With the global economic climate continuing to provide challenges, and industries across the board seeing increased competition from new entrants, it is little surprise that more and more businesses are looking inwardly to see how they can reduce costs and increase efficiency.

The topic of outsourcing is one that is certain to raise its head under these circumstances, and when Computer Weekly recently reported a sharp year-on-year rise in IT outsourcing, commentators nodded sagely. 

However, with sites such as the Probrand marketplace offering a wide range of managed services, it soon becomes clear that there is more to the trend than simple financial savings. Here, we take a look at why outsourcing your IT makes so much sense. 

1) Sticking to the knitting

Now more than ever, everyone involved in your business needs to have their focus on what they are doing, and delivering a product or service quicker, better or cheaper than the competition. Getting distracted by non-core tasks isn’t just inefficient, it can be downright dangerous when it comes to meeting strategic objectives. 

For example, some businesses delegate IT tasks to employees as a “side role.” The effect is the worst of both worlds. Productivity in their primary role suffers, and the IT tasks are not performed with the same skill as would be the case with a specialist. 
 
2) Reducing staff costs 

The average IT Manager earns something in the region of £40,000 per year – and sometimes significantly more. When you add the cost of initial recruitment plus benefits, training and so on, the costs can soon spiral out of control. And that’s just one person. 

3) Leveraging the best knowledge and skill

Even with all that training, it is not always viable to stay completely up to date on the latest technological developments. The IT field evolves so fast, it is something of a moving target. By outsourcing to IT experts, you are using people who live and breathe the technology, and who have exposure to a far wider range of tools and products than an internal IT team could hope to do. 

4) Constant cover

We live in a 24/7 business environment, and while customers in Eastern Europe are just finishing their day, those on the West Coast of the USA are just arriving at the office. Systems need to be constantly online, and a business interruption event can have severe consequences. 

For many businesses, it is unrealistic to have full time in-house cover. Outsource the IT function, however, and support is right there whenever you need it. For this reason, some businesses choose to retain an in-house IT capability, but complement it with external support and cover, to get the best of all worlds.

5) Getting more for your money 

Perhaps your current system works fine. But have you any idea how much better it could be? From mobile access to Enterprise Resource Management to cloud-based software solutions, there is a whole world of improvements that could reduce costs and increase productivity, just waiting to be discovered.