One thing successful companies can’t do without when it comes to their IT.

To surrender the answer immediately, it’s their internet connection. It should help form a solid foundation of any IT network and I can’t be any clearer here, it is absolutely crucial.

Your business can invest heavily in IT, you can follow best practice and you can train your staff regularly. However, if you have a bad internet connection, if it drops regularly, if it is slow and unresponsive, then unfortunately your company will struggle to be effective and reach its potential. Some might say this is obvious, but it's amazing how many companies will put up with a dodgy internet connection. Again, to be crystal clear, don't be one these companies! Don’t put up with a connection that isn't reliable. Not only are you paying for it, whilst the service is down, or getting in the way of your employees, you're losing money too.

You should invest in business grade internet connectivity, and a service that has room for growth as well. You don't want to be operating at the very limit. Make sure you can increase the bandwidth, which is essentially the capacity, quickly and relatively cost-efficiently should you need to do so. Again, this is about reducing downtime and inefficiencies. Don’t wait for your business to outgrow your internet connection, slowing everything down. Make sure it’s there and ready for you as you develop. We'd recommend investing in a leased line connection. There are key differences between leased lines and broadband and a number of additional advantages of leased lines.

Also, if you can afford it, invest in a redundant connection as well. That way, if your primary connection goes down, your business can keep working on the secondary connection, as the first one gets fixed. This might sound like a vanity expenditure, especially coming from an IT company, but connections do fail. Things do go wrong, and those things can be beyond your control, so prepare for them just in case.

I really wouldn't underestimate the value of a good internet connection and the way technology is progressing, it's only going to become more important. The key here is to invest. I'm amazed at how many people still call their internet connection a cost! Try taking it away for just 30 minutes and you'll see how critical it is to your business.

Sure, there’s an argument to made given the increase in remote working. Why invest in a fantastic internet connection when your workforce are no longer in the office? It’s a fair rebuttal, but it doesn’t change the point I’m trying to make. Your staff will still need a reliable connection, and the likelihood is that their personal internet service isn’t that great. They will have a consumer-targeted product and whilst I’m not about to advocate business-grade solutions for all employees, businesses should be speaking to employees about their connection. If it’s impeding their work, if its stifling productivity, I’d recommend helping out. Your business will thank you for it.