New technology deployment in SMEs: towards a process based approach

The new digital technologies – Big Data, Analytics, Cloud Computing, Internet of Things, Mobile Computing and Social Media – present SMEs with significant challenges. IT managers in these companies have typically gained approval of a hard won IT strategy over the past decade – often based on integrated business software packages and increased use of e-business – but are now bombarded with new technologies and questioned by senior managers about how to best use them for the overall benefit of the company, usually within very tight budgets. Building on existing models in the IT literature, this paper examines examples of new technology deployment in three companies of differing size and industry sector, and sets out a process based approach to assessing and implementing the new technologies and incorporating these into overall IT strategy. Opportunities for new technology deployment are examined at individual process level and implications for people skills enhancement, process change and technology investment assessed.