What is IT Outsourcing?

According to Gartner, IT outsourcing is the use of external service providers to effectively deliver IT-enabled business processes, applications services, and infrastructure solutions for business outcomes. This also includes utility services, software as a service, and cloud-enabled outsourcing which helps clients to develop the right sourcing strategies and vision. 

IT Outsourcing is a great way to work cost-efficiently and utilize your company's resources wisely. Management can focus on your primary operations and functions while a team of industry experts deals with your systems support and IT requirements. An IT outsourcing company in Houston will provide you with an array of IT services and products most suitable for your business type. These support services and products will help make your firm function more efficiently while maintaining your data security.

These services, in particular, are used to offload a business so that it can focus on the management of what is really important to the firm, be it clients, products, a service, or marketing, and leave the intricacies of IT to trained professionals and experts in the field. 

Should Houston Companies turn to Houston IT Outsourcing Services for Business Development?

Small to medium businesses in Houston do not have skilled personnel or a team that can handle the support for an IT environment properly or more so, security management. An IT outsourcing Houston company will provide you with skilled professionals who are both talented and have enough experience to provide quality services and advanced security services and support. The goal of IT outsourcing is to help businesses with data security management and streamline their processes and workflows by providing updated tools and data solutions services that make operations run smoother. 

Also, an IT outsourcing provider in Houston has the resources and expertise to start new projects immediately. If a business doesn’t have a large IT team or a team of software developers to manage technology, they’ll be able to start implementing programs or a project more quickly if they outsource, rather than spending months or even years hiring skilled employees and developing internal platforms. In addition, an outsourcing IT partner provides IT infrastructure services. If businesses do not have IT infrastructure services, they will struggle to share and move data in an efficient way within the workplace. And when IT infrastructure fails, many business functions are not able to be performed. 

Savings from IT outsourcing services can be really dramatic over time. By outsourcing from an IT services company, costs are more predictable for management. For instance; when you use a hosted server environment, it is a fixed expenditure with a predetermined amount every month. There are no maintenance costs or equipment expenses for infrastructure apart from fixed amounts. IT companies have the ability to offer access to a product, equipment, and service at lower costs. 

Truly excellent IT companies offer more than the basics without charging outrageous fees for their services. Consider an IT services provider that will ensure that your company gets the quality of services and help that you need. An IT outsourcing company can offer a range of computer and internet-related IT services. Some of these services include:

•    Technical support services
•    Telecommunication systems services
•    Software development services
•    Application management or support services
•    Development and management of databases services
•    Web development and hosting services
•    Infrastructure service

Information Technology Outsourcing has become a multi-billion industry worldwide during the last ten years. However, outsourcing IT services couldn’t be the “panacea” like it’s expected by some organizations. Over the last few years, there were numerous reports in the media about the problems that companies got with outsourcing service for their IT processes. Outsourcing service has its pros and cons. That’s why it is so important to get an overview and understand the main principles of IT outsourcing services.

What Should Houston Companies Look for in IT Outsourcing Business Services?

It is no longer enough for Houston MSPs to only provide one basic service. Integrating a process is now also a requirement, along with the expectations of a partnership when it comes to long-term goals. The latest trend of outsourcing in vertical integration means that one department will handle the management of everything. All services need to be working together in sync, ensuring your company never has to worry about who is in charge of which area. This makes MSPs an excellent option for businesses.

Aside from having infrastructure support, a managed services professional partner should also show a track record of complying with regulations – data privacy and intellectual property laws. The client should ask the firm to guarantee adherence to laws protecting both the business and the outsourcing partnership. A client could end up at risk without this protection. Compliance should be one of the first questions outsourcing partners discuss. 

Houston managed services providers should provide constant online support for their clients. If you see that the company doesn’t offer service 24x7x365 for you and your team, or find that they’re slow to respond to emails and phone calls, keep looking for another service partner.

Quality MSPs should also offer fast service to businesses, as well as disaster recovery plans for a course of action in the event of a natural disaster – such as a flood, as well as man-made threats like cyberattacks. This typically includes creating a cloud-based backup storage solution plan for company data that can be accessed by their clients if the servers crash or are damaged beyond repair. Whether you are a small business or a large enterprise, these services managed security, and deliver the agility, cost savings, and simplicity to focus on your core business growth. 

Houston SMBs should Educate Themselves before they hire a Houston technology solutions partner  

Before outsourcing your IT function to an IT services company in Houston, educate yourself and research the available options of service. The fate of your company’s security and outreach are all in the hands of an IT department, so making the right choice is essential to maintaining the highest business standards. Review this checklist to ensure your Houston technology services company is meeting your needs.

Establish business outcomes before choosing a company partner.
Incorporate the business results you wish to achieve through outsourcing services. You should establish objectives for outsourcing with clearly defined goals. Having scheduled checkpoints to review the status of your outcomes is an easy way to ensure that they meet your standards.

Team up with a proactive business partner.
An experienced technology solutions partner should be able to identify problems, not just simply react to them. The vendors should have some skill level, such as certifications to ensure that they can fully support your needs. To avoid being a "guinea pig", you should make sure the vendor offers a trial period.

Make sure your IT services partner doesn't achieve their goals until you achieve yours. "Reactive" IT consultants promise to resolve your IT-related issues. But at what cost? How do you know a team of IT specialists is truly solving your problems instead of milking them? If the fee structure is directly linked with the number of computer problems, excuse yourself from the relationship. Review and explore the service-level agreement (SLA). How will their team monitor, managed, measure, and enforce service based on the contracts? Quality service providers should present you with accurate and complete information with realistic quotes and proposals. 

Hire a business partner, not just a service suppliers team.
You should be operating as a team with your managed services provider. Look for a true team partner who’s absolutely obsessed with your success – they’re not simply interested in your dollars. Focus as much on strategic outcomes - like improved profitability, productivity, and business growth - as you would upfront costs.  Make sure the managed service provider understands how you intend to use the deliverables that they are agreeing to provide.

Use a shared-risk approach.
Your Houston technology provider should help you achieve your goals - at their risk and cost. Ask what kind of recovery and redundancy means they offer. The objectives to be achieved by outsourcing must be quantifiable and established as criteria at the start of the contract. If the customer can compare the performance with the pre-established objective, then the benefits of outsourcing are clear.

We hope you have found this information helpful. If you feel that your current process does not meet these standards, or if you would like more information on IT outsourcing, please feel free to contact us.