Welcome to the inaugural issue of my new LinkedIn Newsletter, Better IT Results. My plan is to provide business owners with practical advice for how to get (drum roll please) better IT results from however they are doing IT currently, whether they have an internal IT team, or outsource to a 3rd party.
Changing IT Providers is a Hassle
Our internal business development team has 2-3 conversations every week with business leaders about how to get more out of their IT – reduce IT downtime, improve cybersecurity, be more proactive maintenance, and get big picture IT planning, amongst other results.
One topic that comes up often – Should we change IT providers? The answer is usually NO. Changing IT providers IS a hassle. As a business leader, there’s always more than enough on your plate. And deep down most business leaders know that changing IT providers is that proverbial hassle. So we recommend that you don’t do it.
The Caveat
But, of course, there’s a caveat. You should consider changing IT providers if there is enough pain. What’s enough pain? Well, that’s for you to decide. It could be multiple network outages. It could be a cyber-attack such as ransomware. It could slow and mostly reactive IT support. It could be a lack of big picture IT planning. You’ve outgrown your current IT provider. Your internal IT guy just left. Or it could be a combination of these.
Conversations about Getting Better IT Results
The best time to have a conversation with an IT provider is when your current IT is doing “fine”. You might be having a little bit of IT pain, but certainly not enough to go through the hassle of changing providers. This conversation is great for two reasons: 1) You’ll learn some tips about how to get better IT results from your current IT provider, and 2) You’ll build a relationship with an IT provider (or two or three) to keep in your pocket in case you ever do have enough IT pain to make change.
Thanks for reading, and if you’re ready to have a “no pressure, no sales” conversation about how to get better IT results, click HERE.