As more and more businesses seek to streamline their operations to save costs and create greater efficiencies, particularly in times of economic downturn such as we are experiencing at the moment, outsourcing IT provision is fast becoming an attractive proposition.
While it used to be something small companies did until they reached a size and level of profitability where they could afford to employ an IT engineer, bringing in external IT expertise is often now seen as not just a cost effective alternative to employing IT staff but actually brings significant benefits that make it the preferred option for businesses of all sizes.
So why outsource your IT support? Having your own in house engineer can seem like the best option for any sizeable organisation but is it really? There’s not just the cost of their salary to factor – and for a qualified IT engineer that can be considerable – but additional expenses such as tax, national insurance, sick pay, holidays, car allowance, pension contributions and other benefits that you need to offer to attract the right person. You also have the problem of maintaining a continuous service while they are on annual leave or absent through sickness. An outsourced IT service resolves all of these problems.
Then there’s the issue of training. At the rate technology develops your IT engineer needs to be kept up to date with all the latest advances. This continuous development is not only expensive but inevitably means more time out of the office for your staff member. An IT service provider will make sure that all their IT engineers are fully trained, often with their own specialist areas meaning that they will always have access to an expert in whatever field of IT you have a problem in.
One of the perceived downsides of using an external provider rather than an in house team is responsiveness, or the lack of it. In reality though this isn’t a problem. As well as a full team of IT engineers to call on and the capability to resolve problems remotely, IT service providers can deal with any issues extremely quickly and some offer a priority service so delays are never an issue.
All companies are under pressure to make sure they run their businesses as effectively and efficiently as they possibly can. Outsourcing key functions to reliable, professional, qualified IT providers has to represent one of the key strategies for doing this and one that more should seriously consider.
We R Your IT, a York based IT services provider, has launched a new dedicated service for businesses in the Yorkshire area that gives them access to highly qualified engineers, considerable cost savings and none of the commitment of employing staff at this level. With their new Privilege Club you pay a fixed fee for an ‘all inclusive’ service that covers all breakfix and administrative work and a priority service guarantee.
Visit www.weryourit.com/business-users/support-packages/privilege-club