Small Business Technology News

How Much Do Entrepreneurs Rely On Technology? Probably A Little Too Much

Written by Tim Morral
Published: 9/4/2014

ADT Pulse study shows the importance of technology for today's small business owners and demonstrates how much entrepreneurs lean heavily on tech tools--even when they're on vacation.

Technology plays a critical role in small business. No surprise there. But in today's constantly connected world, small business owners are becomingly increasing reliant on personal technologies to keep tabs on their companies, even when they are supposed to be on vacation.

Small Business Owner on Vacation

A recent ADT survey showed that more than half (55%) of small business owners never travel without their mobile phones so they can continue to check in on their companies when they are out of town.

Similarly, 45 percent of business owners reported that they find it very difficult to "check out" when they are away from the office, prompting 44 percent to call, text or email their companies everyday.

What's motivating small business owners to remain so connected to their companies? According to the ADT survey, it's fear and guilt. While a quarter of respondents said they were nervous something would happen to their companies when they were away, 21 percent indicated that they felt guilty about leaving their businesses unsupervised.

To help mitigate the anxiety and uncertainty of spending time away from the business, ADT suggests that small business owners may want to double down and leverage additional technology tools like video surveillance (real-time or event-triggered monitoring), custom alerts (emails or text messages when a specified task is completed), and remote temperature and lighting control solutions.

"Our main priority is to address the challenges that keep small business owners up at night -- whether they are at work, at home, or thousands of miles away on vacation," said Luis Orbegoso, president of ADT Small Business.

But is more technology the best response to handling the pressures of being an entrepreneur? Although the right technology solutions can improve entrepreneurs' control and peace of mind, some business owners may ultimately need to do a better job balancing their personal and professional lives--even if that means turning off their devices and delegating responsibilities to others in the business.

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