Pros and Cons of Outsourcing Your IT Services

Outsourcing can be defined as the state in which one company hires another company to take care of part or all of its information technology services. There are pros and cons to this process. For example, there is cost reduction but there’s also the fact that you risk losing control over your IT infrastructure.

The pros of outsourcing your IT services include:

  1. Cost Reduction-Outsourcing provides businesses with a way to save money on expensive IT costs.
  1. Specialization and Expertise– Outsourcing to a technical service provider can allow your business to gain access to exceptional talent and skills, such as: security experts who specialize in the latest threats; database administrators with expertise in complex database systems; or developers with deep programming knowledge that can implement new software platforms. That way you will be able to tap into best practices and cutting-edge technology.
  1. Scalability and Flexibility– A large portion of costs come from maintaining equipment and staff during peak periods (i.e., when processing payroll). Depending on the outsourcing services you require, this cost reduction could go above 50%. This leaves more room for investing money in growing your business rather than spending it on resources that are needed only during specific periods.

The cons of outsourcing your IT services include:

  1. Weak Internal Controls- Since you may not know what is happening in your information technology department, you can’t be certain about the quality of their work or how well they are adhering to security protocols. As a result, there’s no way to be sure that information sent outside of your company is safe from prying eyes. This means there’s an increased risk of data theft and information leaks which could cause serious setbacks for your enterprise.
  1. Lack of Visibility into Operations– With much of the responsibility placed upon the shoulders of the service provider, if something goes wrong you may not understand why it happened or how to fix the problem. This can lead to a loss of control over your IT infrastructure.
  1. Offloading Responsibility– When you outsource your information technology services, the responsibility for the system ultimately falls on the shoulders of the service provider which means there’s no guarantee that they’ll do what you want them to do. For example, if an upgrade is needed they could choose not to implement it and they won’t be held accountable as a result. This may cause problems in terms of being certain that your systems will continue working properly going forward. As a result, outsourcing may not always be a suitable solution for all organizations.

As with any major decision, there are pros and cons associated with outsourcing. These pros include cost reduction, specializations and expertise, scalability and flexibility, while the pros include weak internal controls, lack of visibility into operations and offloading responsibility. There are always pros and cons associated with any major decisions so assessing whether or not outsourcing makes sense for your business is something only you can say!

If your business is interested in outsourcing information technology services, eShield Technology is the perfect company for you. They provide fully outsourced IT solutions to businesses in need of competitive information technology services at the lowest prices possible. To learn more about their services, visit www.eshieldtech.com.