IT Outsourcing Services

The Growing Trend of IT Outsourcing 

Companies have caught on to the importance of hiring outside specialists to tackle important IT tasks — and in a big way. Since 2016, corporate revenue allocations to outsourced IT services have been steadily climbing, and show no signs of slowing down. Revenue in the IT outsourcing market is projected to hit $460 billion in 2023, up from $411 billion in 2022, and $360 billion in 2021. Further, revenue is expected to grow at a rate of 11% per year, with a whopping $777 billion estimated revenue by 2028.

Companies throughout the world have undergone a major shift in the way they do business. Post-pandemic macroeconomic shifts put a spotlight on focusing on the right labor force and delegating processes elsewhere when possible. The numbers don’t lie — IT outsourcing has become a part of big business.

Different Types of IT Outsourcing Services 

Outsourced IT services have grown into a vast industry that supports all types of business needs. There are many ways a company may be serviced, but generally fall into four major categories.

Offshore Outsourcing

You might be familiar with offshore outsourcing in the form of IT centers or help desks in other countries. Offshore outsourcing is a third party in another country that is contracted to perform IT services for the home company in their country. The benefit to offshore outsourcing is the reduction in overhead costs, as the labor is usually far less expensive than it is in the United States, but often employs high-quality tech specialists in the field they are needed for.

Nearshore Outsourcing

Often seen as a “second-best” option to offshoring, nearshore outsourcing is essentially the same, but with a closer time zone difference. Whereas offshore outsourcing might see a tech team 11 hours ahead of the home country time zone, a nearshore outsourced team might only have a difference of two to four hours, thus operating within the same business day together. The major benefit to nearshore outsourcing is maintaining the reduction of overhead costs while shortening the time zone differences between all teams.

Onshore Outsourcing

Onshore outsourcing is hiring an outsourced IT team in your home country. Services are still obtained from someone outside of the company, but within the same country. Often, a drawback to this is higher fees, but a benefit is similar time zones and native personnel that speak the same language.

Cloud Computing Services

Cloud computing services can encompass a number of different things, as everything from computing power to data storage falls under this category. Services typically include setting up the on-demand availability of computer systems, which then do not require active management by its users. Large clouds, like the ones utilized by large companies, then have their business functions distributed throughout their service networks and locations, each controlled by a data center. It is an essential business function, and the outsourcing of which is common in order to ensure crucial business elements are handled by specialists.

Services Provided by IT Outsourcing  

The IT outsourcing industry is all-encompassing, but most services focus on helping employees seamlessly operate in their day-to-day workflow without issue. Below are some of the most common services provided to workforces.

In-Person Desktop Support 

On-site teams that offer on-demand IT computer support is one of the most beneficial services. This kind of support can be continuous, so employees have someone on-hand to help diagnose and tackle their problems while they are working instead of waiting for outside help to arrive.

Onboarding/Offboarding

The arrival of new employees and those departing creates an increased workload for any IT team. Allowing a third party to handle the IT demands of getting new employees up to speed or securing old hardware and data from those leaving frees up other tech personnel to focus on higher value tasks, while the essential process of on/offboarding gets handled by specialists.

Hardware Swap Outs & Upgrades 

Handling hardware and changing it entirely or upgrading it for something new is a process that, although arduous, can be detrimental to business continuity if not done correctly. Outsourcing to a third party team of specialists is something corporations have been increasingly opting for, as the process is often delicate and requires specific technicians.

Network Monitoring and Management

Another crucial process that businesses have been choosing to outsource is network monitoring and management. Be it the cloud or securing data and protecting against cybersecurity threats, the need for network monitoring is ongoing. Securing data and your company’s firewall are only becoming more pertinent, and specialists who are trained to do so can end up being one of your biggest assets.

Infrastructure Refreshes & Site Visits 

Often, a company’s infrastructure will be systems of hardware or software that have been slowly acquired pieced together, but never fully refreshed and made a cohesive whole. Companies increasingly look to third-party outsourced specialists to do on-site refreshes of their entire infrastructure systems and then continue to maintain these systems with on-site visits.

Staff Augmentation 

This service allows you to augment your existing IT team using a trusted network of experienced professionals in over 200 cities around the world. Instead of hiring full-time workers, you can quickly and easily receive coverage wherever and whenever it is needed, freeing up in-house teams for strategic initiatives. Teams of expert managers handle your requests from start to project completion, while reducing overall overhead costs.

Benefits of IT Outsourcing  

The IT outsourcing industry has grown tremendously to provide companies of all sizes throughout the world every IT service they need. Some benefits to using outsourced IT services include:

• Cost reduction. Hiring a service costs less than hiring a full-time staff, allowing the staff you already have to focus on more strategic initiatives within your organization. 
• Access to global talent pool. Specialists from around the world are available to assist, whenever you need them. 
• Focus on core business operations. With the help of an outside team, lower-value tasks get delegated to third parties while you and your in-house team can focus on higher-value business and people operations.
• Improved productivity and efficiency. By freeing up the time it takes to deal with the heavy lifting of IT maintenance, more time can be spent on growing your business. Employee workflow and tech confidence will also increase, and become easier to manage.
• Risk mitigation. Mitigating technological risks is a reality every business must deal with, and the best defense is a sound security policy put in place by professionals.

Tips to Select the Right IT Outsourcing Service Provider 

Selecting the right IT provider is crucial in achieving your organization’s goals. Here are some tips to help in the search.

Assess your business needs and goals — The size of your organization and its IT needs will be important when choosing a provider. Smaller companies might benefit from spot help, while larger companies could benefit from continuous ongoing support and network monitoring.

Research potential service providers — Research the breadth of what each provider can supply, and look at their specialities. Different providers might not offer a full suite of services, or only specialize in one or two areas.

Consider the reputation and experience — Look for customer reviews and consider the type of companies that have already used their services. Do they resemble yours? Can they support your company’s size and needs?

Evaluate the service provider’s security measures — Security is a must, and it’s important to make sure your provider has the capacity to provide active security measures for your company’s needs.

Understand the terms of the contract — When you reach the contract stage, make sure the contract is what you expect. Be sure to take note if services are one-time or ongoing, and stay on top of payment schedules and expectations.

Key Indicators of a Successful IT Outsourcing Relationship  

It might be your first time utilizing an outside source for your IT needs. Here are a few ways to know that the relationship is working.

• Regular communication. Ongoing communication between you and your provider is crucial. Even if it serves as an update that things are running smoothly, you should expect consistent communication between your company and the third-party team.
• Shared responsibilities. An outsourced IT team does not mean the home team is entirely hands off. In contrast, they work together as a cohesive unit with shared responsibilities to ensure the entire IT ecosystem within a company is operating the way it should.
• Measurable performance metrics. Outsourced IT services are enlisted to improve upon your company’s current situation, and as such, providers need to provide proof of measurable differences that have contributed to the success of your organization. Make sure to set a clear expectation of when you expect performance metrics to be presented during contract negotiations.

The outsourced IT industry has grown along with the interconnectedness of the global economy to solve problems and increase efficiencies for businesses worldwide. Be it as simple as implementing a help desk or as involved as creating and securing an entire cloud system, corporations around the world see the value in the growing service options. Consider third-party IT specialists to free up your in-house personnel, optimize performance, and concentrate on the growth initiatives that matter most to your organization.