Articles

7 Signs That it is Time to Outsource Your Tech Support

by Rich B. Blogger By Profession


Every company at some stage wrestles with the decision of whether to outsource their I.T. support, whether they are start-ups, SME's or large multi-nationals. There are a few things you can look out for that might hint that it is now time to outsource your tech support.

1) Your best salesman just got back from a trip to China which was a complete bust. Why? Did his terrible Chinese accent not go down well? Was it his golf handicap? No, his laptop dropped dead on the flight over and he had to present without any visuals.

With a decent tech support package, your staff should be covered no matter where they go. The best I.T. support includes access to a network of support staff across the world, so you and your team are secure wherever you go.

2) Yesterday, you, the managing director, spent 8 hours re-installing all the software on your PC after one minor software update took down everything and only 1 hour actually working with your team on product development. Your team seemed pretty happy, you however were not.

If you had outsourced, it's possible, with the right emergency processes to be up and running in minutes. A proper emergency protocol includes backup hardware in your office that can be installed in minutes by remote support and result in total downtime that is minutes and not hours.

3) At the monthly review meeting with your internal I.T. team, not only did they request more staff (how many geeks does a small company really need?), it turns out 80% of their time is being spent on keeping the rest of the company's computers running smoothly and only 20% of their time was used on improving your customer's user experience.

How many customers does this leave unhappy. Even one is too many. By all means have your tech team help out with internal I.T. issues, but only after all customer facing issues have been resolved. In the meantime an outsourced support team can do the grunt work for the rest of your staff.

4) Lily, your one-woman I.T. help desk, just sorted out a virus on your laptop (where did that come from?), updated the software on your office network server, installed new video conferencing software on all of your staff's computers and then promptly handed in her resignation to go start her own dotcom.

Whilst it may feel safe in the short-term, relying on one person to support your company is asking for trouble. Having an outsourced team you can turn too means guaranteed cover no matter what, plus a wider range of skill sets. If you find the right support provider, it can actually be cheaper too.

5) You are heading to Singapore to open up a new office for your company. The CEO wants you up and running with 30 staff by the end of the quarter and you just spoke with I.T. who laughed in your face when you told them. In fact, they haven't stopped laughing.

By using an outsourced technical support team, the standard processes can be rolled out across multiple offices, in different countries as easily as setting up in a new cubicle next door. At least, it's as easy for you, because it is the same process as ordering new hardware for any staff, no matter where they are.

6) Bernard has held together your I.T. support for the past two years admirably and everyone loves him. However, you just signed your biggest deal ever, which means your company is going from 20 staff to 100. When you told Bernard, he went white as a sheet and has been mumbling quietly to himself ever since.

Companies grow, sometimes quite unexpectedly. Growth might mean new staff, or it might mean new tech requirements. Selecting a good I.T. support provider gives your company the flexibility to grow by having pre-defined processes that cover adding new staff, adding new software or sourcing new hardware quickly and without limits.


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About Rich B. Innovator   Blogger By Profession

37 connections, 0 recommendations, 89 honor points.
Joined APSense since, January 26th, 2016, From NY, United States.

Created on Jun 19th 2020 07:25. Viewed 236 times.

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