As technology advances, more businesses require external managed IT services to help them with infrastructure solutions and regulating IT processes. IT outsourcing has reached a global market size of $92.5 billion. This industry is gaining so much popularity because of the significant benefits of IT outsourcing.
Let’s take a look at the benefits of outsourcing IT services, as well as some of the risks these services can pose.
Risks and Benefits of IT Outsourcing
There is only so much that a business can handle on its own.
IT management can be very time-consuming for business owners. Regulating inventory, handling services, and dealing with daily employee interactions are more than enough to keep the entire staff busy.
Outsourcing IT services can help business owners free up room in their schedule, so they have more time to focus on core business activities. When a company relies on a professional external service provider to handle their IT-enabled business processes, they can focus on their growth while having the professionals take care of their complicated infrastructure solutions.
IT Outsourcing Advantages and Disadvantages
Before opting for IT outsourcing, business owners should take a look at IT outsourcing pros and cons.
Advantages of Outsourcing IT Services
Here are the top 5 benefits IT outsourcing offers to your business.
1. Reduced Business Costs
One of the main reasons that more businesses are opting for IT outsourcing, is because of the significant cost savings. By opting to hand over their IT infrastructure tasks to a managed service provider (MSP), business owners no longer have to hire separate employees. This saves them money on paying for hiring and training, salaries, and benefits.
Outsourcing not only reduces labor costs but also reduces IT management costs such as the cost of software development and upgrading IT processes to stay up to date with changing technology trends.
2. Improved Business Efficiency
IT outsourcing companies have the required training and skills to ensure a smooth long-term IT experience for all your business services. Business owners can rest assured that they won’t have unanticipated glitches with their essential services and that they can get expert technical support when they need it the most.
Business efficiency is also further enhanced through outsourcing because MSPs offer centralized data centers and similar technological solutions for storing and processing information.
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3. Exposure to More Experience
Research shows that 52% of small businesses state their biggest challenge faced is the quality of labor.
Outsourcing IT services can help remedy this issue by exposing business owners to a larger talent pool and giving them access to employees with more experience. Instead of spending an excessive amount of time screening through resumes and trying to find local talent, MSPs already have a trained staff of IT experts that are more than capable to handle all your business IT tasks.
4. Increased Competitive Advantage
Since business owners have a lot more time on their hands when they opt for IT outsourcing, they can focus on expanding their business function. They can deal with their main tasks, while the MSP takes care of their complicated IT needs. This gives them a competitive advantage compared to those businesses that are trying to handle everything on their own without any external help.
5. Improved Flexibility
With outsourcing, your company becomes a lot more agile. When IT services are placed in the hands of an MSP, the business has more flexibility to adapt to the changing market and continuously improve and update its services with ease.
Risks of Outsourcing IT Services
Though the advantages of outsourcing are many, there are some risks that every business owner should be vigilant about.
Here are 3 risks of IT outsourcing.
1. Less Control
As companies outsource their IT services, they may feel like they are losing control as they no longer oversee their IT infrastructure on their own. Since the new service is not onsite, it can be difficult to maintain the level of control desired.
Proper communication with the MSP as well as the establishment of a detailed outsourcing contract can help clarify expectations and improve the level of control the business owner has.
2. Potential Security Risks
When IT services are outsourced, there is always the question of how secure their servers are and how safe business data is with them.
The best way to avoid security concerns is by connecting with an experienced IT outsourcing service that has a strong data protection policy, like Outsource Solutions Group.
3. Influence on Company Culture
The third concern that businesses have to consider when IT outsourcing, is how it will affect their current company culture. Certain employees on their in-house team will have to be let go and there will be fewer employees working onsite when IT services are handed over to a remote MSP.
The best way to avoid a negative work environment is by speaking with employees about the change well beforehand and making sure to keep the remaining onsite team engaged and connected.
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Learn MoreChoosing to Work with an MSP – IT Outsourcing Pros and Cons
IT outsourcing services can help you:
- Reduce your business costs
- Improve your business efficiency
- Enhance flexibility and exposure
As well as give you a much-needed competitive advantage.
However, these services have both advantages and disadvantages. They also come with the risk of less control, security concerns, and the possibility of a negative effect on your company culture.
You can successfully outsource and curb the risks by ensuring you choose the right MSP to take care of your IT infrastructure needs.
Get All the Benefits of IT Outsourcing — Outsource Your IT Services with Outsource Solutions Group
If you have a small to mid-size business in the Chicagoland area, and you’re looking for comprehensive IT support, we have you covered. At Outsource Solutions Group, we offer high-quality and efficient MSP services as well as cybersecurity services.
We take special measures to reduce the risks of IT outsourcing while giving you all the benefits and more. When you outsource with us, you get the advantage of all-in pricing as well as a 100% money-back guarantee with a 90-day opt-out clause.
Contact us today to learn more about our IT support services and how we can help your business thrive with our IT outsourcing services.
