Technology positively impacting the majority of Alberta business owners: ATB Business Beat
EDMONTON, July 19, 2017 /CNW/ - As the world continues to move at a faster pace, the majority of Alberta business owners believe technology is benefiting their operations and intend to stay on top of it.
According to the latest ATB Business Beat, 88 per cent of small and mid-sized businesses say technology has had a positive impact on their business operations over the last five years, up six per cent from 2013.
Increased productivity (29 per cent) and increased ease of work (21 per cent) were the top reasons that saw an increase since 2013. Respondents also agreed that new technology is changing how business is done in their industry (82 per cent) and felt they were getting the most out of the technology they're using (84 per cent).
"The pace of technological change can be quite daunting," says ATB's Wellington Holbrook, Chief Transformation Officer. "The good news is that this technology revolution is creating new opportunities for Alberta's small and mid-sized businesses and enabling them to find new ways to innovate, compete and improve the way they work."
Sixty per cent of respondents felt their business was vulnerable to disruption if they don't keep up with the latest technology, however 37 per cent disagreed. Regardless, nearly three quarters planned to invest in technology over the next 12 months, which is consistent with intentions in 2013.
A substantial number would like to invest more capital (34 per cent) or time (29 per cent) in technology. With this in mind, compared to last year's budgets, 91 per cent anticipated spending the same or an increased amount of capital on technology-related projects and 90 per cent intended to invest the same or more amount of time.
Two responses that saw a decrease over the past four years were technology's impact on ease of communication (14 per cent, down from 18 per cent) and the ability to streamline business processes (5 per cent, down from 17 per cent).
However, while a top concern was technology's potential to make business operations less efficient or more complicated, only two per cent felt technology negatively impacted their business, down from eight per cent in 2013. A perceived higher cost for technology/upgrades and the demand from suppliers/customers for electronic interactions were cited as primary reasons.
About ATB Financial
With assets of $48.6 billion, ATB Financial is Alberta's largest home-grown financial institution. Established in 1938, ATB is a network of 173 branches, 143 agencies, a Customer Care Centre, two Entrepreneur Centres, along with mobile and online banking. ATB's 5,021 team members help more than 725,000 customers in 247 Alberta communities.
SOURCE ATB Financial
To schedule an interview with Wellington Holbrook, please contact: Connie Smart, Corporate Reporter, ATB Financial, 587-785-0915, [email protected]
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