Planning costs is an important part of running a company – the more control you have of your fixed costs, the more chance you have of operating successfully. Outsourcing IT services has become an increasingly popular way for companies to keep better track of their IT costs. This solution is fully scalable and charged at a fixed monthly rate.

IT is a broad term, encompassing everything from the workplace, with computers and monitors, to networks, printers, mobile phones and server environments. For companies that don’t have significant resources to put into a comprehensive internal IT department, finding an IT solution that works for all these components – and is optimised for every purpose – is an impossible task. By outsourcing their IT services, companies benefit from flexible and up-to-date solutions from a provider that manages all or part of the IT environment.

How your company can use IT as a service
When purchasing IT solutions on a monthly basis you can choose to add or remove certain elements with just one month's notice. That is, you will not be locked into an arrangement for a set period. Here are some concrete examples of how IT as a service can work:

• An employee has had a desktop computer for one year, but wants to start working more from home. After getting in touch with the provider, the employee is given a laptop computer after a few days which makes it possible to work both at the workplace and from home. The computer is delivered with the programs and functions pre-installed, to ensure the employees can carry out their work in the right way. And on the computer’s monthly invoice, the cost of the desktop computer is simply replaced by the laptop charge.
• The accounts department discover its colour printer only prints in black and white. The printer is replaced within one week and the cost – which is lower – is updated on the next invoice.
• The office has been extended and is now so large that an additional access point is needed for its wireless network. Following contact with the provider, an extra access point is installed on site, with an additional point added to the invoice for the coming month.
• Virtual servers are no longer required.
  When the process of closing down the server is complete, the company will no longer carry the cost for this server.

IT as a service ensures that everything works, and makes it easy to run an efficient IT environment. The equipment is also replaced after a set period, to make sure the customer doesn’t have to use old devices.

Is it best to own your IT equipment, or not?
Many organisations have a policy to own as much as possible themselves. This includes everything from working tools to premises. The thinking behind this is often to ensure it can operate in a stable and predictable way. Companies that operate this policy when it comes to IT equipment need to ask themselves the following:

• Do we have the skills required internally to determine what equipment we need to buy?
• Is there anyone within the company who can set aside the time to evaluate, order, install and maintain the IT equipment purchased?
• Do your employees have to put up with malfunctioning computers, printers or networks because no one has the time or skills to replace them with something better?
• Who will provide ongoing support?

All these questions have a common thread: that is, they’ll take away time from people working elsewhere in the company. For some companies, this means someone – who in actual fact holds a position other than head of IT – oversees the internal IT environment in addition to their regular tasks. For others, it could mean the head of IT has no time to focus on development projects, such as digitalising the business, and ends up spending their time ensuring day-to-day operations work as intended.

When it comes to IT, the preference for stable and predictable operation by owning everything is turned on its head – that is, it’s actually better for companies not to purchase and maintain hardware themselves.

The benefits of purchasing IT as a service
By purchasing IT as a service, there is greater scope for companies to focus on their core activities and future projects. In addition, the equipment provided through IT as a service is tried and tested, correctly installed and optimised for the unique needs of your organisation and employees.

Interested in finding out more about what is included, and not included, in our IT as a service concept? Take part in a free-of-charge workshop, so we can tell you more about how your company can benefit from the service.

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