10 problems with outsourcing IT

Outsourcing your IT functions may appear to make good sense, but beware of certain side effects that could negate the benefits.

The economy has hit everyone hard. Many companies have had to pare back departments, employees, budgets... on nearly every level. And many companies have done something no one thought they would ever do — jettison their IT departments in favor of outsourcing. On paper, it seems to make perfect sense. You have a company willing to handle your IT needs on an on-call basis. You're not paying staff to sit around and wait for problems, nor are you having to pay benefits or deal with the issues that come with having computer engineers on hand. (I say that mostly in jest.)

But along with that approach comes a handful of issues you may not be prepared for. Let's examine 10 of them.

1: Real cost

There are costs involved with outsourcing IT that many do not consider. For example, when you schedule an appointment with your outsourced IT company, you're going to be charged for the drive time there and back. And what about when that outsourced engineer has no idea how to fix your issue and has to learn on the job? Are you willing to pay for that? It's one thing if your own employees learn as they go. But it's a different story when a contracted employee does it. There are other real costs as well, such as when you get recommendations from the outsourced company that aren't actually needed. Upsales are common and sometimes unnecessary.

2: Time factor


3: Familiarity with network and systems


4: Employee relationships


5: Liability


6: Loss of work


7: Priority

This is a big one. Your company will most likely be on a long list of companies your outsourced IT company works with. Who gets priority? Honestly? The company that spends the most will get top priority. If that's not you, that means you'll get bumped down when that big spender tells the outsourced IT company how high to jump. If you want to remain on top of the priority list, you will either have to spend a lot of cash or keep your IT in-house.

8: Morale

The second you can members of your IT department, everyone else is going to be on the watch for their own pink slips. That kind of deflating of morale takes a long time to recover from. And when employees know they don't have in-house IT, they know when problems arise, they may be slow to resolve.

9: Continuity

This takes into consideration many of the previous points. When your IT is outsourced, you'll constantly need to redirect engineers, retrain people with regard to conduct and security, and deal with a fluctuating IT schedule you have no control over. And when a variety of engineers step in, issues will be resolved differently and setups can be completed without regard to in-house standards.

10: Control


The decision


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