Turn To Flat Rate, Managed It Services To Deal With Tighter Technology Budgets

Today's financial environment has caused most small businesses to find how to operate in a more lean and efficient model

. Many of us running successful firms in today"s market have found that the only way to maintain a healthy margin or keep profitable is to increase efficiency and lower costs versus increasing prices. Efficiency in business can involve numerous business aspects from process to spending.

Looking at your costs is always a wise decision. Removing extra expenditures or finding lower cost service plans for phone or Internet are great starting points, but normally there is only so much a company can do here to reduce those costs. This is why one of the best ways to spend less is to increase the productivity or efficiency of your workforce.

The technology that powers your business should be providing one of 3 components at the very least "" increasing revenue, increasing efficiency, or reducing cost. If there are elements of your technology solution that are not delivering one of these three elements then you should assess how necessary those elements are. More than likely, you are wasting money. What complicates matters even more is the reality that the age of your technology solution doesn"t care how hard economic times are or how much you need to "delay" spending on information technology owing to a downturn in business. Buying computers, servers, and networks can be an intimidating process, but when not properly planned, you might as well throw money down the drain.

The managed services model is becoming a popular alternative for small businesses looking to manage technology costs as it offers predictable, budgeted, flat-rate services that were once only obtainable on a variable time and material basis. Managed IT services can give a business every aspect of the IT solution and management process without the headaches of unexpected costs and can make it possible for a company to maintain control over IT spending.

Normally a small business has to deal with IT-related costs such as:

i. Support of the staff and business for technology problems that come up

ii. New and upgraded hardware

iii. Software and licensing

iv. Peripherals like printers and scanners

v. Telephone systems

vi. Service contracts with providers such as your phone or Internet provider

vii. Data backup and disaster recovery

viii. Compliancy issues

All of these can attribute to a rising and variable cost in the business which, when not managed properly, can lead to a lot of waste. When you examine an example such as a managed services program, all of these separate line items are reduced to one set, monthly investment to the business without limitations. Since there are no limitations, it is incumbent upon the managed service provider (MSP) to provide the business a clean running operation and reduce the amount of problems that can surface. There are no hourly rates, no trip charges, and no surprise costs.

Let's assume it is time for your business to upgrade its entire computer network. As the decision maker or person accountable taking the lead on this initiative, you could definitely get most computer technology companies to quote out a this project. More than likely this will result in a significant project and large capital expense without even including any tech support after the installation.

How does a managed IT service provider handle this in a different way? With managed IT, one small fixed monthly investment that includes all of your hardware and can be written off at the end of the year as an operational expense if you so choose. The greatest part? This includes all support, training, and monitoring after the fact "" therefore, keeping your staff efficient and trained with all the latest technology and there is help out there if questions or problems arise.

Managed IT services offers businesses fixed technology costs, increased efficiency and a new technology environment. Fixed cost IT services are a simple yet highly effective way to advance the backbone of your business into a lean and efficient machine.

by: Peter Marsack

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