We’ve been asking, “What’s the best way to economize on technology costs in this economy?” And you’ve been answering…
Sam Patrick
Owner, PATRICK MARKETING & COMMUNICATIONS, INC
We are seeing many companies cut IT costs by outsourcing IT. Many small and medium sized firms have one or two IT managers on staff at a cost of $60k each on average per year. Organizations like Acumen (www.AcumenIT.com) are providing managed IT services to outsource all or part of this function for a fixed monthly fee that is a fraction of the cost of maintaining a full headcount (or two.) Additionally, Acumen’s consultants are very experienced, having worked in many different customer environments, whereas an IT manager is often very limited in experience having only worked in a single environment. This is a very easy way for businesses to cut IT costs significantly while actually improving the overall IT service/support.
This was the case at SwaimBrown PA. It was very costly to manage and pay for a full headcount for IT. With the recent sale of SwaimBrown Consulting, that IT headcount went away, and SwaimBrown PA is now outsourcing the main IT functions to Acumen.
Many companies are scared and held hostage by one IT manager who they fear controls the IT systems that are critical to the business. It is difficult to manage this person because they are “different,†and it is very costly to maintain the full headcount. In reality, it is quite easy to outsource this to a large IT firm that specializes in IT service and has the knowledge and experience to do a much better job than any one individual can do for a small company.
