Outsourcing your IT needs will benefit your business in ways you haven’t thought of.
IT consultants offer a wide range of services to their clients. But it’s easy to get lost in a sea of technical jargon and unfamiliar terms.
Keep reading to learn how IT consulting services benefit businesses.
The Role of an IT Consultant
IT consultants provide guidance and support to businesses with technology needs. In the modern, digitized world, that covers every business out there.
Many IT consultants and firms work on short to mid-term contracts. They offer their services to clients for specific projects or periods of time. They analyze existing IT systems.
From there, they identify areas for improvement and recommend solutions to those problems. Their expertise is invaluable for businesses looking to maximize their technological infrastructure.
And because tech trends are always advancing, IT consultants have to stay ahead of the bleeding edge. Their knowledge enables them to approach clients when new risks and security concerns emerge.
They also collaborate with other IT professionals, including:
- Software developers
- Network admins
- Data analysts
- In-house IT staff
In addition to providing technical expertise, IT consultants are vital for long-term planning. They help businesses to identify current and future needs, and to plan a roadmap for getting where they need to be.
Types of IT Consulting Services
There’s a range of IT services available for businesses of all sizes. Some of the most common include:
- Strategic planning
- Risk assessment
- Security management
- Managed IT services
- Data analytics
Strategic IT Planning
Strategic planning helps businesses develop long-term strategies that align with their business objectives. This can involve a range of disciplines. Identifying emerging technologies, assessing competitors, and improving company-wide efficiency are all examples.
The common theme is that strategic IT looks at long-term goals and broader trends in industries.
IT Infrastructure and Security
IT consultants also evaluate a company’s existing IT infrastructure.
From there, they can identify potential vulnerabilities or areas for improvement. That allows them to design a more robust and scalable solution.
Every solution is different, but this might include:
- Hardware recommendations
- Software recommendations
- Training and procedure recommendations
- New security measures
- Network upgrades
Data Analytics and Cloud Computing
Cloud technology can improve productivity across a company.
IT consultants can help businesses navigate the emerging world of cloud computing. They recommend and implement the best cloud solutions according to need. And they can also assist with creating virtual versions of hardware and software.
Managed IT Services
Managed IT services are a “one-and-done” service package. When consulting firms offer these services, they manage a company’s IT environment on a rolling basis. This includes server maintenance, data backups, network monitoring, and security management.
Some firms may offer to staff IT help desks or phone hotlines for on-call IT support.
How IT Consulting Services Help Businesses Succeed
There are many benefits of IT consultants for businesses of all types, such as:
- Increased productivity
- Better business performance
- Improved customer experiences
- Comprehensive risk management
Business Performance
IT services offer a number of tricks to boost business performance.
The end result is improvement across the board without needing to sacrifice:
- Cost-efficiency
- Reduced downtimes
- Better user experiences
A robust IT infrastructure improves the reliability of technology systems. They will perform better and consistently. This ensures they are able to support the company’s day-to-day operations and growth.
IT consultants help businesses identify bottlenecks in their infrastructure. Reducing them will help make the most of their technology investments.
Downtime is caused by hardware issues, software updates, security breaches, and system failures.
An IT consultant helps to minimize these risks by taking proactive action. Monitoring and maintaining systems helps businesses to address issues early. Every problem will escalate eventually.
Doing so early almost always works out cheaper.
By focusing on the needs of end-users, IT consultants can help businesses develop better technology solutions. Ideally, these are more user-friendly and efficient. They are often easier to use, which can improve employee satisfaction.
And easier software use benefits customers, too. Overall, it can improve the experience of anybody interacting with digital platforms.
Customer Experience
The customer experience has grown increasingly important as businesses digitize. Modern customers expect instant responses to inquiries. Live chats with customer service representatives have been normalized.
And online reviews allow every customer to have a voice. Quite simply, customers don’t want to be left in the dark – and expect companies to take them seriously.
IT consulting firms play a key role in the modern customer experience, by:
- Helping businesses understand the needs of customers
- Developing customer-centric software
- Integrating digital channels
- Leveraging data analysis
Mobile apps and e-commerce platforms can be great for the customer experience. Yet they should be easy to use and visually appealing. They should also do what customers want them to do – and not what a business thinks they need.
In addition, IT consultants can integrate other digital channels. These might stretch across social media, email, and chatbots. The aim is to offer customers consistent experiences across all touchpoints.
No matter where they’re interacting with a company, they should have ready and easy access to the information they need.
Risk Management
In an increasingly connected and digital world, risk management has become a critical aspect of IT consulting.
IT consultants can help businesses deal with the risks of their technology systems. This involves several steps, including identifying and assessing existing systems.
From there, they can ensure a business is well protected against potential threats. The most important areas covered by risk management include:
- Data security
- Disaster recovery
- Legal compliance
Data security is all about being proactive. Security plans help businesses to protect themselves against data breaches. According to IBM, the cost of a data breach in the U.S. is the highest in the world, costing companies millions of dollars in expenses.
Prevention is far cheaper than reaction.
To this end, IT services off threat assessments and develop policies to counteract them. They can provide staff training and add layers of protection to ensure a breach never occurs.
And should the worst come to pass, disaster recovery plans come into play. Backup and recovery strategies and regular testing exercises ensure that no loss of data is permanent.
Finally, IT consultants assist with legal compliance. Across the world, regulations around data protection and privacy are stringent – and the demand for compliance is growing.
For instance, the EU’s GDPR protects users against excessive data tracking. It emerged in 2016 in reaction to gross abuses by search engines and social media platforms. IT firms help to protect businesses from legal compliance issues in an ever-changing landscape.
This helps in avoiding hefty penalties and fines.
IT Consulting: From Consultation to Implementation
What does the process of hiring a technology consulting firm look like? In practice, it usually follows a structured, four-step process:
- Assessment
- Planning
- Implementation
- Support
During the assessment phase, the contractor analyzes existing systems. They liaise with managers and IT administrators to identify the needs of a business. Depending on the extent of the services needed, this might include a full audit of existing hardware.
Examining network systems for potential vulnerabilities is a common step. Here, other departments may be brought into the fold, such as HR. This is to identify current security practices. In all things security, the human element is often a weak link.
This stage can determine whether company staff need additional training.
The planning phase comes next.
During this stage, recommendations are made, along with estimations of budgets and the time needed to complete new IT integrations.
The most difficult phase is usually implementation. During this stage, consultants will oversee the integration of the changes they recommend. This may mean working with other IT professionals, such as software developers, network administrators, and data analysts, to design and implement the necessary solutions.
Finally, the support phase is all about ensuring everything is running smoothly.
Ongoing maintenance and updates ensure systems operate effectively. The support stage can continue for weeks, months – or indefinitely. It may involve staffing help desks, conducting system updates, and monitoring overall performance.
Building a Successful Partnership with an IT Consultant Firm
To get the most out of IT consulting services, it’s important to build a strong and successful partnership with your IT consultant firm.
You’ll find a list of handy questions to ask potentials here. Remember that, no matter the size of your business, you must place your own needs first. Ask searching questions and don’t be afraid to shop around for a better offer.
Key Considerations When Choosing an IT Firm
Communication is key.
No partnership can succeed without regular and transparent communication. It’s important for businesses to schedule regular check-ins with IT consultant firms. These check-ins can be used to discuss progress, issues, and new recommendations.
Goals and expectations should be clearly defined at the start of a relationship. This will help the IT consultant firm to understand the needs of a business and plan in advance.
The next consideration is flexibility.
IT consulting engagements may evolve over time, as new challenges or opportunities arise. An IT consulting firm must remain flexible and adaptable throughout a professional relationship.
The people your business hires should be able to adjust their approach as needed.
Qualities of Good Consulting Firms
The qualities of a good IT consulting firm are similar to the qualities of any good contractor. They require:
- Technical expertise
- Communication skills
- Analytical mindset
- Flexibility
- Responsiveness
They should be experienced with the technologies your business requires, and have the reputation to back that experience up. Look at their track record of success and consider client testimonials before reaching out.
As mentioned above, communication skills are essential.
Ensure that they communicate regularly.
They should be able to explain complicated concepts in a clear and understandable way. A reliable means of assessing this is to involve non-technical personnel. Ideally, bring them into early assessment and planning meetings.
Conduct brief interviews or collect opinions afterward. Involving non-technical personnel will help uncover communication issues.
What IT Consultants Cannot Do
There are limitations to the services that IT consultants offer.
Firstly, they can’t solve IT problems instantly. While they can advise and assist with all manner of tech-related issues, every business is unique.
Identifying areas for improvement takes time. Staff may require further training, and the IT firm may need to consult with other sources to find acceptable solutions.
In addition, an IT company can’t make decisions for your business.
They’re there to offer advice and expertise. But ultimately, the final decision is out of their hands.
And, unfortunately, IT firms cannot make guarantees about the future. The world of technology is always reinventing itself – and that has both good and bad ramifications. New security vulnerabilities are uncovered every day and trends evolve constantly.
For instance, it wasn’t until 2011 that ransomware became prevalent. This was because of the explosion of Bitcoin, which made ransomware lucrative for criminals to exploit.
Lastly, some IT firms don’t handle the hands-on technical work themselves. For larger businesses in particular, that sort of thing is done by in-house staff or contractors. The main focus of a consultant is instead to analyze needs, recommend solutions, and manage projects.
Outsource Your IT Needs
In the modern tech-driven business world, IT consulting services are vital to get ahead. By leveraging their technical know-how, businesses can improve their systems, cut costs, and reduce risk.
At Empist, we offer a comprehensive range of IT services. Security, cloud services, managed IT, and web services are just some of the packages we offer. Click here to arrange a consultation.