Should you outsource your IT?

Technology is constantly changing. For some organizations, it makes sense to outsource their IT.  So how do you know if you should outsource IT?

If you search the Internet for the answer to this question, the most common number 1 reason is to save money on payroll and benefits.  While this may be a result of outsourcing, it should not, in my opinion, be the driver of the decision.  Here is a list of reasons you might want to outsource IT complied from sources such as Forbes, The Journal of Accountancy and BDO.

• Will it improve our ability to focus on our core business?  Is managing my IT resources adding value to my products and services?  Outsourcing may free you up to target broader business issues while leaving operational details to an outside expert. For many companies, the single most compelling reason for outsourcing is to relieve management of the issues that siphon off huge amounts of managements resources and attention.
• Will greater access to world-class capabilities benefit my company?By the very nature of their specialization, outsourcing providers bring extensive worldwide, world-class resources to meeting the needs of their customers.
• If I re-engineered my IT processes would I serve my customers better?  Outsourcing is often a byproduct of another powerful management tool – business process reengineering. It allows an organization to realize immediately the anticipated benefits of reengineering by having an outside organization, one that is already reengineered to world-class standards, take over the process.
• Would I be able to free up resources for other purposes?  Every organization has limits on the resources available to it. Outsourcing permits an organization to redirect its resources from noncore activities to activities that have a greater return in serving the customer.