5 tips on how to maintain IT infrastructure stability for your travel business

You’re reliant on software to maintain productivity in all sections of your travel business, so down time is a scenario you can least afford!

Are you always playing the ping-pong blame game between your internet service provider and your network administrator when your internet link is the drama queen of intermittent functionality?

How would you know if your IT infrastructure is lagging behind your software requirements?

Here are 5 tips on how to address the problem:

1. Neatening all infrastructure cabling is a basic rule that will save you a lot of heartache and tears. Wear and tear of cabling can cause untold damage to your connectivity and should be protected at all times. There should be no room for damaged cables, no missteps and mishandling causing dents in your budget through unplanned maintenance. Hide all cabling and invest in cable protection which covers copper wiring.
2. Invest in routers that have multi-functional capacity. For example, some routers receive two signals; fibre and 4G. The router is capable of automatically toggling from one signal to another when one of the signals goes offline. Use WIFI access points as a reliable option when you notice areas in your office that receive a weak signal.  Installing these will boost the signal and result in all office space being work friendly. These routers and access points are pricier, but avoiding a penny wise, pound foolish scenario is the best option, you shouldn’t waste money on cheap products that do not last. Ask two to three trusted IT network specialists to recommend quality routers and access points.
3. Network Management Tools assists your IT administrator or service provider to run reports on network performance. Ensure these tools are used as part of your KPI’s and/or SLA’s. Measurable performance indicators, with a minimum network performance, as related to your business requirements, can be negotiated. This additional arsenal to help provide infrastructure stability is key.
4. The same goes for connectivity testing. Your Internet Service Provider (ISP) should be constantly monitoring your internet link to ensure minimum downtime. Once you identify a break in your internet connection, they can immediately utilise their tools to verify if your connectivity issue is internet related. No blame games are necessary. There are tools to identify the cause of downtime and in turn, who should be working to repair it.
5. Use an ISP market analysis template. Conducting a bi-annual analysis on service offering and pricing as technology changes at fast pace. This will help identify areas for cost reduction and the possibility of improved service for your business.

Lastly, we recommend that you don’t go the cheap, easy route.  Patchwork solutions where a dongle in every corner is inserted will result in an unstable IT environment, where for example, different mini-solutions interfere with each other’s signals.  Develop a personalised IT infrastructure that caters to your business needs.  We WONT leave you in the lurch!

Contact us for product recommendations at travelcenter@travelcenter.africa.