Financial comparison of IT services delivery models

Preparation

All details and related context should be taken in consideration before any comparison takes place. If you do not have the experience and in order to avoid incorrect evaluation, it is better to hire
independent business and IT consultants. Some documents ought to be created or if they are in place, to be updated, before you start the process. The consultants will help you to finalise the documents in the required depth and scope.

1. Business Strategy. Every business has a development plan. However small business managers keep that plan only in their heads. While managers combine multiple roles and juggle with various operational activities or they simply under-valuate the importance of the business plan, it will be fated not to be a structured document. Its purpose is to describe development intentions and expected changes in the business model and organisation. Most of the companies maintain a 3 years’ plan.

Да върнем управлението на ИТ услугите към бизнес ръководителите

Икономическо сравнение на модели за предоставяне на ИТ услуги

(stay tuned for the English version)

Подготовка

Преди да се прави сравнение трябва да се вземат предвид всички детайли и техните взаимовръзки. За да се избегне некоректно сравнение, ако нямате познания по точките по-долу, можете да се обърнете към независими бизнес и ИТ консултанти. Преди да се обърнете към тях е важно да бъдат създадени или ако са налични да бъдат осъвременени няколко документа. Консултантите ще Ви помогнат да ги изчистите в необходимите детайли.

1. Бизнес стратегия (бизнес план). Малкия бизнес също има такъв план, но той често е само в главите на ръководството. Фактори от типа на голяма динамика, липса на време или просто поради подценяване на значимостта му го обричат да не съществува във вид на структуриран документ. Неговата цел е да опише плановете за развитие и очакваните промени в бизнеса. Обикновено се създават такива с период 3 години напред и е препоръчително да се отчита на всеки 3 месеца какво е постигнато и да се нанасят корекции ако има такива за следващите 3 години от новият момент напред във времето.

Why small business outsource IT services?

In the latest post "One man as an IT department" we have discovered the most commonly met
problems of all three parties – the internal IT specialist, the business and the IT users. Now we will progress to figure out what the main reasons for outsourcing IT services are.
The scale of the market participants dictates their behaviour. Every business, no matter how small it is, needs almost the same IT services as large corporations do. The difference is that large players have got a scale and ability to establish and maintain internal IT organisations, while smaller ones have no option, but to use shared resources. Firstly they do not need those resources at all times and furthermore they cannot afford to pay for the resources full time.

So what should the small businesses do?
How can you get the same services with the same or even better quality and all of that at a better price?!
How would it work, bearing in mind, it is cost prohibitive to hire an IT specialist on a permanent basis?

Защо малкият бизнес изнася ИТ услуги към външни доставчици?

(stay tuned for the English version)

В продължение към предишния пост „Човекът ИТ отдел в малкия бизнес“ тук ще разгледаме
основните мотиви за изнасяне на ИТ услуги. Малкият мащаб на пазара в България и неговите участници предопределят необходимостта от споделен ресурс. Всеки бизнес, колкото и малък да е той, има нужда от почти същите услуги, аналогично на големите корпорации. Разликата е, че големите имат мащаба и възможностите да създадат и поддържат вътрешна ИТ организация.
А какво да прави малкият бизнес? Да получи същите услуги със същото или дори по-добро качество при това на по-ниска цена?!?! Как е възможно при условие, че дори наемането на един специалист трудно оправдава разходите от гледна точка на това колко и с какви задачи е натоварен той?

One man as an IT department

The challenges for small businesses

What are the 10 most frequent issues affecting the solely working IT specialist?

1.      No one to bounce ideas off of.

It sometimes helps to think out loud, to speak, and get some feedback from someone who actually understands what you are doing. Without someone like that around, IT guys might start talking to themselves! The business risk is suppliers often are collocutors for the IT specialist, however they are in between the two roles – trusted advisor and sales force. They will provide the best advice, for sure, but the question is - who would it be best for. It is a little ambiguous – the company that the IT

Човекът ИТ отдел в малкия бизнес

Предизвикателства пред бизнеса

(stay tuned for the English version)
Кои са 10-те най-често срещани проблема струпани върху самия ИТ специалист?

1. Няма с кой да сподели и обсъди идеите си. Сверяване на часовника, но с кого? Най-често с доставчиците, но те са в опасното съчетание на роли – търговец и съветник. Те със сигурност ще го посъветват най-доброто, но оставя неясен въпроса за кой е най-доброто. За компанията за която работи ИТ специалиста, за него самия или за доставчика.
2. Тестване на нови технологии е почти невъзможно поради липса на време и в повечето случай на ресурси. Винаги с приоритет е поддръжката на текущите ИТ услуги за потребителите.
3. Внедряване на нови технологии обикновено е бавен процес. Новият проект изисква допълнителни ресурси, но ИТ специалистът е само един.

Digital Disruption

Very short survival guide

Digital Disruption in the last years marked a shift in the collective consciousness of businesses. No longer was disruption a mythical buzz word concocted to stir up fear, but a general state of business reality in world governed by technology.
It’s like a democratization of experience. If you look at Uber, it allows everybody to have a limo service at a relatively inexpensive rate. Things that perhaps only the one percent could afford, are now being moved to the broader base through technology. You can call it disruption, give it different words, but what it’s doing is allowing everybody to purchase experiences that traditionally would have cost a lot of time and money. It’s not the same way of doing business, it’s certainly exciting times.
The term digital disruption has become

Small businesses’ challenges consultants can help to overcome

Ready for a flight?

We live in interesting times, especially for small businesses. Consider that, in just less than 10 years, businesses have had to adapt to entirely new marketing channels through Internet as social networks, decide how to invest in and utilize new technologies, and compete on a local and now on a global stage — things that were barely imaginable to just a half generation ago. The small business yesterday is the new big online business today.
Obviously the rapid changes and growth is that no single

Small Business Survival Guide

Only 10% of small businesses survive first five years, and again 10% of them will survive between next five years period. This data underscores that small business ownership is no cakewalk.
Beyond the classic entrepreneurial challenge of making and sustaining a profit, small business owners now struggle to find time and resources to adapt to new technology, say experts.
The pace of technological development is as staggering as the ever-changing ways that consumers engage and utilize it. To stay competitive to consumers and to employees,

Remote Workplaces and the Cloud Technologies

Remote employees are no longer a future project – they are a reality for the last two decades. Despite an abundance of scepticism (and a few outright bans like Yahoo), researchers keep finding that remote workers are more productive, less likely to quit, and generally better at their jobs. While some still find it hard to cut their ties to the office, the trend toward more remote work is clear. You can save commuting time and costs and spend with a family instead.

Business value in IT outsourcing

In simple language, outsourcing is the contracting out of a business function to an external supplier, involving the transfer of people as resources and capabilities, processes and assets. This contracting out can be undertaken at either an on-shore or off-shore location, and to one (single-sourced) or more (multi-sourced) outsourcing partners. Outsourcing is most mature in the Information Technology sector although it is increasingly developing to include a wide range of business processes.

Outsourcing of IT Managed Services

Challenges and Solutions

Threat to Security and Confidentiality
The vital asset of any business is the information that keeps it running. Whatever you have as information assets, intellectual property or any other confidential information that would be exposed to the outsourcing organisation, there is a risk that the confidentiality may be compromised. If the outsourced function involves sharing proprietary company data or knowledge, this must be taken into account. Evaluate the outsourcing organisation carefully and prepare NDA to make sure your data is protected and the agreement has a penalty clause if an incident occurs.
Do you have action plan and implemented process prior of the incident? Communication plan?