The people on the outside do better

By PETER GRIFFIN

Infinity Group chief executive Stuart Robb knows a thing or two about the IT needs of small and medium-sized businesses. Infinity services companies that would rather outsource their requirements than try to run their own IT department. He explains the case for outsourcing.

Q: Does security go out the window when you outsource IT and let outsiders crawl around your systems?

A: No. If anything, security is generally tightened as the supplier that it has been outsourced to is now responsible. The key is that the supplier can often apply security processes more objectively and consistently and be held more directly accountable for these.

Q: Are you always going to save money outsourcing IT requirements?

A: Not always, if you don't fully value risk. In the short-term outlook, where risk does not materialise, there can be a cheaper insource view. With outsourcing more value is available to the customers, who can access more services than they could in-house. As the customers now have access to a much larger range of resources they are not limited in what they can do with people and technology.

Q: How does the business case work? Do you weigh the cost of having a part-time IT guy and buying your own equipment against paying a monthly fee and letting Infinity do it?

A: Achieving a true understanding of the costs and risks of insourced provision will be a part of the analysis of insource verses outsource. Key deliverables for the customer will include time to think and focus, flexibility to achieve solutions that will add value and can be implemented, disciplined expenditure and time-saving processes, peace of mind from a supplier that achieves service excellence in an area that can significantly disrupt business as usual if it fails, and advice and solutions to help customers achieve goals.

Q: Are small and medium-sized businesses outsourcing all their IT needs, or picking and choosing?

A: There is about a 50/50 split on this. Many small to medium businesses are outsourcing, for a fixed monthly fee, their server hardware and software support but choose to have their workstations and peripherals on a time and materials basis. For applications, a significant proportion of project activity tends to be outsourced.

Q: Isn't outsourcing just a trend and will companies start bringing their IT back in-house?

A: No. Complexity means there is value in using external knowledge and expertise and having someone accountable.

Q: Is outsourcing viable for companies with just a few employees?

A: Generally, size is not a obstacle. The key is to find an outsourcer configured to the needs of the customer.

Q: Are these small and medium-sized businesses willing to stump up for IT consultancy?

A: We typically engage customers from, say, 20 people to 500 people. The trick with advice is achieving recognition of the value of consultancy. Value exists and will be paid for in the same market.

Q: What can a whole application service provider (ASP) do for small and medium-sized businesses?

A: Think "bureau" when the term application service provider is mentioned. Your business needs can be delivered on site from an external bureau or a mixture of the two. In IT, many services can be delivered remotely from a bureau and be cost-effective, save time and and be reliable through using networks to solve issues immediately.

Q: Do outsourcing contracts come with flexible terms?

A: We are creating products that allow the customers to create the support agreement that fits their budget.

Q: What can Infinity offer small and medium-sized businesses over competitors?

A: Ability to access knowledge and expertise from a range of IT and consultancy disciplines. We can form customer-focused teams to achieve excellent service and help our customers achieve their goals.

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(to be continued throughout this week)