Five challenges of a non-standardized global IT infrastructure and how to overcome them

In today’s business world, smoothly running IT devices are the foundation you need to perform almost all of your tasks. You totally rely on their functioning and need 24/7 device service availability. The bigger and more international your business gets, the more challenging it will become to provide all your employees in all your entities worldwide with the same standard device configurations. You also need to keep up with changing technology in this field. Let’s have a look at the most common challenges you face if you have a non-standardized IT infrastructure:

1. High costs
   In order to supply all your employees at all or your company locations with the devices they need, you have to pay not only for the devices themselves but also for procurement, deployment and 24/7 servicing. A non-standardized IT infrastructure means that you deal with several vendors with different billing systems. Given that the lifecycle costs can overshadow the initial acquisitions costs, software and hardware often have a seemingly never-ending series of upgrade costs.¹ Costs also increase when you order single replacement devices instead of upgrading all your devices at the same time. Purchasing brand-new devices instead of refurbished and perfectly working ones has an unnecessary negative impact on your finances as well.
2. Slow deployment
   If you have several workplace IT suppliers with systems that function differently, you will see yourself wasting time while trying to get the right devices to the right location as quickly as possible. Your employees might have to wait for a broken device to be replaced or for an update to be made due to the complexity that the non-standardized device supply brings. Next business day delivery is almost impossible relying on such a system.
3. Loosing track
   While trying to keep up with checking on several vendors that take care of various types of hardware, which are supplied to different locations, it’s easy to lose track. You need to check several device management tools and communicate with responsible people for different parts of the process. Without a streamlined IT management, you lose time and the overview of all ongoing processes. And according to Reed, almost all quality improvement comes via simplification of design, manufacturing, layout, processes and procedures.²
   
4. Inflexibility
   You won a new project and need more people to work on it? Naturally, these people need to receive their IT equipment as fast as possible to start off. If your IT infrastructure is not standardized, it’s inflexible towards rapidly changing requirements. New employees will need to wait for their equipment to be deployed and set up and if somebody leaves the company, their devices might not be in use for a while and thus represent wasted money.
5. Less cyber security
   In the digital age, protecting your business also means protecting your IT infrastructure. Cyber criminals tend to attack businesses trying to steal personal data, financial and operational information or, for example, the company’s IP address. Non-standardized IT infrastructures are more complex and thus harder to manage and control from a security standpoint. The more standardized your IT infrastructure – the safer it is in terms of cyber security.

From challenges to the solution – a standardized global IT infrastructure

After pointing out common challenges, it’s time to think about the solution: a standardized global IT infrastructure. See for yourself that streamlining your IT procurement, deployment and servicing will save you money, speed things up, and make it easier for you to keep an overview. A capable partner that can tackle all these challenges and more will enable you to focus on your core business only. Here’s what your next steps should look like:

Leader’s take-away

• Invest in unified device management and automated device staging – you will realize that it is a true game-changer!
• Your device resources should be as flexible as your human resources are. When you hire more employees, IT devices should be available and set up for them as quickly as possible. In case an employee leaves the company, their device should not go unused and represent an unnecessary cost factor.
• Your CSR goals should include sustainable handling of IT devices – by recycling them at the end of their life cycle, refurbishing, and reusing them after a professional data swipe, you can make a real difference.
• Be proactive! You cannot foresee sudden IT issues, but you can ensure support anytime, anywhere.
• Offer your employees the best-possible device solutions, tailored to their needs – the same standard worldwide. Working with modern, smoothly running IT devices will motivate them to perform their best and will eventually save you time and money. A win for everyone!

Reach out to a partner that can free your IT department from all these worries now.

References

¹ The Procurement School. “IT procurement challenges.” the procurement school, 27 Jan. 2023, theprocurementschool.com/it-procurement-challenges-tps/.

² “4 ways to streamline your supply chain.” Reed, 27 Jan. 2023, www.reed.com/articles/4-ways-to-streamline-your-supply-chain.