The Best Way To Scale Your IT

by David J. Moorman

Wouldn't it be nice if the cost of IT was always an exact fit for your needs?

Chances are, if you aren't paying for your IT on a per-user basis billing model, you are paying too much. A per-user IT contract is an all-inclusive, holistic way of contracting your IT. The per-user model gives you the ability to dynamically scale your IT consumption up and down on a monthly basis. By including all of the hardware and software required that a business needs for an employee, businesses can ensure they are paying just the right amount for their IT solution. It will give your IT infrastructure unprecedented flexibility and alleviate the risk of building to much or not enough capacity. The steep costs of investing in depreciating hardware and software goes away, and you simply pay for the IT services as you need them. The ability to scale up and down in the "New Normal" business world we live in offers you the flexibility you need now and in the future.

Growing Pains

Often, a 30 person business will build an infrastructure for 40 people. This means buying 40 PCs, 40 licenses for all of their software, and enough server and storage that will handle 40 people. Then they have a great quarter and business grows. Hiring employees can be a painful process in general but for IT there can be added pain of scalability. Adding 5 or 10 more computers with all of the added applications and services can be just as difficult as creating the original 30 user infrastructure. You even run the possibility of outgrowing your initial infrasturture setup.

With a per-user IT solution model, you can throw these worries out the door. As your business grows and you need more IT capacity and capabilities, adding to the infrastructure is easy.. Per-users IT solutions mean you can set up 10 or 20 more PC's fully licensed, and customized to your business. You don’t even have to think about it.

Downsizing

In other more unfortunate circumstances, you may have to make the difficult decision to downsize your business. Traditionally, with less people in your organization, you are still paying for the original capacity of your infrastructure. 25 of your 40 employees remain, but you are still left paying for a 40 computers and licenses. You are stuck with your depreciating technology and have lost your ROI on that initial investment.

Contracting IT as a per-user service will help to take the sting out of downsizing. Instead of sunk costs in IT, you can adjust your contract and be able to pay for one or 10 less users. You aren't stuck with the hardware, licensing, or expensive servers and storage that you do not need anymore. The office can downsize with the changing needs of your business regardless of size.

One-Size Fits All

A per-user IT model can ensure your IT is just the right size for your business needs. The flexibility will allow you to have more time and money for concentrating on the parts of business that matter the most. Instead of being a burden, it will help drive success. With a per-user IT solution you will receive an infrastructure that will always fit your ever-changing business needs.