Achieving satisfaction and convenience from IT Service management is an important factor for business growth and resilience while keeping costs low.
Whether you operate your business online or via a shop front the ability to have continuous productivity and fully working technologies is more important than ever before.
As such, you must consider IT consulting and the ability to outsource aspects of your technology landscape to those experts who are able to deliver superb services in less time.
That said, many small business owners find it difficult to hire the best IT talent to complement their team and compete effectively against big players within their niche or business industry.
Statistics shows that there is a massive gap between the skills and talent required by hiring managers and what's available on the market to fulfil this need.
Like many businesses. you may have an in-house IT team or dedicated person that does some sort of information technology duties alongside their daily duties. But let's consider the facts carefully, is this an economical approach for taking your business to the next level? You may think increasing your IT budget is the only way to meet your business needs, but with today's technology landscape there is far more than what meets the eyes.
Have you considered IT outsourcing? Having the mindset that your business isn’t big enough for outsourcing your IT functions is one way to look at things, but is this really the truth?
It may take some time to rationalise the benefits of whether or not IT outsourcing is the right call and to help you direct your thoughts to a decision point, we've highlighted the top five reasons for outsourcing your IT and technology support functions of your business.
1. Access to the Best Industry Talent
By outsourcing your IT services, you get the opportunity to identify and select the best consulting resources in the industry at a great price. Hiring the best experts is pivotal for protecting your business against technology implications, security breaches and unnecessary resource deployment. This approach is by far one of the best factors to consider if you intend to take your business to the next level. Before choosing your IT service provider, you must learn about the services they offer and their overall staff profile.
One crucial factor that can help you avoid potential pitfalls is to consider if they experienced in delivering IT services and technology consultancy within your industry. Take the time to ask them about the services they’re providing to other industry players and what their typical incident resolution time looks like.
Another way to approach this is to examine how their company offer remote it support, computer repairs, and on-site call out services. In the end, the final decision will be dependent on the company you choose to support your business via IT outsourcing, but you can find out a lot about your potential IT Support provider and ensure you are a best match for each other when it comes to the provision of
outsourced IT support for your business.
2. Reduce Your Risk
When handling IT Support in-house, there is a sense of comfort that comes with trussing your team to operate in the spirit of interest for the business. This can sometimes come as an unexpected bite, when things go belly-up and your business assumes all the risks.
On the other hand, when an Outsourced IT service provider is involved, it is often more noticeable that they take a more precautionary approach to risk management and scenarios mitigation with activities restricted only to those involved in respective IT operations. It's important to remember that with internal IT Support, your IT team handles all the sensitive client and company information, which may not be suitable for every eye, especially with the introduction on GDPR regulations.
Also, if there's a cyber security breach within your environment, your business will be totally responsible for any consequences and liquidated damages should this become necessary. Outsourcing your IT department will help you reduce your risks and offset the level of responsibility, although you are still accountable for the overall outcome.
3. Lower Your Operating Costs
It is a known fact that having an in-house IT team or personnel introduce significant strains on small business budgets. However, by outsourcing your IT services provision and maintenance, you could potentially lower your ongoing operating costs year-by-year and this will become noticeable when all human resource factors are taken into consideration.
This low cost may tempt you to go for a complete IT package and it is here that care is required to ensure you focus on hiring an IT services company that meet your business needs and deliver solutions that are related to your productivity requirements.
4. Keep Your Systems Up to Date
Technology is one of the most rapidly changing industries that with hardware, software and resource churn occurring at an alarming rate. That said, there are many business owners who with a mindset to purchase and use hardware / software resources until they broke or cause productivity issues.
This strategy may seems like a practical working solution, but statistics have shown that this can seriously drag business and staff productivity to a grinding halt. In the ling run, such scenarios can result in low staff morale and user frustration which can negatively impact the outcome of your business.
If outcomes are not recognised and properly manged, this can result in slow business growth and competitive advantage. By outsourcing your IT, your IT department can also become your technology department for solution innovation and strategies which could easily grow your company.
5. Focus on Scaling Your Business
As a small business owner, it is likely that each personnel resource wears multiple hats due to the varied roles and responsibilities that they have to perform if not daily, then on a regular basis.
Outsourcing your IT functions and environment management can provide you an opportunity to step back with enough breathing room where you can focus business growth strategies and profitable outcomes.
The Bottom Line for IT Outsourcing
Although there are numerous cost elements to consider with IT outsourcing, this will by far become the easiest way to take your business to the next level. If you are a small business owner and struggling with the provision of technology budget or hiring an outside company to handle your IT maintenance this approach can provide you the breather that the business needs.
An outsourced It Support team can provide the best talent and technology for your business and technology strategy road map, while helping to reduce overall operating costs to your business. For business owners with operating within multiple roles, an outsourced IT approach can provide the necessary leverage to focus on daily business needs, instead of being bombarded by daily demands and limited time to undertake core business functions properly.
Many business owners underestimate the importance of technology and the value of technical support as part of their everyday company's' operations.
If like many you are still thinking about the benefits of outsourcing your IT functions then it is time to get in touch with us to discuss your IT support challenges and underlying requirements.
