How to manage your IT budget in tough times (checklist)

Start by mapping your IT use and its costs. Then estimate your future needs. The difference reveals where there is potential for savings, how big it is, and how to realize it.  

Here is my checklist of things you need to look at. 

Software licenses

Licenses represent a large part of a company's costs, yet we meet many who have not taken into account the fact that different user groups have different needs.

I usually recommend that companies categorize their users into groups according to need and validate the need for the licenses that are actually used. Some users may have an Adobe license they don't need, or can get by with a smaller version of the license they have. In many cases, they can do their work without it. Look at both user-specific and central licenses.

It is difficult to scale down licenses in an on-prem environment with your own servers. If you use cloud services, it is much easier. In Microsoft 365, for example, a number of users may have E3 licenses that would actually be fine with business premium. For mobile workers and field staff, F licenses (F stands for front line worker).

It is also not uncommon for user licenses belonging to departing employees to remain in place and cost money.  

Telephony

Get quotes from other operators and compare. It is often possible to get better prices and conditions by taking a collective approach when a contract for the company's total usage is at stake, rather than each department or employee taking out their own subscriptions.    

Data storage

Many companies' data storage tends to swell over time. Review your retention policy to reduce unnecessary storage costs. It should be possible to set the system to automatically delete 5-year-old data, for example, or move it to an archive where it is cheaper to keep it.

If you're investing in new servers and have an on-prem solution, consider a cloud solution that makes it easy to measure your real needs and scale up gradually to avoid costly overcapacity.  

Staff

Review what is good to keep in-house and what is cheaper to buy in. If reductions are needed, the advice is usually to do what is required at once. Avoid repetitive actions over time as they can create uncertainty and affect the company's productivity.  

IT platform

Categorize your IT investments and prioritize those that bring savings. Question them: is it the right technology, the right resources, do we have good license terms in the contracts?

A local on-prem-solution poses a real risk of high costs, both if something goes wrong and if the company falls behind technologically and loses productivity and competitiveness. Choosing cloud services and standard solutions is one way to insure against this.

Scaling down cloud services also has a direct effect on cash flow and the bottom line, unlike cutting back on on-premise licenses or in-house hardware. If your business is small or medium-sized, it is often much easier to move to the cloud.  

Units

Use computers and mobiles for longer - in many cases they last five years and don't need to be replaced after three. And try optimizing or reinstalling them before replacing them.  

Suppliers

Review all your contracts and suppliers, especially the license agreements. Note when they expire and when it is time to start renegotiating or terminating them. Is the price, delivery or anything else a reason to get a quote from others? If, in these inflationary times, the supplier wants to increase prices, ask them to explain and justify the price proposal in detail.  

Processes

Ask the simple question "are we working efficiently?" If you have Microsoft 365, be sure to take advantage of the platform and its ability to streamline work. Tools like Viva Goals can improve company workflows. Many tasks can be automated using Power Apps. Use the tools you already have and embrace the hybrid way of working. 

Microsoft 365 has what you need

Few companies have a single view of their IT, so an overview can become your competitive advantage. Microsoft 365 has dashboards that quickly give you insight into what licenses and devices exist, their costs, and which ones are being used. An excellent basis for mapping that helps you prioritize actions that have the greatest impact on costs.

Want to know more about how your company can streamline its IT?

Get in touch!