The Usefulness of Information Technology

In the 21st century, it isn’t easy to exactly comprehend how much information technology (IT) affects and permeates our daily life. Or, how do its practical applications or usefulness of information technology grasp today’s generation life? The influence of information technology has changed everything and made the whole world a small village. Actually, information technology is a system of devices that we use for hours, either for work, communicating with friends, family, and colleagues, or for pleasure. Some decades ago, people were not attracted by the IT department, but now this notion has drastically changed. Now, it has become the obvious choice for every individual.

IT affects almost all aspects of life, from galaxies and stars to the hadalpelagic zone (deepest ocean zone) and everything between them. In fact, it has made more improvements for humans in all industries, like banking, business, finance, higher education, healthcare, and food service. Today, some individuals define IT as a double-edged sword, but its advantages far outweigh its cons. Let’s dig deep into the article to explore the usefulness of information technology.

What Is Mean By Information Technology?

IT is often defined as computers and their networks. But, it also consists of all layers of systems within an organization, from operating systems, databases, servers, and storage to physical hardware. Oxford Dictionary defines it “as the study, development, or use of electronic devices, especially computers, for storing and analyzing information”.
It is the foundation of innovation, communication, recreation, technology advancement, and sustainability. IT is a broad term that includes many trends like analytics, cloud computing, automation, infrastructure, artificial intelligence, machine learning, software development, robotics, and many more. Due to continuous advancements in IT, this list is consistently changing.
Here are some industries and departments where we highly witness the Usefulness of Information technology.

The Importance of Information Technology in Education

Information technology has literally revolutionized the department of education. With the help of IT tools, students can easily access degree programs, especially those who can’t devote time or live in remote areas and can’t afford to join physical classes. The best example of expanding students’ reach is the online system of courses of degree programs, especially for higher degrees. In 1989, the University of Phoenix launched online classes for students and offered bachelor’s and master’s programs. But, many universities adopted this approach in 2020 due to the Covid-19 pandemic.
Policymakers and educators also can’t deny the importance of IT in the education department. They use the tools IT provides to develop and implement the curriculum. With the technologies like Augmented Reality (AR) and Virtual Reality (VR), students become more creative and motivated, and all new information about the course is easily accessible and retained. IT helps teachers and professors deliver their lectures more effectively and significantly so that high school and college dropout rates may fall.
While some people say, that drawback of IT in education is more dangerous than its benefits. The use of IT can eliminate those who can’t afford expensive gadgets, distract students, and lessens the social interaction which is considered appropriate for learning and grooming. Overall, responses are more optimistic than negative.

Information Technology and Communication

How does a day without your mobile in an isolated region? Sound weird? Yes, it is. The advancement of technology has helped to conquer the distance gap for communication and created a virtual connection between people all over the globe. There was a time when people waited for months to interact with each other, and there were a lot of communication barriers. Thanks to Graham Bell, who invented the first telephone, now it is a matter of a few seconds with just some clicks. The world has become a global village, and life is much faster now. Technology is unpredictable and progressive, and we can’t think about what new advancements will come.

The following points show how IT helps to improve our communication systems.

• Speed is the main factor in improving communication. Everyone can receive a message from others within milliseconds, no matter how far they are. Undersea cables, satellites, wireless signals, and other advancements ensure rapid conversation with any part of the planet.
• All social media sites, Facebook, Twitter, Snapchat, Instagram, etc., are the best indicators of how communication is improved in the modern world. It is also very trendy to communicate with people of different cultures or societies on online forums to overcome social anxiety. Online relationships are becoming more critical.
• Gone are the days when companies tried to sell their products face to face or door to door. Now, all information and queries related to products are readily available on the company’s website. Customers can get their desired product with the help of Augmented Reality (AR) without communicating with customer service.

The Impact of Information Technology on Finance and Banking

Since 1970, information technology has changed the mode of operating in the finance and banking industries. These critical industries are highly revolutionized by IT as it allows them to create countrywide services like credit card processing and electronic checking. Traditionally, banking was done in a non-virtual style. People visited their town’s bank to transfer money from one place to another or to withdraw cash.
People interacted with staff members in a brick-and-mortar building, but now, these premises are becoming redundant, especially in developed countries. Online banking is constantly progressing daily as the rise of the internet and IT gave banking and other financial institutions more revenue and $50 billion in transactions occurred online in 1998. It ensures stability and security to how companies and people access their bank accounts; otherwise, banking would drastically fail. That is why finance and banking is one of the usefulness of information technology.

It helps banking and other financial institutions to pay for its services like:

• In this digital era, cyber-security is the most critical concern. Thanks to IT, fraud detection in the finance and banking sectors has made it rapid and practical to protect clients’ account details from cybercriminals.
• Mobile payments are the best example of how technology influences financial institutions. Companies and individuals can receive and send nationally and internationally payments in real-time.
• Customer services are really improved in banking sectors through technology. Besides hiring highly qualified and professional staff, all sectors are looking for mobile apps, websites, and chatbots to provide excellent customer service whenever required.

Business purposes

Business is one of the crucial point in usefulness of information technology. Both multinational companies and small business owners rely on the latest technological advancements that allow them to drive business quickly and smoothly. In fact, it has made business more attractive, easier, and efficient, especially with the help of web marketing.
Customers can access every piece of information that they want to know with a few clicks. In contrast, businesses can reach their targeted customers worldwide, regardless of their revenue. But, the role of IT is far more profound than this. It helps to fulfill target goals, reduce the workforce in a specific process, and, most importantly, generate competitive revenue for the business.

Here are some specific areas where IT has influenced business:

• Businesses can use technology-related appliances to lessen business costs. Basic soft-wares allow firms to automate office functions, such as accounting, data recording, and payroll. Let’s take the example of field reps using mobile pads to record their expenses. And sync them automatically with related software back at the developer’s system.
• Increased productivity of the business is another miracle of technology. Computers and specialized soft wares permit employees to circulate more information than the manual process. It also helps to replace human labor with advanced technologies so that the productivity of business increases.
• In the business world, IT has expanded the new areas of employment in the IT department. Due to technological advancements, many job opportunities exist that are considered necessary for the rapid growth of business worldwide. Some most important ones are web/software developers, network administrators, and system analysts.
• In the coronavirus pandemic, we witness companies’ advanced internal communication systems. It was a strong communication network that allowed staff to share and access data to their organization or within the department. It enables the employees of an organization to work from home almost for two years.
• Last but not least, cyber security is the top priority of every organization. Every business has secret information they try to protect from hackers and competitors, damaging the entire company. Cloud computing or virtual security systems are making information reachable to all organization members. Cyber-security experts are trying hard to update systems continuously from unwanted distractions.

Role of Information Technology in the Healthcare Sector

There is no doubt that technological advancements in the healthcare sector have saved countless lives, and it’s a never-ending process which is why it serve as a very crucial point in usefulness of information technology. Due to technological innovation, the healthcare sector has a healthy relationship with patients and ensures their security and privacy. Patients can interact with their doctors through text messages, e-mail, or video conferencing to confirm whether they need to make an appointment or not.

Here are some advantages of technology in the healthcare department:

• One of the most significant advantages of IT in this sector is faster and easier access to required information for both patients and healthcare experts. All information is easily stored virtually, saving the medical center’s space and cost. Moreover, if data is required to send to another person, it can be done within a few clicks without wasting time on physical interaction.
• Electronic Health Records (EHRs) are an immense achievement of IT in medicine. It helps to summarize patients’ records digitally rather than on bulky papers. These records include diagnosis, prescription, lab reports, and all details of patients’ hospital visits. EHRs can also lessen the chance of making mistakes by professionals and make their job much more manageable.
• A new discipline in healthcare has been developed due to IT known as Informatics. It aligns the IT department with nursing so that they provide customized care to patients. Therefore, nurses can use it to improve medical records and make it possible for nurses to focus only on their jobs: properly attending to and caring for the patients.
• Innovations in information technology can lead to the development of user-friendly health mobile apps. Patients and physicians can benefit from these apps to improve healthcare sectors. The former can use check medical reports, reminders about appointments, and most importantly, check the results of tests uploaded by hospitals. While doctors can use this app to prevent side effects of any drug, interact with patients, resolve queries about the disease and maintain logs of their visits.

The influence of Information Technology on the Food Service Industry

We are always talking about the influence of IT in education, communication, business, and healthcare department. But, we can’t deny the fact that the food service industry is transformed into a new one. One of the significant ways how IT contributes to the food service industry is by improving customer service by ordering from mobile-friendly websites or apps. This digital ordering helps them to generate higher revenue, data tracking, and convenience for their staff and customers.
An electronic register system or Point of sale (POS) is another blessing of IT in the food service industry. In developed countries, almost all restaurants use the touchscreen to show their digital menu, and customers pay their bills with zero interactions with staff.
There was a time when the reservation was the most hectic part for both owners and customers as it was based on “first come, first served”. But now everything is changed. Now customers can check the availability of tables on the restaurant’s websites or apps, and IT experts update the status every minute.

Final Verdict

In a nutshell, just imagine for once, if information technology would not prevail in our lives, what would we do? Our technology-oriented generation would not even imagine this. It is evident that every individual, industry, firm, and business is highly influenced by IT. And, the usefulness of information technology will grow many times in the future, based on the demands of the industry and individuals. Whether IT is beneficial or risky, good or bad depends on how we use it. The IT itself is neutral, but this generation is the one who makes it helpful or harmful.