SMBs are embracing developments in expertise to attain extra with a leaner employees, allow distant work, automate guide processes, and cut back errors. When applied thoughtfully, expertise might help smaller companies higher compete with their enterprise counterparts, save on rising labor prices, and generate a strong ROI.
IDC’s information clearly illustrates this pattern. Based on IDC’s Worldwide Small and Medium Enterprise Survey (February 2025), 81.8% of all SMBs will enhance their tech budgets over the subsequent yr. Moreover, a smaller share of SMBs plan to chop expertise spending this yr (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 instances emerge. It additionally highlights the efforts of distributors providing extra SMB-specific applied sciences and bundles which can be reasonably priced and straightforward to deploy and handle. Straightforward set up, upkeep, and use are paramount for small and medium companies, as 36% of SMBs wouldn’t have any full-time, in-house IT workers. A big 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 yr.
A high expertise space experiencing important funding progress 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 share level enhance from 35.1% a yr earlier. Moreover, 45% listing GenAI as a high precedence, in comparison with 32.8% a yr earlier. SMBs are additionally investing steadily in cellular employee assist, 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 via video collaboration or video conferencing, versus 43.7% final yr. Small companies are searching for to improve to the newest video and collaboration instruments that increase safety and incorporate new applied sciences, comparable to AI, to boost effectivity. Many SMBs wish to enable their workers to work remotely, as they usually can’t afford to pay as a lot as bigger organizations. Consequently, they’re growing artistic methods to retain high workers by providing versatile working hours and the power to work remotely or in a hybrid method.
Nevertheless, IDC’s information 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 depend upon expertise suppliers to implement sturdy safety measures. Rising 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 yr. Concurrently, 46.4% listing implementing new expertise securely as a high problem to attaining their enterprise priorities – the primary response from an inventory of ten totally different choices.
There are a number of contributors to this intense deal with safety. One is the shift to the cloud from on-premises options. Whereas the cloud provides nice advantages, comparable to accessibility from wherever, pay-as-you-go pricing, and limitless storage capability, it additionally signifies that SMBs’ distant or hybrid employees are accessing business-critical networks from private gadgets utilizing public Wi-Fi – assume eating places, espresso retailers, airports, and extra. One other shift is the rise in AI investments. AI depends on a steady circulate of information to perform. SMBs are demanding readability on the supply of the info used to coach giant language fashions. Is it the seller’s information, the SMB’s information, or artificial information? How is that information getting used, and what protocols are in place to make sure safety? Many SMBs are simply starting to construct model consciousness, shopper belief, and income. An information breach that tarnishes their picture could possibly be catastrophic.
With nice technological developments come nice obligations. Whereas expertise is quickly evolving to assist SMBs sustain with their swift tempo of progress, automate processes, allow distant work, and extra, its main function is to be safe.
Message from the Sponsor
SMBs want better safety within the AI period. By embedding safety into our total portfolio, Cisco helps SMB prospects deal with operating and rising their enterprise as a substitute of accelerating the scale of their IT staff. Companion with Cisco to grab the chance within the SMB phase and defend prospects with safety and networking merchandise.
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