Is it time to get your head in the Cloud?

The onset of Cloud computing and offsite IT services means that there is less and less need for businesses to continue investing in IT systems. But how do you know when it’s time for your company to make the move? Here are five things to look out for.

1. It’s time to upgrade

Technology is constantly evolving and improving, so the demise of your company file server is guaranteed. Similarly software evolves requiring regular upgrades to get the very best functionality. If the time has come to upgrade, you should also investigate the potential for outsourcing instead. You will then:

• Convert capital expenditure to operational expenditure;
• Reduce hardware management and IT installation costs;
• Get the best solutions and services as soon as they become available; and
• Be able to focus on your business, not your IT installations.

“More than half of the IT leaders surveyed said their agencies don’t have the ability to acquire new IT resources in a timely manner, and that IT workers are often consumed with routine tasks that could be automated, such as virus scanning and troubleshooting.” – Innovation Inspiration: Can Software Save IT – MeriTalk

2. Maintenance costs continue to rise

Fact – legacy systems cost more to run than their newer counterparts. You will find that hardware management and maintenance costs continue to spiral upwards the longer they are left in place.

Instead of continuing to budget more each year, look at how outsourcing can help you budget less without compromising on functionality.

“It has been reported that 60-80 per cent of IT budgets, on average, are spent on maintaining legacy applications and the mainframe systems they run on. Previous research had put the figure between 50 and 70 per cent, suggesting that the expense of maintaining these systems is growing as they continue to age.” – What Are Your Legacy Systems Really Costing You? – Karie Barrett, Creative Director at QAT Global.

3. You’ve made a new commitment to responsible business practices

Onsite IT installations draw large amounts of energy, adding to your company’s carbon footprint. Not only do file servers draw a lot more power than desktop PCs, they also require air conditioning to prevent overheating.

Far more energy-efficient and eco-friendly is the use of outsourced IT systems, located in shared data centres. Using outsourced hardware management services and offsite IT, your business can do its bit to reduce energy use and carbon production for the good of the global community and help you uphold your responsible business commitments.

“Businesses that run applications in the cloud can reduce energy consumption and carbon emissions by about 30 per cent or more compared to running those same applications on their own on-premise infrastructure. […] And when it comes to small businesses moving to the cloud, the research revealed that net energy and carbon savings can sometimes hit more than 90 per cent.” – Microsoft.

4. Discussions about your server make the finance director cry

If discussions about onsite IT installations and hardware management costs make your finance director cry, you know its time to look at outsourcing. Your FD will love outsourced services because:

• Fiscal planning is much easier when running IT costs that are fixed by contract up-front;
• Employment and IT training costs will fall; and
• Your business can access skilled technicians without having to employ them.

Ultimately you will save money and make the FD’s job a lot easier with outsourcing.

5. You need added flexibility

Relying on onsite IT installations usually means taking control of all hardware management and planning duties too. It also involves:

• Buying new hardware to meet increasing demands;
• Trying to offload unused systems when needs change; and
• Securing staff and skills to manage both.

By moving to an offsite solution, you pay a service provider to expand or contract your IT systems as you require – all covered by the terms of your support agreement.

“77 per cent of IT leaders questioned claimed their organisations needed a more flexible IT framework” – Innovation Inspiration: Can Software Save IT – MeriTalk