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                                                                                             InsideINdianaBusiness.com
                                                                                                         February 7, 2008

                                             Technology Outsourcing Can Harness
                                             the Spiraling Cost of Manpower
                                             By Robert J. Alcorn, Chief Operating Officer, n|Frame
Many IT professionals are struggling with high-pressure corporate directives to
do more with less as budgets get leaner and the cost of doing business gets more
expensive. Robert J. Alcorn, n|Frame's chief operating officer, has developed a
series of articles designed to help Indiana's business leaders strike a balance
between budgetary limitations and growing resource demands through IT
outsourcing.

Today's business leaders have taken a "do-it-yourself"       But, it is becoming more expensive and difficult to
attitude toward managing their company's information         achieve. Declining student enrollments in computer
technology infrastructure and personnel. But as              science programs and the pending retirement of baby-
enterprise-level networks become increasingly more           boomers have resulted in a lack of available resources to
complex and the demand for technically-proficient IT         keep pace with rapidly changing market demands.
staff continues to rise, many executives are finding that
                                                             A growing shortage of experienced IT professionals
outsourcing select IT functions provides benefits that
                                                             places them in high demand, which makes recruitment
result in quantifiable business returns.
                                                             and retention more difficult, and drives salary increases.
In fact, outsourcing is an extremely effective business      In 2007 Robert Half Technology, an IT staffing firm,
strategy when it involves discrete processes and clear       surveyed 1,400 CIOs from U.S. companies. The firm
expectations, according to a study conducted by CIO          found that CIOs take an average of 56 days to hire a
magazine and MIT's Center for Information Systems            full-time staff-level IT employee and nearly three months
Research. There is a direct correlation between a            to hire IT managers. Significant competitive footing could
company's network performance and reliability, and the       be lost while companies struggle to fill vital positions.
effective management of people, the study reports. This
                                                             What Technology Outsourcing Can Accomplish
finding supports the fact that more and more companies
are transitioning IT functions to commercial providers as    Outsourcing select IT functions continues to deliver
a means to improve operational efficiencies and gain         tangible business and operational benefits including
higher returns, while controlling costs, particularly the    reduced costs associated with manpower, improved
rising cost of manpower.                                     accountability, greater access to technical expertise, and
                                                             further development of in-house core IT competencies.
IT Manpower Costs Driven by Supply and Demand
                                                             Another significant advantage of outsourcing network
The mandate to "do more with less" is creating a no-win
                                                             infrastructure management to a professional partner is
situation for many corporate IT managers who struggle
                                                             gaining greater financial stability through more
to meet their company's growing demands for
                                                             predictable expenditures. Through outsourcing data
technology support ­ without additional budgetary
                                                             center responsibilities, for instance, organizations receive
resources to add headcount. Because this scenario is
                                                             24/7 support and a guaranteed level of service ­ all for a
common across all sectors and geographic markets, it
                                                             predictable monthly fee. This fee is a fraction of the cost
has significantly increased the value and cost of
                                                             of hiring, training, managing and certifying in-house
technology manpower nationwide.
                                                             personnel.
Recruiting and retaining a high performing workforce
that can manage intricate technology infrastructure is
critical to the success of today's competitive businesses.


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Outsourcing also gives organizations the flexibility to                One final ­ but very important ­ benefit to outsourcing is
increase or decrease their technology support based on                 the reduction of operational errors (the number one
business needs and avoid fluctuations in staffing due to               cause of network failure). By entrusting infrastructure
growth, attrition or unstable economic conditions.                     management to a seasoned team of certified technical
Meanwhile, organizations are free to make more cost-                   engineers, businesses gain ­ not only a highly available
efficient and productive use of in-house staff by directing            network infrastructure ­ but consistent access to the
them away from break-fix chores and routine IT                         highest levels of expertise. Access to these professionals,
maintenance.                                                           as well as the industry's best practices and state-of-the
                                                                       art capabilities practiced by today's commercial
The research firm Computer Economics reported in 2007
                                                                       providers, will result in improved performance that gives
that organizations spent, on average, only 27 percent of
                                                                       organization engaged in technology outsourcing an edge
their IT budgets on new initiatives. This means more
                                                                       over their competitors.
than 70 cents of every dollar is spent on ongoing
technology support instead of on strategic initiatives that
could actually drive business growth and improve
operational efficiencies.
Outsourcing also allows companies to utilize the
extensive knowledge base and skill set of IT specialists
certified in the latest technologies, without having to pay
for training and high salaries. Highly specialized
engineers and technicians with multiple certifications are
in demand ­ and they command a steep salary. For
example, according to Certification Magazine, the
average annual income for a staff person certified in
advanced technological programs is well over $125,000.



About the Author          Robert J. Alcorn brings more than 25 years of executive leadership experience to his role as n|Frame's
                          chief operating officer. In this capacity he is responsible for developing and implementing a strategic plan
                          to maintain the company's dominant market position. n|Frame is Indiana's premier data center and IT
                          infrastructure   solutions   provider   offering   high   availability   computing   environments   through   a
                          comprehensive suite of managed technology services and high performance network connectivity. The
                          company is SAS 70 Type II compliant and offers expertise in business continuity solutions such as multi-
                          site data replication and workplace recovery. n|Frame is an integral part of a national network of data
                          centers owned by Continental Broadband (CBB) which is backed by Landmark Communications, Inc., a
                          $2.2 billion dollar company with holdings including the Weather Channel. To reach Mr. Alcorn or learn
                          more about n|Frame, call 317-805-3759, visit www.nframe.com or e-mail rjalcorn@nframe.com.




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