The Role of Business Applications in Organizational Innovation

To say that 2020 has been rough on small businesses is an understatement. Many temporarily closed. Many others had to address the complexities of working from home while they transitioned into it. Additionally, the pandemic caused many changes in what and how consumers buy products and book services. If you’re looking to innovate in 2021, take your technology investments to the next level.

Before looking at the factors that could contribute to successful innovation, however, it’s important to understand what innovation is and determine what type of innovation you’re looking for.

• Improving Operations: Identify the factors that could be hindering productivity and efficiency in your daily operations. Then, discover better approaches to the way your team works.
• Replacing Old Processes: Know when it’s time to let go of old processes and explore new ideas. These changes could be exactly what your business needs to hit your 2021 goals.
• Highlighting Existing Products and Services: If you’re confident in your existing products or services, show them off. Use the latest tools and apps to showcase them to the right audience.
• Developing New Products or Services: The pandemic changed everyone’s lifestyles in the blink of an eye. Come up with new and improved products that meet consumers’ changing needs.

Your 2021 innovation can focus on one of these things. It could either be the development of one breakthrough product that puts your small business at the forefront of the industry or providing virtual healthcare services for your employees so that their productivity level is maintained according to the established standards. Alternatively, it could be a series of subtle yet significant improvements to your existing business processes. These ideas could come from your team. Or they could come from market research, media reports, and customer feedback.

But one thing’s for certain: essential applications help your business achieve innovation.

What are the Most Useful Business Apps Today?

The remote work setup has seen an increase in the use of Google Workspace for maximum productivity and instant messaging apps like Slack for constant connectivity, plus additional solutions from places like https://www.fusionconnect.com/solutions/need/remote-workforce to help people stay connected and productive, regardless of where they are. More businesses are also looking into the benefits of accounting apps like FreshBooks and QuickBooks for streamlined administrative tasks.

But in addition to these essential business apps, you also have to look into the use of these apps:

• Employee Management Apps, for better management and scheduling
• E-commerce Apps, for greater visibility of your products and services
• Inventory Management Apps, for greater control of your inventory
• Booking and Scheduling Apps, for a better customer experience

These apps improve your processes and help you focus on innovation.

Why Should You Invest in Business Apps?

Business applications might cost you a lot at first glance. It’s understandable why many small businesses would hesitate to invest in them and, instead, stick to existing processes. But if you choose the right apps to support your innovation goals, they could bring in high ROI. Specifically, apps can help you with:

• Increasing Productivity: Use business apps that automate systemic work activities. This way, the manual labor your team previously put into it can be directed at something more productive.
• Reducing Operational Costs: By choosing the right apps to aid your team’s everyday tasks, you will need less manpower to get the said tasks done. This results in less operational costs overall.
• Improving Profitability: When you have essential business apps that do menial tasks for you, you can focus on improving your products and services. As a result, profitability goes up.
• Gaining a Competitive Edge: People will start buzzing about your business when they see that you walk the talk. Let business apps refine your processes and take you to the top of your game.

It’s time for your business to have a fresh start and experience innovation. Warmly welcome the use of business applications to improve your business and see greater returns in the coming year.