Prior to the start of the COVID-19 pandemic, Tech.mt was tasked with promoting Malta’s national strategy for innovative technology, helping to spur investment both locally and coming from overseas.

While its aims have not changed, Tech.mt CEO Dana Farrugia has thanked the strength and resilience of the tech-sector locally, stressing that technology has been a backbone to Malta’s economy during the pandemic.

As thousands of businesses began to operate remotely, retailers turned to e-commerce to continue to make sales. With this in mind, Ms Farrugia discusses how Tech.mt can help local businesses navigate through this difficult period.

As somebody who has extensive experience in the telecoms industry, and has seen first-hand the efficiencies brought about by investing in technology – what message do you have for business owners who are now scrambling to digitalise their operations amid COVID-19 disruptions?

We have all been hit by one of the largest pandemics in recent times - COVID-19. As we continue to figure out the immediate and longer-term consequences, both professionally as well as personally, I wanted to reach out and offer a few certainties and a helping hand. For those small and medium-sized business owners who are now scrambling to digitalise their operations, getting their business online is the first step to adapting to this new environment.

Migrating to the cloud gives you more time to improve business operations and launch initiatives in a more strategic and agile fashion.

Those who failed to invest in technology and digitisation are being faced with hard choices. With maintaining cost obligations, it is common to hear of companies say they simply can’t afford an upgrade right now. What would you say to companies in that situation?

Most companies have decided they need the business agility and want the cost savings that come when moving to the cloud, but with the bewildering amount of contradictory information floating around on the internet, not many really understand exactly what that means or what it entails.

We know transitioning from a fully offline business to fully online at the current rate of change can be more than a little overwhelming — especially if you’re not a digital native.

Fortunately, we understand the struggle. Tech.mt can guide you take your business from offline to online and be ready for your first order – no prior experience needed.

You can easily set one up on a free online service provider all by yourself. With a free online platform, you can easily create a new website from scratch, customizable design tools, or quickly add an online store to your existing website with technology that instantly mimics your current design.

An online business is less expensive to set up and operate. With a robust, phased and structured method, the steps can be made more approachable for businesses to work towards.

There are financial incentives administered by Malta Enterprise for businesses looking to maximise their online presence, or create a new one to get a run-up on their competitors. Interested individuals may contact Tech.mt for assistance on what incentives one can tap into and the respective eligibility criteria.

Is Tech.mt seeing many companies using outdated online systems and is a concerted effort being made to encourage an upgrading of systems?

From research we have carried out last year we realized that many local economic sectors still use legacy processes and systems. On the one hand this may seem worrying, but on the other hand, there is huge potential for the local Tech sector.

When you are busy managing disconnected systems, applications, and data with inflexible and slow systems, and taking flak from employees demanding access to the corporate network and to new tools, it’s hard to squeeze in even a few minutes to keep up with new products and evaluate everything you hear.

While early online supporters proclaimed the cloud as the Holy Grail, no one really advocated fork-lifting your entire enterprise online over the weekend. Most implementations start with a hybrid approach, moving a single application, like email, and growing from there.

The hybrid cloud creates a consistent platform that spans data centres and the cloud, simplifying IT and delivering apps and data to users on virtually any device, anywhere. It gives you control to deliver the computing power and capabilities that business demands, and to scale up or down as needed without wasting your onsite technology investments.

When you move to the cloud, headaches and time spent maintaining hardware and upgrading software are significantly reduced. Now you and your team can focus on the business rather than being a repair service. You have more time to spend improving business operations and launching agile initiatives.

What are the most important elements to consider when trying to take a business online?

When you start considering how to take your business online, it’s easy to see why some people think “going online” to too big a challenge.

We’ll help you every step of the way with information and tips on firewall configurations, reverse proxy requirements, identity options, migration possibilities, a phased approach for hybrid setups and selling through multiple online sales channels.

Consumers research, browse and buy using multiple sales channels, online, through social platforms, on their mobile devices and in-person. Clearly, selling everywhere is crucial for your business to thrive in today’s market. That’s why if you’re not serving your customers across multiple sales channels and devices, now is the time to do so.

One of the most obvious benefits of having an online system is the ability to reach people beyond Malta’s shores. With an eye on the world after covid-19, having the right systems in place could be crucial to getting that edge on in recovering and finally growing. Would you agree?

Taking your business online allows you to have global presence, you put yourself on the global map visible to numerous potential customers.

Online business offers needed support in the event that you need to close or relocate location for any reason in the future. Having an online channel means you won’t depend on your physical location to keep operations running during the transition.

Your business is also available for customers anytime. While physical locations operate on fixed hours, online businesses can take orders all day and night.

During this troubling time, and considering the importance on digital systems and technology, how can Tech.mt assist and contribute?

Companies considering their first step in moving applications to hosted solutions to power their organization, need to know the facts. Your business depends on it. Tech.mt are here to guide these companies in the right direction depending on the business requirements and needs.

Instead of spending ever-larger portions of your capital budget on servers for email storage and workloads, you can think strategically and support business managers in a much more agile fashion, responding to their needs quickly.

There are financial incentives administered by Malta Enterprise for businesses looking to maximise their online presence, or create a new one to get a run-up on their competitors. Interested individuals may contact Tech.mt for assistance on what incentives one can tap into and the respective eligibility criteria.

Get in touch with Tech.mt here:

https://www.tech.mt/
[email protected]
Tel. +356 22262100