It’s almost impossible to fathom how far technology has come in recent decades. Indeed, many of the advancements we take for granted nowadays didn’t even exist a few decades ago. Does this qualify us as spoiled?

If there’s one sector of society that’s spoiled beyond belief by the wealth of technological advancements brought to us by Industry 4.0, it’s the business world. In this article, we’ll discuss some tech terms all entrepreneurs should know because you’re likely to need these tools and resources sooner than you think—if you’re not already using them. So, let’s get techie.

Big Data

Of all the tech terms you’ll read about in this article, big data might be the biggest in terms of its impact on business. Big data is all about using massive amounts of data to get insights into customer behavior, market demands, supply chain management, and more.

Business Intelligence

There’s a reason we’re listing business intelligence immediately following big data, and that’s because the two go hand-in-hand. When you hear people talk about business intelligence, they’re usually referring to some type of analytics. Companies rely on analytics solutions for real-time actionable insights into business processes, sales, and much more.

Predictive analytics is the most exciting of all data analytics solutions. It uses historical data and advanced analytics data models to make predictions about everything from equipment maintenance to your favorite types of YouTube videos.

Digital Asset Management (DAM)

So far, we’ve been talking about data science and different analytics uses. Data is indeed your company’s most valuable asset. However, your digital assets are a close second. Digital assets include all your digital files, from media assets like video files to contracts and invoices.

There are plenty of use cases for digital asset management systems, but the most common one is for marketing planning. DAM platforms enable you to create templates for your content marketing material to ensure brand consistency. Furthermore, they enable you to automate many digital marketing processes and streamline workflows. In other words, DAM systems are a performance-enhancing platform for marketing teams.

Software as a Service (SaaS)

Software as a service (SaaS) has become popular in recent years. SaaS apps are enterprise software applications that the vendors themselves manage for their clients. That means you don’t have to worry about updating or upgrading your software when the time comes. Furthermore, you get top-of-the-line IT support directly from the people who made the software. SaaS also increases your IT ROI as you won’t have to hire an entire IT department to manage your SaaS-based enterprise IT infrastructure.

Internet of Things (IoT)

As you know, smart technology has become a big deal in recent years. If you think you love having smart technology in your home, wait until you have it in your business. The internet of things (IoT) is what enables machines to collect data, interpret data insights, and make operational and business decisions. IoT devices use sensors, deep learning algorithms, and other tech advancements to collect, share, and act on data insights.

As you can see, the worlds of tech and business are closely intertwined. Truly, most tech innovations are designed to serve business functions and simplify business processes. Tech helps companies make better business decisions, find new revenue streams, achieve strategic objectives, and answer complex business questions.

So, why do business owners need to know the terms listed in this article? In short, entrepreneurs will need all of these tech tools and resources to maximize their business productivity and efficiency. Business and technology have one main thing in common, and that’s the constant pursuit of improvement. The more you know about tech, the easier it will be for you to identify the tech you need to grow and perfect your business.

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