October 19 marks the start of Small Business Week – a time to pay tribute to small- and medium-sized businesses (SMB) - companies that make up 99 per cent of businesses in Canada.

These businesses need be at the top of their game as they compete with more established organizations for customers. Thankfully, innovations in technology, mobile devices and portable computers make it possible for small business employees to work more efficiently, thereby helping to increase productivity and boost their competitive edge.

With the benefit of these new technologies come added challenges for small business owners. Tools that allow for greater workplace productivity generates more content and increased data traffic that require faster networks, higher bandwidth and added security.

"SMBs work extremely hard to achieve great results," said A.J. Byers, senior vice president of Primus Business Services. "Despite this, their IT budgets simply cannot compare to the amount that enterprise-sized organizations can dedicate to IT."

According to a recent IDC study, many SMBs do not have adequate IT skills sets in house. Four per cent of small businesses with 20 to 29 employees do not have full time Information Communication Technology (ICT) staff and 28 per cent of this group use external consultants for its ICT staffing needs.

Rather than taking on the additional costs associated with upgrading technology or hiring IT staff, many SMBs look to an IT or telecommunications company for help. These organizations offer a variety of services to help with security, technical support and network expertise.

For example, Primus Business Services has more than 15 years experience in the SMB market and more than 45,000 SMB customers across the country. Vendors like Primus can help IT managers and those who make telecom decisions within a company, make better purchasing decisions and improve their business efficiency.

A.J. Byers suggests five criteria for consideration when selecting an IT solutions provider to help increase work productivity:

SMB expertise
Compare vendors. Ask for options on customizing products and storage solutions to meet your budget and technical requirements that are catered to your needs.

Local presence
There is comfort in knowing that your server, data and machines are close by and not stored thousands of kilometres away. Some companies offer Internet Data Centres (IDC), locally based facilities that provide data and storage solutions as well as local sales forces and regional business knowledge for support.

One-stop phone systems
Is your SMB a seasonal business? Does it have multiple small offices and a mobile workforce? Service providers can offer a range of services from local lines and long distance plans to Hosted PBX, an advanced data telephony solution with high quality voice service and minimal start-up costs that eliminates the cost of owning and maintaining a telephony system.

Trusted security
Network failure and loss of data are devastating. External consultants can back up data and provide network support and assistance remotely without the need to hire a dedicated employee to manage the system for 100 per cent up time.

Leveraging your current technology
Choosing server hardware can be complex. A technology called virtualization allows you to leverage more of your server's resources and reduce the amount of hardware required to run your business applications. This can help reduce cost and increase the reliability of your system.

According to Keystones Strategies, companies with better IT resources grow 6.8 percent faster than companies with weaker IT resources. As well, companies that excel in IT capabilities experience a 23 percent growth advantage in revenue per employee compared to employees in companies that do not have strong IT systems. With the wide ranging IT products and services available on the market, SMBs can focus on their key business and leave their IT worries behind.

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