5 ways non-profit organizations benefit from outsourcing IT
How can a non-profit organization benefit from outsourcing IT? Won't outsourcing IT be an expensive option for a non-profit? Is IT that important for non-profit organizations? These are all common questions we hear from non-profits organizations. Usherwood works with many non-profits to support and service their IT environment as a managed service provider.
By working with non-profits, we have gotten the privilege of seeing what areas of their organization see the most success from outsourcing IT. Some of these benefits are cost-efficiency, security, IT training, budgetary planning assistance, and access to skilled experts.
Let's dive a little deeper into some of these benefits to see if outsourcing IT may be the right decision for your organization.
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Consistent costs and Budgetary Planning
Your MSP will assist with long- or short-term budget planning when outsourcing IT. This is a great way to ensure there are never unexpected costs or fees. All payments will be planned for, and any anticipated expenses will be discussed between your organization and the MSP to ensure that a sound payment plan is implemented.
Budgetary planning will occur when you first partner with an MSP and quarterly every year. This meeting is referred to as a quarterly business review. Your organization will meet with a vCIO to discuss how your IT environment is doing, any changes that need to be implemented, and create a strategic payment plan to meet your financial needs. Financial planning is a great way to ensure that money from your organization is going to good use and being spent effectively.
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Cost-effective
By outsourcing IT, non-profit organizations can save on costs. When hiring internal staff, you have to financially account for salary, benefits, bonuses, and training. It can be very costly to retain a qualified in-house IT team. If your IT technician quits or gets sick, there will be a period of downtime without IT support that could leave your environment vulnerable to cyber threats.
By working with an outsourced provider, your organization will receive an entire team of experts with specialized skills to support your environment. Hiring an outsourced IT provider will likely cost the same amount of money your organization would spend to hire one in-house IT technician.
The difference is that when you outsource, you will not just receive one person; you will receive a vCIO, a team of IT experts, and help desk support, all for the same price as hiring one in-house technician. Outsourcing IT is a much more cost-effective option and will give your organization greater value for the money spent.
For more information on the difference between in-house IT and outsourced IT, check out this article: In-house IT vs. managed IT services; which is suitable for you?
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Maintaining security on donor information
Non-profits have a lot of donor money that is processed through their organization. You also likely have access to sensitive donor information. It is essential to ensure that your organization has the proper cybersecurity protocols to protect important financial information from getting stolen or leaked.
If your organization gets breached and donors are affected, this could cause your organization to lose credibility and have a poor reputation. This could have an adverse effect on how many donors you will get in the following years. People may be skeptical of donating to an organization that could potentially put their information and money at risk.
When outsourcing IT to an MSP, your non-profit will not need to worry that your security isn't strong enough. Your MSP will implement the most advanced tools and methods to secure your confidential information.
Your MSP can protect important financial information from getting easily hacked with the proper protocols in place. You can ensure donors that your organization takes all the necessary precautions to secure their data and money.
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IT training
The best way to prevent cyber threats is to ensure that your users are trained on cybersecurity best practices. For non-profits, it is essential to ensure sensitive information, such as donor information and financials, is not breached.
An easy way for a hacker to get into your organization's network is through phishing attacks and getting users to click on malicious files. An MSP will implement regular cyber security training to educate users on the most common breach tactics and how to avoid them.
Phishing attacks and malicious software used by hackers are becoming increasingly common. Hackers are also getting more skilled at making these cyber threat attempts look very real.
For this reason, users at your organization must constantly be receiving training to stay up to date on tactics used by hackers. This can help your non-profit avoid accidentally giving a hacker access to your network.
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Access to skilled IT experts
When you outsource IT, you will have access to a team of experts to assist you with any immediate issues or concerns that you may have. Service requests can be easily submitted to a help desk support line who will find you the proper support for your specific issue.
Your organization will also have access to a vCIO. A vCIO is a virtual chief information officer that will work with your business to implement the proper solutions in your environment and help you to create a long-term IT strategy.
Meetings with your vCIO will typically be scheduled every quarter to discuss any immediate concerns or goals for your IT environment. This ensures that you can clearly communicate expectations and ensure a successful partnership with your outsourced managed IT provider.
Interested in learning more about outsourced IT?
Outsourced IT is an excellent option for non-profit organizations. An MSP can help optimize your IT environment, give you access to a team of IT experts, and work with you to create a long-term cost-effective budget.
Now that you have a good understanding of how outsourced managed IT can benefit your non-profit organization you are probably wondering how much does managed IT cost? Is it affordable for your organization? To learn more about the cost of managed IT check out this article: How much does managed IT support cost?