Budgeting IT: In-House Support Or IT Company?
Many businesses start out by handling various aspects of their operations in-house, including accounting, marketing, human resources, and information technology. The assumption is that it must cost less to hire one person than it does to hire an entire company.
But that’s not necessarily true.
When it comes to your budget, and specifically, the lines concerning IT expenses, don’t make any assumptions. Find out how the math actually looks when comparing an internal IT staff member to an external IT company:
Running The Numbers Internal Or External IT Support?
Internal IT Support
Based on data from PayScale.com, we know that an IT technician will cost you somewhere between $45,000 – $71,000 per year. The range is dependent on how experienced the technician is, what types of certifications they have, etc.
However, don’t forget that this number fails to account for costs associated with health benefits, sick pay, vacation time, and annual payroll tax. You also need to provide your employee with space to work, and resources to work with. That’s not to mention whatever amount of time you’ll spend recruiting, interviewing, training and managing this employee on an ongoing basis.
To put it simply: beyond the salary itself, an employee requires you to invest in them with a number of resources. In the end, the cost to you hovers around $65,000 per year.
Outsourcing To An IT Company
To start, let’s assume you don’t make the mistake of working with an hourly IT support provider. There’s no need to bother with too much detail, but let’s be clear: being charged by the hour is not the way to go about supporting your IT.
You should be able to find an IT company that will provide support based on a monthly fee. This fee is likely determined by the services provided, the size of your organization, etc. Many IT companies follow a per device model.
Monthly costs can vary based on the plan and coverage-but it can still come in much lower than the $65,000 per year you would spend on a single employee.
What’s more, that’s not the only benefit you can expect from an IT company:
What Else Can An IT Company Do That An IT Employee Can’t?
The benefits of outsourcing extend far beyond the bottom line:
- More Expertise, Skills, and Experience: An outsourced team of professionals offers specialties in a range of technologies, receive ongoing training and certifications, and have the means to go beyond basic monitoring and maintenance of your systems.With a full team of IT experts on your side, you’ll be provided with in-depth support that will create a strategic roadmap to meet business goals and objectives.
- Hiring A Company, Not A Person: While an outsourced IT department is available around-the-clock, and compensated through your monthly flat rate, an in-house staff is subject to business hours, requires full salaries, benefits, and vacation pay, and will undoubtedly call in sick from time to time.By outsourcing your IT department, you leave the managing, training, payment, and other variables that come with actual employees to someone else.
- Better Use Of People and Resources: An in-house IT rep generally comes with one of two downsides: they’re either fulfilling that role in addition to their actual job, or they lack the resources to do more than just address day-to-day issues.An outsourced IT team has the personnel and resources to both proactively maintain your IT environment, as well as develop your strategic planning.
The choice is clear; an outsourced IT solution saves you the time, money and stress that comes with hiring, employing, and managing an in-house alternative.
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