Should You Outsource Your IT & Communications Support?

 

Outsourcing IT and communications can be a viable option for businesses, with many potential benefits. There are advantages and disadvantages from choosing to outsource, which need to be considered on balance before making the important decision for your business.

Outsourcing spreads risk, the expert you employ understands how to manage processes but as they are not always directly involved with your clients, say for I.T. work, and they aren’t employees, you may find that they are a little harder to manage.

If there is a lack of in-house expertise, a company can benefit from outsourcing to an external expert, if, for instance, you need a website built or functions updated then it makes sense to contact someone who is proficient in that area of work. They understand the finest points of operation and ramifications and they may also suggest functions that you hadn’t thought of, all of which are great for you on a practical and time saving level.

While you will obviously need to pay the expert, the cost evaluated against how long it would have taken in-house staff to carry out the task, is often well spent. Your staff can continue to concentrate on your core business concerns as tasks that they aren’t necessarily trained in are outsourced.  Plus, you can save on salary overheads by outsourcing tasks only when required instead of employing your own IT or communications professional.

If you are short of business space, then outsourcing communications is ideal. The professionals won’t take up your limited space like an employee would, but they will be serving a vital area of your business.

You should make any expert aware of deadlines, service level agreements (SLA’s) and the implications of missing them. These people are an extension of your business.

Also, secure a firm quote before any work commences, you don’t want any hidden charges to appear that were not in the original quote. This is where it’s important to ensure that you select a reputable company with transparent pricing structures.

If your company data is sensitive and in third party hands, you will need to ensure that confidentiality is upheld by the people or company that you outsource to, your customers will expect total confidentiality, not excuses.

Especially for communications outsourcing, you need to be confident that all staff members are fully conversant and trained to the same standard as in-house staff and that they are wholly understandable to customers and colleagues, wherever they are based.

Unfortunately, offshore outsourcing in particular can lead to customer irritation and a reluctance to deal with non UK based staff, so it can cause the rate of customer attrition and complaints to rise.

In contrast, offshore outsourcing can act as a research tool in either IT or communications specific areas to help establish a larger business presence.

Why not offer a trial run or a one-off task to a professional or team to see if outsourcing meets your business and budget requirements? We recommend outsourcing as a useful avenue through which you can confidently enhance your business’ performance and benefit from another’s expertise.

When you outsource your telephone system support and maintenance to Midland Networks, you can considerably lower your costs and enjoy an improved service. For telephone system maintenance in Redditch and the surrounding areas, contact Midland Networks today on 0800 849 8585.