Effective use of technology to drive SME value creation

The middle of the road is a good place to get run over!!

Well, that seems to be the story of most established SMEs today. These firms can neither slow down in their efforts, nor can they accelerate given the existing constraints. They can neither stick to what they have been doing, nor can they innovate (proactively or reactively). Revenue acceleration becomes a victim in most cases to the profitability conundrum. Is there a solution at all? Can such companies really reinvent themselves as agile, future-ready enterprises? How can technology provide answers to this segment, which is vast, highly complex and a great value creator for any economy?

The answer is far from easy. The dynamics of these businesses are such that any change can prove drastic or dramatic. These companies exist in a finely balanced state on the edge of chaos and any change in the governing variables can prove highly disruptive. So how can such businesses ensure preparedness for the future. The answer might lie in a highly structure process of internal discovery and realignment followed by a drive towards value creation. 

Internal Discovery

The first step is understanding their realities. What this means is understanding the business metrics from a market, financial, organizational and operational persepective for their existing businesses. A single point measurement in time is not as useful as a tracking system that monitors such parameters at least over a quarter. This will give a good idea about where the business stands in terms of its ability to sustain and grow. 

Realignment

In most cases the results of an internal discovery lead to realizations that have to be implemented in the real world. Pragmatic solutions to real-life problems can lead to significant change in the health parameters. Any such realignment needs to be well thought-out, be based on market and industry realities and be cost-effective and pragmatic. Such initiatives need to be tracked on a regular basis to ensure effective execution. 

Collaborate and Co-locate

Its a connected world. The ability to be future-ready is directly linked to an organizations ability to play in tandem with the market ecosystem. If platforms for group-sourcing and online commerce are available, such models need to be embraced.  Corporate functions such as strategy, financial planning and project advisory need are critical but too expensive. Such functions can be enabled using the right blend of technology and external experts-for-hire. 

How do we do it?

An option would be to evaluate intelligence and business automation programs that have the ability to empower all the three functions stated above. Business intelligence tools and customized project management systems can ensure that the C-level executives have continuous access to data and inferences. A subscription-based cloud-hosted enterprise intelligence platform that offers advisory-as-a-service will be ideally suited to deliver such growth.