Outsourcing IT should be long-term strategy - bizjournals:

fusajacuxejilyp.blogspot.com
Doing so, however, can be a daunting task, and unlesz your company knows exactlywhat it’s doing, a wrong choice can lead to a plethora of including wasted time, money and resources. “A commobn problem many businesses face is outsourcing for thewron reasons,” said Christopher Ambrose, research vice presidentr at out of Stamford, an information technology researc and advisory company. “Many times businessew use outsourcing as a tactical decision to solve a problej instead of tying outsourcing to abusiness strategy.” This businesse strategy, according to is the first step prior to outsourcing IT services.
Businessesx often will rush into outsourcing before it’s determined to be the most efficientf route to take, but once a detailex business strategy is completed and it’x determined that outsourcing is the best then the search for the perfect IT service providerr for the company begins, he said. Dependingv on the IT service needed and how much expertise the companyalready has, many companies go through a third-partu IT consultant to help choose potentiap vendors. This option should be decidedc ona case-by-case basis, but looking for solid word-of-mouth references is a good place to said Maureen Majury, senior program manager for the Wash.-based .
Ambrose said using a request forinformation (RFI) is another recommendeds way to whittle down potentia IT service providers before using a request for proposalds (RFP) for the bidding process. Once your needx are outlined and you’ve found potential vendors, it’s time to begib contact with theservice providers. Showing theses companies your business plan and labeling the exact specifications your compan will need is crucial at this juncture asyou don’t want to leavre anything out that could result in According to Ambrose, a networo assessment should also be done and given to the potentiall service providers during this phas e to ensure the IT needsa are possible given the current bandwidth or othedr network variables of your company.
When contacting different IT service providers, Ambrose and Majury both advised makinbg sure the providers have the proper credentials for the industry as well as back-checking the financiap stability of the firms and their track “Talk to [the IT servicre providers] and dig beyond its client list to look for possibld dissatisfied customers,” Majury said. “Then make sure all the potholesware covered, the company you’re working with is committed, there is enough server space and that your company won’t be competingt with other projects to ensure you get the utmosg attention.
” Then selecting the finalistse begins, and Ambrose said this is the time to go over pricingt and the contract. He recommends hiring a legal team familiafr with the service and industry when creatin contracts to ensure that from startto finish, and even post-service every aspect of the projecty is covered. From here, it’xs up to the judgment of the compangy to decide on which IT servicw provider will be thebest fit.
But even after makingh the decision, Ambrose said the process is still not To fully understand and get the maximum efficiency of thenew service, he said an on-sitre visit from the provider and having a retainex staff, usually in-house, for whole supplier management, architecture policy standards, busines s analysis and design, and securitu standards and policies, should be put into placs to alleviate possible post-service hassles. “Having staff with subject-mattetr expertise is important because you want someone on board to keep suppliers honest about the technologies andits services,” he said.
Once you’vd found the IT service provide that best fitsyour company’s needs, it’s time to go forthh with the project. Even when everything is maintaining contact with the service provide r throughoutthe project, which should be outlined in the is what’s left because even when the job is there can be unforeseenh factors that arise that must be addressec for a successful and efficient “You really need to think of all the problemw that could possibly be out there before makiny a decision,” Majury said. “Don’t ever make assumptiond and don’t ignore your instincts.
”