Women in tech (not an oxymoron)
Hello, I’m a woman and I’m in tech. I’m not sure how I’d feel if I was just coming out of education today and assessing my chances in the industry. I’d probably feel intimidated and carry the imposter syndrome heavily on my shoulders. We’re not really taught or encouraged to take risks and expose our…
The benefits of working with Urban
At The Urban Technology Group we work with ambitious business owners who are seeking to create better business control. Typically, clients come to us because they are trying to manage on fractured and disparate systems, often using a combination of excel spreadsheets, Word docs, old databases and pieces of software that aren’t integrated. And what…
More than a CRM
When a company asks us to build them a CRM, it’s very rare that a CRM is exactly what they want or need. Yes, it’s the most popular item of software we are told we ‘require’ in order to run our sales and marketing, but what most business are looking for is ‘business management’. A…
Karen Evans shares her thoughts on working with The Urban Technology Group
Led by ambitious Managing Director, Karen Evans FCCA, TicTax works alongside accountants helping their clients save money by being their trusted Research & Development (R&D) tax expert. Today we are thrilled to be able to spend some time with Karen to talk about her vision for her projects and why she has recently chosen to…
Urban grows its team and welcomes our new apprentice, Jenny
Urban Technology Group are growing at a pace and are pleased to welcome their newest face to the business – Jenny Collings. Jenny will join the business as an apprentice software developer and is excited to get started. For Jenny, software development sparks passion and energy so it allows the opportunity to combine two of her…
Urban partners with Connectus, a leading connectivity provider
We believe in specialists and that one size does not fit every need. That’s why we have chosen Connectus to provide all of our hosting services. Having a company we can rely on without doubt or question is invaluable to both Urban and our clients. Connectus has an infrastructure in place with support and maintenance…
Urban gets disruptive Guerilla off to a head start with their new website
Urban went back to its roots over the summer to give disruptive start-up, Guerilla ICT a fitting platform to raise its new brand and message. Managing Director, Craig Hall is a veteran of both the forces and the telecoms industry and has tasked his new company with a goal that has long been his mantra:…
DropJaw invests in Urban
DropJaw Ventures Group, the award-winning Chester based specialist business advisory firm, is taking a stake in The Urban Technology Group, as part of its ongoing vision of providing access to capital and advisory services to technology and professional services companies looking to scale. The Urban Technology Group – also based in Chester – delivers bespoke…
The software belongs to you
It’s very important to Urban that any work we do for your business is owned by your company. Ownership is the right of possession and when you’ve invested so much into your operations both in time and resources, it’s only reasonable to expect that you have the right to retain it as an asset. Building…
Agile framework
Agile is a common ‘catch all’ word in business at the moment but what captures the true meaning for me is this: It’s the description of a movement where a culture of change is welcomed and the customer is the focus of the work. Secondly, its intent is to bring development into alignment with business…
Making a good start with consultancy
Our consultancy helps business owners to confidently make decisions about their operations and processes. Our skill lies in identifying the technology barriers that stand between you and the management of a more efficient, effective and profitable organisation. Technology can be complex and daunting and errors can be costly and resource-heavy so business owners can feel…
Stop costs from getting out of control
I’ve previously talked about how the wrong path to software can cause escalating budgets, a financial loss or paying for something that is no longer suitable; and that applies to both bespoke and pre-designed systems. However, there’s also a point within a seemingly great project where you could encounter unexpected budget hikes. Fortunately, it’s avoidable,…
3 Tech process challenges facing manufacturers
Manufacturers are not unfamiliar with challenges in their sector: They have dealt with poor economic conditions throughout the late twentieth century to now, struggled to attract young talent, invest in better machinery and develop new products for a vastly changed marketplace. But for many, this has been just another issue to resolve which hasn’t eroded…
What is technical debt and how best to manage it
What is technical debt and how best to manage it If you are leader in business, you will no doubt have some responsibility for ensuring your company has software capability and that any associated products are delivered in a timely manner. However, with speed comes cost – either, higher fees or fewer functions. I’ve previously…
Are you still using spreadsheets?
You’re not alone. There are many businesses of all sizes, across the industries who still rely on spread sheets to manage their operations. It may be as simple as a member list or, like one company we visited, who held every one of their 1000s of products, descriptions and prices across 150 tabs. Yes, the…
Is your business still using a legacy system?
A legacy system is one that was created for specific use and often has one or more of the following issues: 1. Older software was created before RESTful APIs (how we get data from and to other systems). It becomes very difficult to make upgrades and to integrate with essential programmes such as accounting packages.…
Is there such a thing as cheap and fast?
If we told a client that they could have their project delivered in half the time of everyone else and at a fraction of the cost, we’d be running the world’s demand for software. And to some extent, you can have software developed to satisfy these two entities. What’s missing though, is the ‘good’. Pricing…
What’s the true cost of bad software?
There’s a reason why updating a company’s software stays on the to-do list for years. It’s cited as one of the most avoided business decisions and is routinely thrown out of board meetings because directors can’t face the perceived risk. It is true to varying degrees that if you get it wrong, a lot can…
R&D Tax Credits
We’re always alarmed at how few businesses are uninformed about claims they can make regarding this tax and it’s been around since 2000. It’s not surprising though. Traditional accounting practices are sometimes slow to make recommendations or point clients towards new incentives introduced by the government and it does bring its own complexities. Business people…
Software does not exist in isolation
There’s been a culture of seeing technology as a standalone subject; murky water that businesses need to dip their toes into. However, it’s often treated as something so separate from the life of the whole organisation that it can cause technical debt. This debt is created when software has been built to solve one issue…
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