Web-based Business Apps can Compensate for Staff Reductions (and Get You Ahead!)
Many organizations and businesses are facing the reality of maintaining production and efficiency levels despite significant reductions in staff. Thankfully, web-based business apps can compensate for this decrease in manpower by simplifying and automating several functions a company performs. These business applications are used to increase productivity, to measure productivity and to perform other business functions accurately, among other things.
Because these apps are developed to meet particular needs, they play an important and specific role in ensuring business continues as usual despite reductions in staff. These roles include:
Reducing data entry: OCR software has become a necessary part of many data entry projects. This type of software can be used to electronically convert images of PDFs, images, and other documents such as business receipts, transaction statements, passport documents, invoices, fax, business cards, mails, printouts, and others into digitized searchable documents.
Crowdsourcing vs. original research: Crowdsourcing apps are becoming more and more ubiquitous, and for good reason: these apps are designed to reduce costs, speed up project timelines, tap into crowd intelligence and creativity, and engage folks at all levels of corporate and government processes. Crowdsourcing apps are a great way for businesses to cut costs and save time that would otherwise be spent conducting original research.
Automating reports: Apps which turn data into visuals by generating reports and charts are incredibly useful as they can summarize data and produce a visual overview of information. From summarizing work expenses to recapping research findings, and so much more, reports help connect the dots.
Cloud computing: Cloud computing apps allow businesses to share files, organize ideas, and stay up-to-date on team member’s work. Some allow the creation of both private and public channels for a particular project, offer group messaging functions, and track the status of ongoing projects without sending an email.
Communication apps: Whether you have a team of part-time workers or remote freelancers, it’s vital to have a way to stay connected. These apps make virtual communication easy by focusing on collaboration and communication with features like group chat, video chat, and screen sharing.
Finance apps: Finance apps can help reduce the work associated with the processing and preparation of financial documents. Organization is their strong suit – they connect to your business bank account, PayPal, and Square, etc. and upload financial data to help you keep tabs on your company’s financial well-being. You can also use these apps to track expenses and upload pictures of receipts from your phone.
Travel and on-the-go networking apps: If your business involves travel, these apps are helpful as they help you stay on top of the travel details and expenses. These apps allow travelers to keep business trip arrangements, itineraries, and information in one location, including meeting times and flights details.
Automating workflows: Automation services allow users to integrate the web applications they already use saving time and effort. These apps act as the glue that connects one’s favorite apps (think Gmail, Slack, Trello, MailChimp, Twitter, Facebook, and hundreds more). Offices can connect two or more apps to automate repetitive tasks without coding or relying on developers to build the integration.
Moving processes in parallel: Also known as parallel computing, these apps perform many calculations simultaneously. In simple terms, parallel computing breaks up a task into smaller pieces and executes those pieces at the same time, each on their own processor or on a set of computers that have been networked together.
Machine learning: Machine learning apps function as a subset of artificial intelligence. These apps build a mathematical model of sample data, known as training data in order to make predictions or decisions without being explicitly programmed to perform the task.
