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Continuing on with the IT "Mistakes" I've seen in my travels...IT Mistake #2: Using Consumer Grade Equipment to Run Business Class Tasks
Second to the "Set it and Forget it Mentality", we see this mistake in way too many new prospects (and some clients too!). Maybe that's why they're calling us in? While they're trying to save money by using inappropriate or outdated levels of a particular technology solution, they end up costing themselves more in the long run.
For example, as I discussed in my previous blog, everything requires ongoing maintenance and administration - so there are always related costs to anything you implement. This (ongoing maintenance and administration) is one of the most significant components of TCO (Total Cost of Ownership). Again, being penny-wise and pound-foolish means doing something like buying a firewall from Fry's that's meant for your home rather than something that could handle the amount of traffic and protect your business.
These things increase your exposure to viruses, malware, and hacks - let alone the increased cost to administer, let alone diminished performance. Then you invariably get the question as to "why is our internet so slow?" Could be that the firewall that you're running 25 users is actually only capable of handling 2 home users!
So, rather than replace the firewall, the business owner will spend more than they need to for their internet connection. The same thing can be said over and over again when it comes to servers, backup solutions, workstations, and the like.
Over the length of it's life, "cheaper" components break down sooner, cause more problems for your IT support staff, and perform significantly worse - which means more cost to you. Unfortunately, these are the sorts of "hidden costs" that don't get connected when the owner only sees the cost of the hardware when he's writing the check.
Now don't get me wrong - I'm not saying everyone needs a Cadillac when an Acura or a Toyota would do. But, I can tell you too many companies rely on technology that's closer to a Schwinn than anything near what it should be. This costs them more than they care to know and it's only a matter of time before it comes back to bite them.
Let us know your thoughts or share your suggestions in the Comments box below.
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