If your company outsources IT, you know how costly it can get. But businesses might start getting a break as some IT management firms start restructuring their pricing.
Outsourced IT support’s usually billed on a flat monthly fee. No matter how much, or how little, support you need you still have to pay that monthly fee. Some IT firms have heard your cry of frustration, and are trying to help.
IT management firms like Bluebird Technologies in Dover, NJ and IND Corp., in Parsippany, NJ and New York, have started allowing customers to purchase blocks of time that’ll carry over from month to month until they’re used.
For example: You purchase a block of ten hours worth of IT support in January. Well, you needed about four hours worth of work in January, but didn’t need any in February. So when March rolls around you still have six hours worth of IT support left. You’ll only need to purchase another chunk of time once your first ten hours runs out.
A ten hour block, averaged at $100 an hour, could be a huge money saver. The ten hours doesn’t have a shelf life, so it could take six months to use up. When compared to a flat rate monthly fee of $200 to $500 a small business has the potential to save up to $3,000.
As of now the companies offering time block rates charge a minimum of one hour per service visit. So even if the technician was at your office for 20 minutes, that’s one hour out of your time block. IT firms say they’re likely to stick with that plan in the face of rising operating costs.
Check with your IT management firm to see if they offer time block purchasing instead of flat-fee monthly rates.