Small and medium businesses (SMBs) in India with PCs that are more than four years old and running older operating systems can experience more than double productivity losses as compared to newer PCs. Not just work efficiencies, older PCs expose organisations to security vulnerabilities and IT threats. Nearly 43 per cent SMBs still own PCs that are more than four years old and are running older operating systems.
These findings were revealed in the latest Microsoft study in partnership with global SMB IT market research and analyst organisation TechAisle, which polled almost 2,000 SMBs across Asia Pacific.
SMBs that have already embraced modern workplace strategy have experienced higher productivity, reduced costs, and enhanced security. 95 per cent of the SMBs surveyed agreed that adopting new PCs has reduced overall maintenance costs and 83 per cent of them has seen higher productivity benefits.
Farhana Haque, Group Director – Devices, Microsoft India said, “Technology can be a real enabler for businesses, both small and large, and SMBs need to recognise the value that IT investment can bring to their present and future growth. SMBs employ over 110 million people in India, significantly contributing to India’s economic growth. Microsoft is helping SMBs in India realise their ambitions and succeed in this competitive marketplace.”
According to the study, the continued delay in SMBs’ adoption of newer technological infrastructure across business functions, was due to factors such as perceived app incompatibility and high costs associated with acquiring and maintaining new IT hardware and software. Nearly two-thirds of SMBs surveyed (66 per cent) said they did not have a PC refresh policy nor were they actively pursuing it.
However, the reality is that the lack of a strategic PC refresh policy can result in greater repercussions in the long run. There is a 3.8 times higher chance of old PCs requiring repairs, which can result in at least 132 hours’ worth of productive time lost.
Ways to narrow the technology adoption gap include cloud adoption and Windows-as-a-Service. SMBs can refresh their older PCs as Windows-as-a-Service provides security patches and regular OS updates for optimised use. Concerns over app compatibility are addressed with Windows 10, the most app-compatible version of Windows-to-date with best practices including app telemetry, ISV partnerships for diagnostic data and troubleshooting as well as looping feedback cycles.
With the upcoming Windows 7 End of Support, SMBs have to make their shift towards newer PCs and operating systems as users will no longer receive security updates or support for PCs running on Windows 7. This includes new security updates, non-security hotfixes, free or paid assisted support options, and online technical content updates.
