Brexit has become a hot topic in British politics. This is largely due to the fact that it will have a significant impact on the country’s businesses and economy. With this in mind, one of the government’s chief priorities is making sure that it can keep up with today’s technological developments.
Unified communications work by integrating methods of communication and collaboration into a single, easy-to-use system. With this in mind, let us take a look at the ways that switching to unified communications could help UK businesses mitigate post-Brexit difficulties.
Supply Chain
Supply chain management is one of the biggest challenges that UK businesses have to face as a result. This is largely due to the fact that there are so many different parts of the supply chain that need to work together in order for everything to function properly. For example, if one part of the supply chain doesn’t work, you could end up with an increase in prices or your product could be delayed. But modern technology has significantly improved how supply chains are managed and there are a few ways it can help UK businesses avoid Brexit’s difficulties.
One way is by utilizing unified communications tools like unified communications software which allows all parts of the supply chain (sales, manufacturing, and logistics) to communicate efficiently with each other. This integration reduces communication errors and delays which leads to greater efficiency on the whole supply chain.
With increased difficulty getting hold of goods, many businesses are struggling to fulfill customer orders. This is where unified communications come in handy. Unified communications are especially fantastic for enhancing your communications when it comes to supplier relationships. Being able to keep an eye on supplier prices, for example, is key to being able to make the right choices when it comes to trading, and being able to do this in one place makes the task a lot easier for all businesses alike.
The Workforce
In order to avoid Brexit’s difficulties, businesses need to reduce their reliance on employees in the United Kingdom. A major contributor to this is that the UK workforce is not sufficiently trained and skilled enough for high-tech jobs. A significant problem for business owners is the lack of qualified workers.
There’s a strong possibility that there could be a short-term shrinkage in the workforce as a result of the termination of the freedom of movement act. Historically, skilled migrants have been beneficial to small UK businesses because of their low labor costs, but the UK has already seen a 70% decrease in net EU migration since the 2016 referendum.
Productivity
Unified communications technology is one of the top priorities for government organizations because it enables them to keep up with today’s technological developments. The benefits of unified communications include more productivity and efficiency. In a recent study, companies that use unified communications were found to have anywhere from 15 percent to 30 percent more efficient than their peers that don’t use this technology. This is largely due to the fact that unified communications offer information in real-time.
Brexit as a process is estimated to have reduced productivity in the UK by between 2% and 5% in just the three years after the referendum. Alongside this, several hours are being lost by businesses weekly due to ‘Brexit planning’ – another problem that can be alleviated through the use of unified communications. With so much uncertainty regarding Brexit outcomes, businesses need to develop their plans surrounding the practicalities and logistics of their disrupted areas.
Instead of businesses having to waste time on lengthy meetings, they could connect via technology that allows them to confer in real-time and get to the root of the meeting quicker than would otherwise happen.
Global Trade Agreements
Global trade agreements will be impacted by Brexit. If the UK leaves the European Union, it will no longer be a member of these agreements. Unified communications would help businesses within the UK to communicate with other businesses within and outside of the UK effectively. To ensure that deals remain in place and communication doesn’t break down, consider switching to unified communications in your business and see the benefits it brings.
It’s likely that the UK will lose the negotiation power it had as a member of the EU, and so it will experience challenges when it comes to cooperating with large economies. The regulations from other countries would be individual to the UK (and deal-based) because, if the UK wants to continue to have access to the single market, it will have to follow the EU regulations. Additionally, it will have to accept the free movement of people from EU countries into the UK. The UK could adopt a work permit system similar to Australia, but if it does it would be costly and involve a lot of paperwork.
