Top 10 Tips to Outsource IT Projects for Your Businesses
Five years ago, American companies devoted almost 12% of their IT budgets to outsourcing IT projects. That number has since jumped up to about 14% in more recent years.
It appears as though this trend is going to continue, too. More and more companies are experiencing the benefits of IT outsourcing. They are seeing what all the hype is about. It should lead to other companies getting on board with this trend soon.
Would you like to outsource IT projects either on a regular basis or even just from time to time? If so, you should make sure that you know how to outsource IT projects effectively.
We’ve put together a guide that will show the different steps you’ll need to take when outsourcing IT projects. It’ll put you in the perfect position to begin to outsource IT projects right away.
Check out our guide below and be sure that you keep it in mind when the time comes.
1. Start by Learning About the Different Types of IT Outsourcing
If your company is going to start to outsource IT projects, you should be aware of the various types of IT outsourcing that exist. Otherwise, you might not even think to outsource certain projects that you need to be done.
At the moment, there are so many types of IT outsourcing that you can do. Some great examples are:
- App creation
- Software development
- Web hosting
- Database management
- Technical support
As you can see, there are lots of ways in which you can outsource IT projects. Your job is going to be to figure out what you need done. Then decide if outsourcing your IT needs makes sense.
2. Figure Out the Objectives for an IT Project You Want to Outsource
When you have an in-house IT team tackle an IT project, you’ll be able to communicate with them about it all the time. It is to ensure they’re going to meet your project’s objectives. But it won’t always be possible to enjoy this kind of communication when you outsource IT projects.
For this reason, you’re going to need to nail down your IT project’s objectives from the very beginning. You need to make sure they’re easy to understand. It’ll enable you to lay out the different IT project elements that you want a company to take care of for you.
You shouldn’t be shy about spending your fair share of time working on this particular aspect of IT outsourcing. If you can’t provide a third party with a clear understanding of what you want out of an outsourced IT project, they might miss the mark.
3. Look Around at the Different Companies You Can Outsource IT Projects To
When you decide to outsource IT projects, one thing you’ll immediately notice is that there will not be any shortage of options when it comes to companies that can assist you. There are so many IT companies that you can outsource IT projects to when you choose to do it.
Because of this, you will need to put in some work to track down the right candidates for the project that you need to be done. You don’t ever want to just hire the first company you can find to assist you.
As soon as you decide that you want to outsource IT projects, you should Google something like “IT outsourcing”. Create a list of the companies that appear. These will be the different companies that will be able to lend a hand to you with IT outsourcing.
4. Select the Best Company for an Outsourced IT Project
In a perfect world, you’ll want to find an IT outsourcing company. You want company with some experience as far as working with companies like yours is concerned. It’s going to give them a distinct advantage over other companies that might not know a whole lot about your specific industry.
Let’s say, for example, that you run a non-profit company. There are companies that can provide IT support for non-profits out there. It would be a much better idea to work with one of them versus working with a company that has never worked with a non-profit before.
A company like this is going to understand the different IT challenges that you face as a non-profit company. They’ll also have prices that a non-profit company like yours can afford.
By rolling up your sleeves and doing some digging around, you should be able to narrow down your list of IT outsourcing options to just one. It should be a company that you have total confidence in right from the beginning.
5. Let a Company Know What Your IT Outsourcing Budget Will Be
Believe it or not, your company might be able to save a bunch of money when you outsource IT projects rather than trying to take them on yourself. One recent survey found that about 45% of companies outsource IT services for that very reason.
But if you don’t put a definitive IT outsourcing budget into place prior to outsourcing your IT needs, that might not be the case. You could very well end up spending more money than you may have hoped to on outsourced IT projects.
You should, of course, be realistic when you’re trying to come up with a budget for outsourcing IT. If you aren’t willing to pay companies enough, they might not do a very good job for you.
But at the same time, you shouldn’t ever feel like you need to break the bank to get great results from an IT company. They should be able to work with the budget that you provide for them and stay under it at all costs.
6. Provide a Company With a Clear IT Project Deadline
After you find a company to outsource IT projects to and agree on a budget for them, they can start getting to work for you. But right before they do, you should let them know how soon you expect an IT project to be finished.
Many companies will get out ahead of you by providing you with a realistic IT project deadline on their end. But just in case they don’t, you should present them with a deadline and find out if they’re going to be able to meet it.
In some instances, you might have to nix the idea of working with a certain company that can’t hit a deadline for you and go with another company. But whatever the case, you should always see to it that your deadlines will be met when you outsource IT projects.
7. Communicate With a Company About an Outsourced IT Project
Once you outsource IT projects, you should try not to call or email a company every single day to ask for updates. You’ll be tempted to do it, but this isn’t going to do anything other than slow a company down. You should try to stay out of the way as best you can so that they can get to work.
At the same time, you should also work out some kind of system that will allow a company to provide you with updates on your IT project. It’ll be important for you to stay in touch with them so that you’re both on the same page.
This is a big part of the reason why you need to pick the best IT company to work with from the start. It’ll open up the lines of communication with them and make you feel comfortable when you want to reach out to them for an update.
8. Make Adjustments to an Outsourced IT Project as Necessary
Ideally, everything would go according to plan when you outsource IT projects and leave you with the intended results in the end. But of course, that isn’t how things always work out when it comes to IT.
There is a decent chance that even the best IT company in the world will hit some stumbling blocks when working on your project. It’ll require you to think fast and make adjustments on the fly.
If you don’t like the way that an app or software is coming together, your company and your IT company will need to put your heads together to come up with a solution. It’s better to do this before the end of a project as opposed to at the end of it when so many things will be set in stone.
9. Be Sure You’re Satisfied With an Outsourced IT Project When It’s Finished
More often than not, your company is going to have to set aside a sizeable portion of your IT budget to outsource IT projects. As a result, you can’t really afford to waste any of the money that you earmark for these projects.
So if you don’t like the way that an IT project turns out? You shouldn’t be afraid to bring it up to your IT company. You should take a look at what they’ve come up with and offer up some very honest assessments of their work.
As long as you’ve chosen a reputable IT company to assist you, they won’t take any of this personally. They’ll welcome the opportunity to tweak your IT project so that it fits your needs better.
You’re going to be much better off doing this rather than settling for an outcome that you don’t like. You’re going to be paying a lot of money for the average outsourced IT project, so you shouldn’t settle for anything less than the best from the company you hire.
10. Enjoy the Different Benefits of IT Outsourcing at All Times
The whole point of trying to outsource IT projects will be to soak up all the benefits that come with doing it. You should have the benefits of IT outsourcing on your radar and remind yourself of them when you’re writing out a check to an IT company.
So, what are some of the biggest benefits of IT outsourcing? They include:
- Your IT employees will be able to focus on your day-to-day IT needs as opposed to larger IT projects that may overwhelm them
- IT projects will be completed by highly skilled professionals who will know how to handle different types of IT outsourcing
- Your IT needs will be met the first time by a team of talented IT professionals who will stand behind the work they do
After hearing about the many benefits of IT outsourcing, it should be easy to see why so many companies do it. You’ll wonder why you didn’t decide to outsource IT projects so much sooner once you’re done doing it for the first time.
Just be sure that you take each of the steps mentioned here to enjoy an overall great experience when you outsource IT projects. They’ll lead you down the right path as you strive to hire an IT company to handle projects that you don’t want to tackle in-house.
Your Company Can Begin to Outsource IT Projects Today
If your company has an IT department, you might not think you’ll ever have to outsource IT projects. Isn’t the point of having an IT department to avoid having to do this?
To some degree, yes. But there will be times when you’ll benefit from outsourcing IT projects in a big way. You should think about taking advantage of the access you have to IT companies so that you can begin enjoying the many benefits of IT outsourcing.
Would you like to learn about other business services that can help your company out? Find out about them in our other blog articles.
