A few weeks ago I discussed some recruiting and hiring trends that were on the rise in 2016, and are expected to continue rising in 2017. Although that was by no means a thorough examination of the current composition of the average business environment, the reoccurring theme was, in short: increased use of technology.

Both in the business and technology world, advancements are made almost monthly in order to stay ahead of the curve. This requires a professional prospective on what’s currently on the market, what is going to work for your business, what current market trends are on the rise, and what’s needed to streamlines your business’ processes.

There are some new consulting trends on the rise that every business owner should be aware of. If your business falls into one or more of the trending categories below, it’s highly advisable that you consider hiring a consultant to help with your specific needs:

1.   You have a large staff

Manpower is the key to on-boarding. Traditional in-house IT departments simply can’t handle the workload of on-boarding a large number of employees, while simultaneously doing their own job. Even if you have an amazing team, they probably weren’t hired for their on-boarding qualifications and it will eventually just lead to more problems and a back-load of work.

2.   Your staff is internationally based

According to one source, many companies are now outsourcing work overseas to Eastern/Asian countries. This poses a major technological gap within the company, which could compromise the security of your files—among other issues—and requires a more robust software set-up in order to compensate for this issue. Again, this is an area where a team of technology consultants would be useful to keep operations flowing smoothly within your frequently changing business. 

3.   Most of your staff is virtual

As I mentioned a few weeks ago, the surge of freelancers in the workforce is astounding, and many companies are turning to them for work. This poses a similar problem to companies who outsource work overseas. The idea of managing a team of freelancers is mind-boggling when you consider; they are most likely all from different geographic locations, transfer work through questionably-secure sources, and act as a payroll nightmare.

In order to manage any virtual team, you’re going to need a robust software platform to manage your whole team as time and cost-effectively as possible (otherwise you may end up with a giant mess on your hands.)

4.   Your business wants to be environmentally conscious

Environmental concerns have been on the rise within both businesses and consumers. One study suggests that you may even lose customers if you don’t take your carbon footprint into account. Compounding the issue, the software and tech industries rapidly produce products that replace their predecessors, so there is always a need to buy new software and technology to stay on top of it. This cycle produces massive amounts of waste and pollution and many businesses are looking towards IT professionals to solve this problem with greener software.

One of Technavio’s specialists, Angad Singh, commented on the trend, “Organizations are increasingly focusing on reducing their carbon footprints to gain acceptance from governments and clients. Also, adopting environment-friendly technology saves resources in the long run.”

5.   Cloud based infrastructures

Many organizations have been slowly shifting over to cloud-based infrastructures over the past five years. Ideally, this allows for a secure and cost effective way of business management. The issue lies in the complexity of the technology transfer in addition to its proper integration with other technologies already being utilized within the company.

Without proper integration and migration of technologies that are currently in place, your business could be temporarily unable to function, or worse, seem to function fine until a problem is spotted down the road that calls previous data into question.

With a project of this magnitude, it’s highly ill-advised to take the do-it-yourself approach. Instead of taking the risk, just hire a pro.