How to select your Computer Support Company
The computer systems in any organisation can have a dramatic effect if they fail or cause your company problems. Selecting the right support company to assist you in developing and maintaining your IT infrastructure is all important.
There is a lot of choice out there for computer support, with many companies offering different skills and services. It is probably better to first understand what IT systems you have and to consider what happens when things fail. This is important – it is not a case of if things fail, but when they fail. We have all been there late on an evening, weighing up what to do next, with a file server not wanting to restart and wandering what will happen to us next!
Measuring the Cost
There are many ways of trying to calculate the cost of potential problems. One quick solution is to carry out a quick risk assessment on some of the major support items. For example, you could list the Internet, email, the file server, indeed even a printer/plotter and then consider the repercussions of that item failing, for varied length of times.
Every organisation is different. For some, email does not matter, but for some it is of a priority. Some companies could operate without the internet for days; indeed, employees may even get more work done. Some companies could lose thousands not accessing critical applications and sites on the web.
Most companies will tend to have the same problem when a server is down. If you have 15 employees who each need the server for their jobs and the server is down for 1 day – you lose the 15 x 8 hours x hourly rate charge out. For example: 15 x 8 x £45 = £5400. That’s £675 saving if the server is back working just one hour faster!
What to pay for Support
I read an interesting article recently regarding support company costs. Support firms seem to charge, in the Southwest, anything between £25 and £100 per hour. Many firms actually get you to sign a contract, but the rates are still calculated and put into the contract based on how much time the support company allocates to maintaining your systems.
The best engineers will work for the most money – so if a company is paying £16K for a PC support role, but another is offering £25K, we all know where the best engineers will be found. There are always some exceptions.
It is a balance – try to gauge your existing support costs with the level of support you are receiving. If one company charges £45 per hour, but is efficient and completes the job in one hour – a £30 an hour engineer may finish in 2 hours. This will cost you £15 extra! But 3 hours of the £30 engineer is equivalent to one hour at £100, indeed you save £10!
We are all striving to be competitive, but the general idea is work out if you are getting value for money. The worst case is getting a £25 engineer for the £100 an hour rate!
Items to rate potential companies
The complexity of your IT support is an important indicator of what level you will need. Some companies are aimed at the home user, some the small to medium business, while some the most expensive charge to look after large server pools and multiple sites.
Skill Level of all the engineers – try to rate the skills of the engineers who will service your requirements
References – apply for references from companies of a similar size and type as your firm.
Hours of support – can they cover the hours of support that you need?
Total support – can they offer total support for your company? Some systems are so bespoke, only the company who designed them will be able to supply support, but your support company should still be flexible to help.
Specialisations – do their specialised skills match your systems?
Trustworthy - are they a reliable and reputable company?
Range of experience – are the engineers widely knowledgeable to assist you other questions you might have?
Future – does the company keep abreast of new systems and new developments? Your choice of company should be able to demonstrate new advancements and solutions to your systems. They should offer advice on when and how to upgrade parts of your computer infrastructure.
