Harnessing technology to stay in pole position

TODAY, Singapore is a hotbed for small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs), thanks to its growing population of ambitious, entrepreneurial people, surge in mobile usage and the conducive environment provided by the government. Against this positive backdrop however, is the rise of competition.

SMEs today compete not only with large corporates and local rivals, but also with lower-priced competitors in emerging countries. In addition, SMEs must navigate economic headwinds and deal with the rising cost of operations. In the face of external competition, it would appear to an SME that its immediate focus is to get ahead in the market. However, they often neglect a common blind spot: getting through internal, day-to-day challenges.

SMEs do not have the same resources or the same backing as a large corporate, and as such, face problems related to productivity and communication. Commonly faced issues include having small IT teams, the lack of workforce mobility, having multiple providers across multiple sites, and Internet connection that is not optimised.