SMBs are embracing developments in expertise to realize extra with a leaner employees, allow distant work, automate handbook processes, and scale back errors. When applied thoughtfully, expertise can assist smaller companies higher compete with their enterprise counterparts, save on rising labor prices, and generate a strong ROI.
IDC’s knowledge clearly illustrates this pattern. In line with IDC’s Worldwide Small and Medium Enterprise Survey (February 2025), 81.8% of all SMBs will enhance their tech budgets over the following 12 months. Moreover, a smaller proportion of SMBs plan to chop expertise spending this 12 months (1.7%, in comparison with 4% in 2024 and eight% in 2023), reflecting SMBs’ rising confidence in applied sciences like AI/automation as extra use circumstances emerge. It additionally highlights the efforts of distributors providing extra SMB-specific applied sciences and bundles which can be inexpensive and simple to deploy and handle. Straightforward set up, upkeep, and use are paramount for small and medium companies, as 36% of SMBs would not have any full-time, in-house IT workers. A major 85.5% of small companies (these with 1-99 workers) with a full-time IT worker solely have one, in comparison with 40.9% final 12 months.
A high expertise space experiencing important funding development amongst SMBs is AI. Certainly, 47.5% of all SMBs say that conventional AI is a high funding precedence for them within the subsequent 12 months – a greater than 12 proportion level enhance from 35.1% a 12 months earlier. Moreover, 45% record GenAI as a high precedence, in comparison with 32.8% a 12 months earlier. SMBs are additionally investing steadily in cellular employee help, a pattern that has continued because the pandemic-era transformation of workplace tradition. In 2025, 52.8% of small companies report prioritizing investments in communications by means of video collaboration or video conferencing, versus 43.7% final 12 months. Small companies are in search of to improve to the most recent video and collaboration instruments that increase safety and incorporate new applied sciences, equivalent to AI, to reinforce effectivity. Many SMBs need to permit their workers to work remotely, as they usually can’t afford to pay as a lot as bigger organizations. Consequently, they’re creating artistic methods to retain high workers by providing versatile working hours and the flexibility to work remotely or in a hybrid method.
Nonetheless, IDC’s knowledge strongly illustrates that SMBs are taking a security-first method to expertise investments. Earlier than investing in a brand new system or answer, they guarantee it’s safe. As SMBs have few, if any, IT workers to handle cybersecurity threats, they rely upon expertise suppliers to implement sturdy safety measures. Growing safety is each a high funding precedence and a high problem for SMBs; 51.3% of SMBs stated that rising safety is a high funding precedence for them within the coming 12 months. Concurrently, 46.4% record implementing new expertise securely as a high problem to attaining their enterprise priorities – the primary response from a listing of ten completely different choices.
There are a number of contributors to this intense give attention to safety. One is the shift to the cloud from on-premises options. Whereas the cloud provides nice advantages, equivalent to accessibility from wherever, pay-as-you-go pricing, and limitless storage capability, it additionally implies that SMBs’ distant or hybrid staff are accessing business-critical networks from private gadgets utilizing public Wi-Fi – suppose eating places, espresso retailers, airports, and extra. One other shift is the rise in AI investments. AI depends on a steady stream of information to perform. SMBs are demanding readability on the supply of the information used to coach giant language fashions. Is it the seller’s knowledge, the SMB’s knowledge, or artificial knowledge? How is that knowledge getting used, and what protocols are in place to make sure safety? Many SMBs are simply starting to construct model consciousness, client belief, and income. A knowledge breach that tarnishes their picture may very well be catastrophic.
With nice technological developments come nice duties. Whereas expertise is quickly evolving to assist SMBs sustain with their swift tempo of development, automate processes, allow distant work, and extra, its major function is to be safe.
Message from the Sponsor
SMBs want higher safety within the AI period. By embedding safety into our total portfolio, Cisco helps SMB clients give attention to working and rising their enterprise as a substitute of accelerating the dimensions of their IT crew. Accomplice with Cisco to grab the chance within the SMB section and shield clients with safety and networking merchandise.
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