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| 05 | 2007 |
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| The Technology Upgrade Planning Guide |
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For many businesses and personal PC users alike, upgrade planning typically comes from some unpredictable event resulting in a “we have no choice” solution. Band-aids and temporary solutions to the problem are implemented and before you know it, you have a network teetering on the brink of failure. For those of you who say a little prayer prior to turning on the computer, or rush to get out emails in case the connection goes down, you know what I’m talking about.
Many of us, including our very own IT departments, are so weighed down by other projects, we put things like annual audits, upgrade planning and testing on the back burners until they are vital. The problem is that in the long run, lack of planning could waste time, resources, and cause avoidable downtime for your company.
So, before the inevitable strikes, what can you do to plan your technology upgrades? We offer you a step-by-step guide to ensuring your business stays ahead of the game. After all, some upgrades, such as the new Windows Vista operating system require plenty of time for installation and testing to insure compatibility with your existing operations.
1. The Audit
Yes, it’s time consuming. Yes, your IT staff’s eyes glaze over just thinking about it. But, you can’t plan for the future if you don’t know what you already have. So, compile a detailed list of existing software and hardware.
2. Set Your Goals
This is perhaps the most important step, and it’s the step that can save you the most time and money down the road. After you’ve evaluated what you currently have (Step 1), determine what resources are used the most and therefore could benefit from an upgrade. Make a list of goals for the coming year and determine how technology upgrades could be implemented to enhance them. For example, if over the last year your call volume has increased, you may consider the benefits of using a VOIP system. However, it requires additional bandwidth and possibly a network upgrade to handle both the data and voice traffic. Add it to your wish list. Are there any serious problems that need to be addressed and corrected? Is your network slow? Is your firewall letting in malware? Add it to your wish list. Do you have legacy systems that are no longer supported and therefore need to be upgraded? Add it to your wish list. This should be the fun part - creating a wish list of goals.
3. Assess the value of each goal
This is the portion of the plan that the CFO relishes and the IT staff despises. You must determine if each item on your wish list of goals is justifiable. Have you made past purchases that didn’t pay off? For example, did you really need the spontaneous $2000 color laser printer purchase to print one presentation last year? As fabulous as the presentation might have been, the printer was probably not a justifiable expense. While this step can be grueling, it saves a great deal of money in the long run and saves us from those spontaneous emergency expenditures. Be sure to take into consideration the most important goals first – correcting serious technical issues, improving security, enhancing performance and replacing legacy systems. Then take each goal and its costs and benefits into account. In addition, you should also take into account how much time and money is spent on maintenance. If you find that most of your resources are spent keeping your system running, and only a small percentage is actually going to new innovations, you may want to consider moving to a Managed Services system (if that’s the case, skip to the conclusion).
4. Plan for Implementation
Once you’ve narrowed down your list to attainable and justifiable goals, you’ll need to develop an implementation plan for each item, as each goal may have different requirements. Determine what new hardware or software will be required for each item and establish a timeline for testing, installation, and deployment.
5. Backup Your System
We cannot reiterate this enough – back up your systems before you begin any testing, implementation or deployment. More heartache is rendered each year by lost data due to accidental deletions and lack of a reliable backup system than any other reason.
6. Deployment
You’re ready to begin testing, installation and deployment! Be sure to track costs, time and resources required for each item to compare with your original assessment and to assist you with planning for next year’s upgrades.
Of course, this is not the end. It is only the beginning. But, by taking these first steps to organizing an upgrade structure, the following year’s steps will be much easier. After all, you’ll already have Step 1 complete by simply adding the current year’s add-ons to the list. If you don’t wish to contend with the constant pressure of maintaining a network, planning for upgrades, assessing the value and the cumbersome task of actually testing, implementing and deploying upgrades, there is an attractive alternative. Have someone else do it for you.
“I recommend moving to a Managed Services system,” says Fadi Abdallah, owner of The Brookfield Group which specializes in providing next level technology solutions. “Managed Services offer you the resources you need with automatic updates and a secure, reliable network built in. So you never have to worry about network downtime, hardware replacements or software upgrades. We take care of it for you,” he explains. And, according to a recent white paper by the SaaS (Software-as-a-Service) Executive Council, Gartner, a global IT research firm, reported that “the annual cost to own and manage software applications can be up to four times the cost of the initial purchase. As a result, companies end up spending more than 75% of their total IT budget just on maintaining and running existing systems and software infrastructure.” They often spend at least 75% of their IT time on maintenance as well – leaving little time for those new projects.
The bottom line is, whether you are developing your own upgrade plan or outsourcing the task to an IT company, the most important step you can take is to develop a road map for your company that utilizes technology upgrades that save you time and money in the long run.
To learn more about Managed Services offered by The Brookfield Group, click here.
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About The Brookfield Group
The Brookfield Group has become a leader in IT, ISP, ASP and web solutions by providing next level technology solutions managed by experts who give you peace of mind without the tech-talk. The company's services are customized to fit any enterprise-size businesses and include: IT project management; hosting solutions and maintenance; systems security and patches; telecommunications services, server and desktop setup, repair and applications; network infrastructure design; audio visual products; surveillance and security solutions; as well as a variety of other software, hardware, services and accessories. Located in Carmel, Indiana, more information about The Brookfield Group products and services is available at www.thebrookfieldgroup.com or by calling 317.524.6000.
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