The Benefits of “IT as a Service” (ITaaS)

For medium-sized businesses, adding new permanent full-time IT staff members can often be a challenge. In addition to the cost of paying a full-time employee, it is often a difficult process to find the resources that match your growing IT needs. One solution that can provide a flexible option for medium-sized businesses is to utilize “IT as a Service” or ITaaS. With this service, another company will provide you with an on-site IT staff member either on a part-time or full-time basis. Although this resource actually works for the ITaaS provider, they perform their duties as a member of your staff.

There are a number of benefits to using ITaaS as a means of enhancing your in-house IT staff, including scalability of hours and costs, the ability to quickly add a resource with expert-level or specialized qualifications, and the speed at which an ITaaS resource can be added to your staff.

Scalability

Because the ITaaS staff member is actually employed by your ITaaS provider, you have the ability to scale your utilization of this resource, which gives you greater cost control over your IT expenses. For example, if you have a short-term IT project that needs a specialized resource on a part-time basis, ITaaS providers can be a great way to staff this need. If, in the future, the project requires additional hours of time to properly manage and maintain, you can typically increase your resource utilization with your ITaaS provider, or add an additional part-time resource from that provider. This ensures that your IT expenses stay in-line with your current demands.

Specialized Qualifications

Most medium-sized businesses with in-house IT departments will typically have IT resources that are flexible and multi-talented so that they are able to understand a wide variety of situations that they may encounter in their duties managing the IT technologies.  When a more specialized IT project arises, such as the implementation of a new hardware or software technology, it is often more efficient and cost-effective to utilize a resource that is specialized in that technology. One of the easiest ways to quickly add a specialized resource on a temporary basis is through the use of an ITaaS provider.

Speed of Implementation

Through the use of an ITaaS provider, you have the ability to quickly add trained staff members.  This can be very beneficial when you have a sudden short-term IT project that needs to be addressed by an experienced resource.  Rather than spending time posting ads, interviewing, and hiring a full-time resource, an ITaaS provider can deploy expert resources rapidly so that your new staff member will be up-to-speed quickly and efficiently.  This can often provide a more cost-effective solution than hiring a new full-time resource on your own.