This year, we have been running regular polls on both LinkedIn and Twitter. One of our objectives has been to find out more about the way IT services are generally viewed. Take outsourced IT Support UK and worldwide, for instance; when asked if this could benefit organisations, the response was 50-50. To us, perhaps unsurprisingly, those results are – well, surprising. Here then we look at this particular aspect of our overall offering in more detail to try to extoll its virtues once again!
Essentially, it sees an external company hired to handle an organisation’s IT requirements. There are many reasons for turning to outsourcing. Perhaps the main ones are that managing an in-house IT support department can be both expensive, and highly complex. It is important to note that whilst there are many benefits to outsourcing, there are also some risks. We’ll cover some of those now, before then looking at the positives.
Risks associated with outsourcing IT support
- When you turn to a third party, you invariably have less control of your data (this risk can be mitigated by choosing a provider who can deliver to data protection best practices)
- Complex IT functions can be difficult to outsource and initially, your provider may take some time to get properly up and running
- There is the possibility you may lose ownership of your infrastructure (although this is quite rare and can definitely be avoided by choosing an outsourced IT provider with integrity)
- Access to expertise
- Risk assessment
- Cost savings
- Growth in internal efficiencies
- Limit your downtime
Let’s look at these key factors in more detail, starting with ‘access to expertise’. By turning to an outsourced solution, you immediately gain access to IT experts. Many of these professionals will have accrued years of working with technology. It stands to reason then that your organisation will benefit from this in the short term, as well as in the long term. Your own employees may take learnings on board which will further overall efficiency. Companies providing outsourced IT support will typically carry out an initial ‘risk assessment’ before getting started. This can unearth gaps and vulnerabilities which can then be addressed accordingly. In addition, it is often the case that organisations do not know how to comply with sector-specific IT security requirements. Depending upon the nature of the support, specialists with an understanding of regulatory compliance can prove to be crucial.
‘Cost savings’ are often touted when discussing outsourcing because, quite simply, you’ll only pay for the support provided. Having an internal IT team can be an expensive, fixed cost, with certain activities more time-consuming than others. Do you really want an IT Manager swapping out or even fixing a broken keyboard? This leads nicely into ‘growth in internal efficiencies’, which essentially sees a redeployment of internal resource. Having your best people working on more strategic action points is a veritable no-brainer. Finally we arrive at ‘limit your downtime’, a factor which cannot be overstated. If your website experiences downtime, your business can lose money. Reduce this downtime, move your own team away from having to worry about system performance and you can then focus on staying profitable.
Outsourced IT Support UK & worldwide is not for every organisation. Some smaller businesses are perfectly fine operating with an internal IT expert. Many small SMEs can work effectively with an IT team, too. So how do you know when outsourcing is the answer? Consider the points raised in this article. Ask whether or not your organisation would benefit from having experienced IT professionals on board. Would it be worth re-evaluating your existing IT infrastructure? Can you afford to hire and train tech professionals? Could your own employees be better used elsewhere within the business? Is downtime an issue?
Read more about IT support from theICEway.