, find local
businesses, and share their retail experiences with friends, acquaintances, prospects, and Instagram
strangers every day. 

This new paradigm has rewritten the book on marketing to prospects. Technology has also increased
the ease with which we can all stay in touch. Whether it's having your co-workers and employees
available via text/video chat at a moment's notice or being able to send targeted promotional email
blasts to prequalified customers when they're shopping at nearby businesses, the rise of mobile
technology has blended almost seamlessly with communication software to create a hyper-real web
of real-time information.

3. Enablement of Remote Working

Although remote work has grown steadily over the past 15 years, Covid-19 forced companies not
already promoting a remote work environment to make the transition more quickly than expected.
And it's likely a good thing that is here to stay:

Companies of all types—private, public, nonprofit, or startup—continue to recognize the bottom-line

benefits of integrating remote work into their business strategies," said Sara Sutton, founder and
CEO of FlexJobs. "With improvements to technology and increasing demands from employees in a
tight labor market, we fully expect to see the momentum around this important workplace continue
to grow," Sutton concluded.

Companies had to pivot quickly to ensure their teams had access to the right technology and
infrastructure to support remote log-ins, the bandwidth to handle video conferencing, and project
management tools so that teams could continue to work on projects and update status together.
Instead of managing by hours spent in the office, leads had to shift to measuring employee output.
There've been a lot of benefits to this new normal. Not only is it easier to attract and retain talent,
but it's also increased productivity. One interesting two-year Stanford study showed an incredible
productivity boost among remote workers equivalent to a full day's work each week! And there's
more; it's saved high costs in real estate, cut back on carbon emissions, and makes companies more
agile and scalable.

4. Use of AI

AI is reshaping the world in business and consumer markets and is a mainstream of daily living. This
application of technology has changed business processes in nearly every industry and has become
an imperative strategy for those wanting to maintain a competitive edge. There are many things AI
can do, from machine learning (massive amounts of data are processed quickly and put into
digestible context for people) to security, CRM, and even the financial and real estate sectors. In the
sales enablement space, AI is used to track buyers and predict their intent to purchase by looking at
their search patterns, what they view and open, and more. Some worry that AI could eventually
force joblessness, but the general thinking is there will be a need for job creation and new roles
emerging to facilitate the transition to this new environment. For example, as AI replaces long-
standing workflows, people's need to integrate them will be a necessity. AI is coming along at
lightning speed, and although the effect is unknown at this point, it will likely have a significant
impact on the economy.

5. Decreasing Cost/Increasing Functionality

Two things have come together to create a "buyer's market" when it comes to software solutions for
your business. First, the hardware and software necessary to develop these software solutions have
become increasingly easy to use and afford. Secondly, the number of tech-savvy and entrepreneurial
minds who can exploit such crumbling barriers has multiplied exponentially. A back-end inventory
system that once took a multi-million-dollar company a year to create in the not-too-distant past
takes a couple of weeks for a few recent college graduates to put together. These solutions are
offered at affordable rates and are often simple enough to use that businesses don't need to hire
dedicated employees or sign long-term service contracts to make use of them.

6. Buyer Enablement

With buyers spending the first 60+% of their buying journey on their own with a magnitude of
content and stakeholders and decision-makers multiplied in different business groups, buying in
today's world has become complicated. The newer approach of buyer enablement, if done correctly,
allows the buyer to be a champion of the product inside the organization. This requires the seller to
partner alongside the buyer to help them determine the ultimate business problem that needs
solving and to offer up the most relevant information at precisely the right time. If sellers keep their
buyers' needs as their top priority throughout the buying journey and position themselves as a
trusted advisor, they are nailing buyer enablement.

7. Increased Collaboration

The inability to chat in the break room, walk down the hall to a co-worker's office, or even gather
together in a meeting room in front of a whiteboard has drastically increased the need for
collaboration. A McKinsey Global Institutes Report found that over 60% of work time is spent
collaborating, gathering information, or responding to emails. With this in mind, there is no shortage
of collaboration tools that companies have glommed on to like Google Drive/Docs, Slack, Microsoft
SharePoint, and OneDrive, Monday.com, and many, many more. These simplify how we can work
together for team discussions, file sharing, project collaboration, tasks, and storage. Alignment of
people and goals is the primary responsibility for these tools, and they are here to help provide real-
time insight into projects and help us become more efficient.

8. Cloud Computing + Digital Transformation

The rate of change is accelerating faster than ever before. Digital Transformation "drives

foundational change in how an organization operates, optimizes internal resources, and delivers
value to customers. Cloud technologies provide the foundation for becoming more agile,
collaborative and customer-focused". Cloud computing allows businesses to move some of their
operations to third-party servers accessible via Internet connectivity. This allows for variable data
packages and rapid (on-demand) expansion and mobility without the fear of downtime, crashes, or
permanently lost data. Companies adopting the cloud can innovate quickly, scale efficiently and even
bring new market capabilities more quickly. This has allowed small to medium-sized businesses
access to resources that would have been cost-prohibitive for them in the past and evened the
playing field when competing against corporations with far more funding.

Bonus #1: Increase in Business Ops Productivity

Teams are working more closely together toward the common goals of meeting or exceeding growth
targets. Through the alignment of service, sales, marketing, and IT, business operations evolve and
implement more streamlined business processes to bridge organizational gaps. As mentioned above,
digital transformation has been critical to increasing a business' productivity. Adding new tech to the
stack helps decrease costs through time savings, speed to market, inventory management, and
reduced production costs have helped businesses optimize to bring value to the enterprise and
generate revenue. Forbes says:

The companies that do invest in this function (Business Operations) can make better use of
automation technology and increase their efficiency and engender happier, more inspired employees
as they're safeguarding themselves with greater adaptivity. Those who aren't are only taking on
more risk."

Bonus #2: Decreased Downtime

The rise of technology does have downsides. It seems like there isn't any downtime for individuals to
recuperate anymore. Even the coveted American tradition of vacation has become a thing of the
past. We always have access to email, text messages, or "work" via laptops or tablets. And while
your intention may be to get away from things for a while, it's more likely than not that you'll
succumb to the temptation of "checking in" at least once. And when you do, it's over.

Technology is a Wave: You Can Either Ride or Wipe Out

Regardless of your personal opinion—Luddite or technophile—the rapid advance of technology will

not slow any time soon. More and more businesses that fail to adapt will find themselves left
behind, while the savvy ones who learn to keep up will reap the rewards. You don't have to rebuild
your business from the ground up—there's some kernel of merit that's allowed you to enjoy success
thus far. You have to understand how technology affects your business (for better or worse) and
how to apply advancements to play them to your advantage.