Information technology and systems is a part of human life that cannot be avoided at all. It is part of the day to day human activities at whatever age and time. But like other professions, if you are not a guru in the game then you are likely to not have adequate knowledge to run the systems. Other people end up messing up more when trying to fix problems that they meet when using information technology and systems. Using information technology and systems starts from the use of a mere mobile phone, to using a laptop, to Wi-Fi and other network connections, creating and maintain a website, to data management for individuals all the way to the large scale management of data for companies, among other services. For small and less complicated problems and ideas in information technology and systems, solutions can be found on the internet and on apps such as YouTube. For bigger solutions, however, if you are not an information technology and systems professional, as an individual or a business, you may need to use the services of a professional in the field. There are two options you could consider. One can hire their own in house staff to handle information technology and systems or just outsource the services when needed. There are pros and cons for both, which I will look at below.
When outsourcing services for information technology and systems, some businesses find it cheaper. This is because most costs are variable and not fixed, and so will only be incurred when the services are incurred. When the services are done in house, fixed costs are incurred on top of the variable costs. Fixed costs have to be paid whether or not the service was rendered. Employee costs, such as salaries and wages, training costs, and motivation costs have to be paid for by the business when the service is being done in the house, but these are saved when outsourcing. Well, of course, the costs charged for outsourcing need to be affordable and be within budget for cash to be spent that year. The party outsourcing the information technology and systems could bring in expert services, which are better than the skills that in house staff could be having. Experts hired in the house are relatively more expensive than experts hired through outsourcing. The outsourcing party has handled many customers before, and therefore have knowledge that is broad and diverse. This will be helpful when solving very complex issues.
When the information technology and systems services are done by in house staff, data security is maintained. In outsourcing, the party delivering the services is a third party and will be able to view and edit data that you may wish to keep confidential, such as data that should not be seen by competitors or any outsider for the sake of remaining in business, data about customers and the business’ financial and business performance. In issues such as maintaining a website, if a business fails to pay the fees to the outsourcing party, it may take down the website. Fast response to an issue should be considered when deciding whether to hire or outsource the services.