How Outsourcing IT Services Can Benefit SMBs
IT Services are becoming a lifeline for all types of businesses in different sectors, but for SMBs, it possesses significant importance. In this day and age, most small to midsize companies are looking for effective IT solutions to increase productivity, reduce costs, maintain employee satisfaction, enhance operational efficiency, and minimize affiliated business risks.
According to McKinsey research, Small and midsize businesses (SMBs) represent a massive segment of the US economy alone—44% of GDP, almost 50% of the nation’s employment, and half of the $370 billion in tech spending. Competition is fierce, customer expectations are high, and tech investments are beginning to appear at the top of the list. Thus, SMBs must map out their IT needs correctly and select their service providers carefully to bring their A-game to the highly competitive business environment.
Another McKinsey Research states that global enterprises mostly outsource their IT-related needs from 3rd party providers, regardless of their industry. Annual expenditure on IT service outsourcing is nearly $900 billion, with organizations purchasing IT consulting, systems integration, Application development, and IT infrastructure management services.
Also, during the pre-pandemic area, e-commerce began to speed up due to the exponential increase of reliable online shopping platforms and shifting consumer behavior. In 2019, e-commerce represented approximately 25 percent of total retail sales. After the pandemic, consumer demand for e-commerce has increased by 40 – 60 percent compared with pre-pandemic levels in almost all consumer goods.
The research suggests these shifts in consumer behavior will stick over the long term as individuals become more accustomed to purchasing online. More than 50 percent of consumers expect to continue their online shopping habits after the pandemic abates. This pattern will fuel the growth of online sales, which are expected to contribute to 100 percent of the increase in sales of soft goods over the next three years. Forecasts suggest online sales could account for nearly half of all retail revenues by 2024.
As per McKinsey, SMBs can reap significant benefits from the win-win IT contract-management practices:
- 1.5-2.5x improvement in service quality and customer satisfaction scores
- 30-50% reduction time in time-to-market outcomes on projects, due to agile delivery
- 2x-3x better than the existing baseline on mutually agreed upon road map on transformational targets
- 2x-4x increase in contract-maturity score, leading to improved governance and relationships
Source: McKinsey, Five ways to unlock win-win value from IT-services sourcing relationships
SMBs can leverage great value from outsourcing IT services to deal with subject challenges:- High cost of investment for hardware and IT personnel
- Takes time and resources to gather and train a qualified IT Team
- Inflationary and cost pressures
- Increased consumer demand/ Shifting consumer behavior
- High digitalization of the market infrastructure
- Rapidly changing technology
1) Access Experts
For small businesses that are new in their sector, expertise is naturally one attribute lacking the most. Building IT infrastructure from scratch can be tremendously costly for SMBs, and it generally takes a while to gather and train qualified IT personnel. Therefore having an expert accessible at all times on your side can impact the way you do business. By outsourcing skilled IT experts, SMBs can have a deeper understanding of the business environment and gain valuable insights into various fields like cloud computing, digital transformation, software development, and cybersecurity. Such insights make managers’ life much easier when making business decisions, as well as shortening the learning curve of the organization. Skilled experts can also respond to IT-related problems much quicker with their years of expertise, providing effective solutions to problems that may arise at any time and can be crucial for operations. With their deep IT knowledge, experts can provide highly personalized solutions for SMBs’ specific business needs.2) Focus on Priorities
An effective IT management strategy can be very costly and time-consuming for SMBs to implement. By outsourcing IT services, companies can rearrange their valuable time and resources efficiently to business goals that have high priority right from the start. Smooth IT operations enable business executives to focus on important matters like revenue generation, innovation, and operational efficiency. SMBs can also adapt quickly to changes in consumer behavior and market/tech changes, which can help build a competitive advantage and unique value proposition. Organizations can allocate their resources effectively for innovating and implementing new technologies.
3) Scale Up & Grow
For businesses aiming for business expansion, so many things can go wrong along the way. Expanding into new territories brings challenges with it, therefore, requires a good understanding of infrastructure requirements and market specifications in targeted locations. By outsourcing IT services, SMBs can seamlessly boost their growth by allowing quicker deployment of IT infrastructure in the expansion phase. Quick deployment can mean great cost and time savings and contribute to revenue generation efforts.
4) Cut Down Costs
The first and the most obvious cost advantage of outsourcing IT services is eliminating infrastructure costs. For SMBs, additional infrastructure costs can be a huge burden, especially during their development and expansion stages. With the right experts and IT investments, enterprises can channel their capital to different parts of the business and benefit from additional cost optimization on their daily operations. By implementing highly customized IT solutions, it becomes much easier to dodge. Having a full-time IT Team can increase HR costs dramatically, which some companies might not even need at that stage. By outsourcing IT experts, SMBs can effectively optimize additional business costs such as IT personnel, office supplies, raw materials, and employee training.
5) Receive 24/7 Customer Support
Customer support is essential in maintaining IT infrastructures that allow enhanced collaboration, productivity, innovation, and risk mitigation. IT service providers know this, and they generally provide 24/7 customer support to provide help at all times. Small and medium-sized businesses can benefit from round-the-clock support to manage technical issues efficiently. With prompt solutions and reduced downtimes, companies can recover from setbacks with minimal costs and damage. Additionally, IT service providers may offer system monitoring to enable proactive intervention, identifying and resolving problems before they cause disruptions.
6) Innovate with New Tech
The pace of technological advancements is faster than ever before. Small and medium-sized businesses (SMBs) must keep up with these changes and take advantage of new technologies to stay competitive. Implementing AI and automation can enhance operations and cut down on the time and resources required for creativity. Outsourced IT services can assist SMBs in effectively incorporating these technologies. Outsourcing IT services can also help enterprises to have time to experiment with cutting-edge technologies and better run their R&D efforts, which opens up the gates of innovation for SMBs. Advanced data analytics and business intelligence tools offer extensive insights from consumer behavior to operational efficiency and value generation that can be used to come up with innovative strategies. To learn more about IT & Coud Solutions for SMBs, click here.
7) Manage Risks
Small and medium-sized businesses (SMBs) are exposed to various IT risks due to technological advancements and increasing concerns about digital security. These risks include data loss and cyber-attacks, among others. To mitigate these risks, SMBs need effective IT management strategies. Outsourcing skilled experts can help enhance overall security and enable organizations to navigate through tough times with ease. IT services also provide periodic risk assessments and security audits periodically. These assessments help SMBs identify security flaws and take appropriate measures, reducing overall risk.⭐⭐⭐
For small to medium-sized business owners, maintaining a robust, reliable, and cost-effective IT infrastructure is crucial for remaining relevant and competitive in the sector. Your business should flourish from the outset with personalized IT solutions designed to match your unique business needs and goals, allowing you to focus on what truly matters. As Kartaca, we’ve assembled an unprecedented level of hands-on talent under one roof to create perfect solutions for our customers. Our team of 30+ software, network, and data engineers makes precise touches to our customer’s pain points and offers lifelong solutions. Our team is trained on Google Cloud products, concepts, use cases, etc. Their technical skills to solve real-world IT challenges are validated regularly through certifications. Kartaca provides you with the tools and technologies you need for leveraging your competitive advantage with loyalty solutions, omnichannel marketing tools, e-commerce infrastructure, unified data solutions and segmentation, and consultancies to help you make the right choices in your IT ecosystem. If you would like to know more about how Google Workspace and Kartaca can add value to your business and your daily logistics operations, please check this page and contact us.Kartaca is a Premier Partner for Google Cloud in the Sell and Service Engagement Models with “Cloud Migration” and “Data Analytics” specializations.
TL;DR
Why do IT services play a vital role in the operations of Small and Medium-sized Businesses (SMBs)?
IT services are crucial for SMBs as they contribute to increased productivity, cost reduction, operational efficiency improvement, employee satisfaction maintenance, and mitigation of business risks.
How can outsourcing IT services help Small and Medium-sized Businesses (SMBs) overcome the challenges associated with building and managing their IT infrastructure?
Outsourcing IT services allows SMBs to access expert IT professionals, which helps them gain insights into areas like cloud computing, digital transformation, software development, and cybersecurity, without the need to invest extensively in training and hiring personnel.
What benefits can Small and Medium-sized Businesses (SMBs) reap by outsourcing their IT services and thus focusing on their core business priorities?
By outsourcing IT services, SMBs can reallocate their resources to core business activities such as revenue generation and innovation. This enables them to respond more quickly to market changes, adapt to shifting consumer behaviors, and establish a competitive edge.
How does outsourcing IT services assist Small and Medium-sized Businesses (SMBs) in effectively managing the risks associated with digital security and technological advancements?
Outsourcing IT services provides SMBs with access to skilled experts who can enhance overall security and perform periodic risk assessments and security audits. This proactive approach helps identify vulnerabilities, implement appropriate measures, and mitigate potential risks associated with technological advancements and digital security.
In what ways does outsourcing IT services enable Small and Medium-sized Businesses (SMBs) to innovate and stay competitive in a rapidly evolving technological landscape?
Outsourcing IT services gives SMBs the opportunity to experiment with cutting-edge technologies, such as AI and automation, which can enhance operational efficiency and foster innovation. Additionally, access to advanced data analytics and business intelligence tools helps SMBs develop innovative strategies based on consumer behavior insights and operational efficiency gains.
Author: Cem Cetinguc
Published on: Aug 18,2023
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