Over 2 quintillion bytes of new data are born every day via emails being sent, documents being written, tweets being submitted, transactions being completed and more.
As a business owner, how you manage the chunk of that data that belongs to you and your customers can make or break your success. Therein lies the value of being proactive in understanding common data challenges and solutions.
Given the versatility of how companies interact with data and the variability of data types, there is a seemingly unlimited amount of issues and data storage solutions that companies face daily. For the sake of brevity, our team has combed through seven common snags and fixes that we think should be on your radar.
1. Storage Space Limits
With the amount of data that your team and customers generate, you’re likely finding your data storage space is constantly nearing its brim. Once you run out of space to store all of the information your company is responsible for, what will you do?
Solution: Expand servers and/or reduce legacy data.
The simple, non-destructive solution to storage space limits is buying more in-house servers or growing your allowance with your cloud-storage provider. Alternatively, you could go through legacy data that your company no longer needs and remove it.
2. Server Speed
With all of your company’s integral information sitting on physical servers, you must be able to assess the data you need quickly.
After all, if your servers are slow your website may be loading slowly for consumers, transferring files internally may be taking inordinate amounts of time and you’re likely losing productivity and money because of it.
Solution: Have a dedicated IT team assess server health and optimization.
Ensuring your servers are receiving regular health checks can keep data flowing. An internal (or dedicated external) IT team can be instrumental in this regard.
IT teams can help you optimize data flow by reducing server background processes, suggesting upgrades to flash memory and more.
3. Server Failure
There is nothing more catastrophic to data storage than server failures.
When your server fails, your data fails and may be impossible to recover. This could lead to aspects of your company slowing or the outright ceasing of your business operations.
Solution: Create server mirrors internally and externally.
If you’re using internal servers to store your company data, make sure your data is mirrored to a separate internal server and an external server that exists in an offsite data centre.
The more mirrors your primary server has, the easier it will be to recover from your primary server crashing via malfunction or a malicious attack.
4. Data Breaches
The NSA fields millions of data hack attempts every day. While your business likely doesn’t have as big a target on its back as the NSA, that’s not to say you’re exempt from the possibility of hacks.
If you were to experience a data breach, you may be staring down nearly 4 million dollars in damages.
Solution: Work with a dedicated security agency to stay ahead of the curve.
Hacking attempts are constantly evolving. Therefore, your defenses need to evolve as well. Working with a dedicated security team can help your business stay on the cutting-edge of cybersecurity which will protect your customers and your business’s viability.
5. Keeping Regulatory Pace
With the growing importance of data, the government puts regulations in place to ensure that businesses are protecting consumers. If you’re unaware of what these regulations are, you may find yourself facing down fines and lawsuits.
Solution: Have an attorney consult on your data practices.
Having a legal authority review your data practices can help you remain in compliance with new regulations. Be sure that the attorney you consult with has IT experience as laws governing the use of data may require an expert understanding of networking technologies.
6. Remote Access
More employees than ever are telecommuting to work. If your office is headed in that direction, your team will have to access company data from their devices while being situated in other parts of the world.
How can your company come up with data storage solutions that enable that workflow?
Solution: Migrate your data to the cloud.
Cloud-based data is out of the box ready to be accessed remotely. Furthermore, if you do business with a reputable, cloud-data storage provider, you can be sure that data transmitted from the cloud to remote devices will be encrypted which is important for compliance purposes.
7. Automation
There are a lot of manual processes involved in managing data. Technology is working to reduce these processes through automated storing, reading and analyzing of information stored on servers.
How can your company take advantage of these productivity-increasing advances?
Solution: Work with a qualified automation consultant.
There are IT companies that specialize in automation consults. They can review your data needs, storage practices and advise on ways you can leverage automation to trim costs and cut down on the time it takes to perform data-related tasks.
Data Storage Solutions Are Only Helpful If You Use Them
There are several data storage solutions available to businesses. These solutions solve a bevy of problems that can increase company compliance, reliability, and productivity.
The only way you can take advantage of advances in data is by leveraging what you learn so consider your data issues and start applying fixes to them today. With a little bit of effort, your company could be running more sustainably in the coming days!
For more advice on all things business, life, and tech, check out additional write-ups in our blog.
