The muscle of a modern small business If it聮s true that the backbone of any small business is its employees Easton Stick Kids Jersey , then I believe it聮s fair to say that the muscle of many small businesses would have to be their computers. Plain and simple, business today is performed electronically. Whether it聮s a day-trader trading stocks over the internet, a lawyer, physician or other professional looking up data, or a shopkeeper tracking prices and sales Drue Tranquill Kids Jersey , computers are often an essential 聯tool of their trades?
In fact, in the majority of professions where a computer is used, it is often not possible to effectively perform the job role without it. Sure the day-trader could continuously call their broker every five minutes for stock quotes, but in practical terms their business is reduced to a standstill. An analogy would be a carpenter trying to work without his hammer.
However, when you consider complexity Nasir Adderley Kids Jersey , comparing a PC to a hammer is kind of like comparing a space shuttle to a bicycle. The average computer is a marvel of complexity. In fact, when we break it down, we聮re not even talking about a single device. Computer systems are made up of a collection of hardware and software components, usually made by different manufacturers, working together for a common purpose. And it follows simple logic; the more complex the system Jerry Tillery Kids Jersey , the more that can go wrong. All it often takes for a business to come grinding to a halt is for one of those components to malfunction.
Computer downtime can result from numerous circumstances. Viruses and spyware are waiting to infect your PC through the internet, email and even commonly used applications. Internet hacking, identity theft and other cyber crimes are all on the rise. Compatibility issues and missing or corrupt drivers plague both hardware and software alike. And problems with the installation and use of everyday programs can cause no end of headaches.
While the above points can raise a number of questions in the average small businesspersons mind around the costs associated with these downtimes and what can be done to minimize them, straight answers are often not easily found. In this article, we will attempt to analyze these questions and determine the best approach for professionals and small businesses to take in dealing with computer downtime.
Options for dealing with downtime Questions surrounding downtime related costs have become such a hot topic on the Internet that an online calculator has been developed by NTA Monitor Ltd. to assist individuals and companies in determining the cost of computer downtime (You can try it out at ). While this calculator can be quite handy Mike Williams Kids Jersey , it is often not readily apparent what numbers to use for 聯total downtime?or 聯labor costs? So lets just do some calculations of our own to determine the total overall costs that a professional or small business faces due to downtime and see if we can determine the best approach to resolving downtime related incidents.
The first and hardest question to answer is 聯how long is an average downtime incident for a small business??Well, I聮m afraid that there is no easy answer to this. While the average time is completely dependant on the nature of the problem, for this example we can piece together a typical scenario of events to create our timeframe.
When a typical computer issue or problem arises, there are a number of avenues that a small business owner can take to see it resolved. As most small businesses can obviously not afford to pay for a full or even part-time IT staff, the 聯do it yourself?method is often first employed. Resources such as friends Derwin James Kids Jersey , family and the internet are consulted for answers and some trial and error approaches, such as using generic 聯fix all?programs, are tried. That failing, a local computer service shops can be called for on-site or drop-off support. Or as a new and increasingly popular alternative, a remote service provider can be used.
Depending on the user聮s knowledge of computers Joey Bosa Kids Jersey , the 聯do it yourself?approach can sometimes work and considering the time spent doing research, trial and error fixes, etc. the average issue can be resolved in as little a an hour or two. But sadly, more often than not, the time spent does not result in a solution and it is added to the overall incident time. So to make our calculations simpler Melvin Gordon III Kids Jersey , let聮s deduce that on average the amount of self help time spent saves as much time as it looses and instead we will focus on three remaining options; on-site, drop-off and remote support. We will base our calculations on an eight hour work day.
While being a more expensive option, on-site services can often result in a quicker resolution time than drop-off service. Usually a technician can be scheduled for 聯same day?or 聯next day?service. On average this results in a total downtime of around eight hours.