Is Outsourcing IT The Solution to Your Problems?

The dream of holding an exclusively strategic corporate position now appears within reach: The plans are to assign significant portions of a company’s IT department to a paid provider with just one signature. But will outsourcing truly resolve your software asset management (SAM) issues? Would it not be better to remain in control and to develop your corporate strategy in the cloud? Our expert Ulrike van Koll provides answers.

Anyone who in recent months has negotiated contracts with or been audited by a software vendor will be able to recite its cloud strategy off by heart. But nevertheless, there are some vendor-based differences that warrant a closer look. After all: Outsourcing is not the key, rather the company’s own strategy and how it is implemented in the cloud!

The cloud describes the provision of IT infrastructures by a vendor in an Internet environment; in contrast, SaaS (Software-as-a-Service) only shifts some areas to the cloud. In this case, software, infrastructure and services are operated by an external service provider, who makes them available to the customer.

It goes without saying that all vendors are keen for everyone to operate a cloud in the mid- to long-term, as it will allow them to tap into a constant revenue stream. To make this happen, they offer customers simplified management. Modified licensing models that are made available specifically for proprietary solutions are just one example. But does this approach even suit your style and match your requirements?

Okay, yes, it is conceivable if what you want is complete workplace mobility and a departure from dedicated environments! But a significant reduction in overheads, while simultaneously making maximum use of all available options, will prove a little trickier.

So if this doesn’t tick all your boxes, you might be advised to draw on the services offered by many vendor partners. Their prices are frequently competitive and come with packages that promise greater security, which is a good way to appease the critics within the company.

The rude awakening usually does not come until there is an audit, whether it be internal or external. If there is no contractual agreement on data transmission, or it becomes evident that the service provider’s infrastructure is not verifiably dedicated, both you and your partner will end up facing almost irresolvable challenges. And however much you would like to pass on responsibility as the customer, liability for the bottom line will usually remain firmly with you. So what would you have gained? Nothing.

So is the only option to remain dependent on your own infrastructure? Of course not.

IT in tomorrow’s world will need to be adaptable, and there is a simple rule of thumb: To eliminate all preconceptions that can be summarized under the heading “That’s the way we’ve always done things!” Instead it will be imperative to start planning a comprehensive IT outsourcing project, in which admins become service managers and project owners will act as interfaces between the end users and service providers. This switch in mindset and realignment of focus will bear fruit, if it is planned carefully on paper.

You must also consider in this regard that new processes can sometimes create new problems. Adapting your workflows, accommodating the critical nature of individual solution and ultimately the collaboration between all services are extremely relevant factors from a technical perspective. We have extensive expertise in this area, and are hence able to provide your company’s cloud strategy with targeted support. Feel free to contact us. Together we can drive your digital transformation!

It goes without saying that it is important for the service provider and customer to conclude contractual agreements for certain tasks and guarantees. So do not forget that between your strategy and its implementation, there needs to be an important step in which the rights and obligations for both parties are clearly defined.