The ACCENT Learning Hub

“It seems like every time I turn around, I have to write another huge check for IT.” Have you ever said that? While technology costs cannot be eliminated, unexpected IT-related expenses can be minimized. With the right technology planning and budgeting process, you should have a clear idea of what your IT spending will look like for the next few years. What Are Some Things to Consider When Budgeting for IT?

Businesses often inquire about the ROI (return on investment) before they make technology purchases or changes. They want to know if their investment will provide a measurable, quantifiable return on the money they spend. In some cases, IT purchases will give you just that, but not all of them. When evaluating IT investments, businesses should take into consideration its long-term performance value.

Have you ever wished you were better prepared for something? It all turned out okay, but I had a moment like that this week. Some of you may know that I’ve been a private pilot for about 10 years now. I didn’t fly much in the first few years, but the last two years have been much more active. The reason is mostly because we now have data center operations for our clients and ourselves in Las Vegas, as well as employees in Central California, Arizona, Colorado, and Louisiana.

A common frustration among business executives is that they’re spending all this money on computers for their employees and they keep having to replace them sooner than expected. Sometimes it’s because the computer’s performance has slowed down to a crawl and is hindering productivity; other times, the computer breaks due to rough treatment. Regardless of the reason, you want to get the most out of your investment and extend the life as long as possible. After all, computers aren’t cheap and replacing them is no fun. We get it.

General support for Microsoft’s Windows 7 Operating System was discontinued in 2015, so there has been loads of time during the current extended support season to plan for an update to Windows 10. Unfortunately, many companies haven’t felt the urgency to move forward and have delayed making a move in that direction. With shortages of labor and hardware predicted as we move closer to the January 14, 2020 end-of-support date, and security issues looming, the time to start planning is now. Need another reason? Your planning process is probably going to be more complex than you think and here’s why.

What is a roadblock but something that stops you from going forward. You might be able to see your destination, or at least the next leg of your journey from this stopping place, but there is no way forward. You’re stuck. This is what happens in some businesses when they strive to meet their goals. The destination is envisioned, the course determined, but progress is never made. When it comes to business success, roadblocks can actually be technology roadblocks, and fortunately, managed IT services can take these roadblocks down.

For those who may not know, I travel all over Southern California, and a good part of the United States, consulting with executives regarding IT Department performance. At some point during these executive discussions, the subject of cost comes to the forefront of the conversation. I really enjoy discussing the cost of the IT Department because it is usually a highly sensitive area and tends to be lumped into one number. The CFO of a distribution company in Los Angeles recently engaged me to help him with an IT department cost comparison.

Here in Southern California, we take it for granted that growing season extends throughout the year. Did you know that our state leads the nation in agricultural production? Food grown here makes its way to grocery stores and food processors, not only all over the country, but all over the world. The reason why California has been able to become an agricultural leader is largely due to the climate, and conditions that are conducive to growth. As you seek to grow your business, it’s vital that you create conditions that are conducive to business growth. Here are seven ways that managed IT services helps you to do that.

A CFO was reviewing IT costs and decided that he was not going to move ahead with his managed IT service provider’s recommendation to patch their server's operating system software. The CFO was responsible for overseeing IT and his advisors explained the role that software patches and updates played in their overall security. Yet, when looking at the numbers, the CFO wanted to scale back their IT agreement to cut costs and decided to scratch that line item. After all, the managed IT service provider (MSP) was providing unlimited support so they would take care of them if they had a breach. Right? Wrong.

If you’re looking at your options for IT support and asking yourself if you should go with in-house IT or managed IT services, you might be asking the wrong question. A better question to ask would be: How should we staff the IT function of our business so we have the right capability in our IT department?  The reason why this may be a better question is because gaps in your IT capability can create roadblocks that stifle your business success.