Businesses comprised of fewer than 50 employees form the core of Chicagoland’s economy. And while many are finding their head count shrinking these days, they still depend on technology to keep operations running smoothly, lines of communications open, and employee productivity high. But during this tough economic cycle, the cost of employing a full time IT staff or IT specialist can be the difference between black and red ink — not to mention a hassle that distracts decision-makers from their fiduciary responsibility to focus on growing businesses and not managing technology.
Now more than ever it makes sense for businesses to consider contracting outside computer services. Chicago is full of IT consultants that can scale down the cost of setting up and managing a network, hardware, and software by charging only for the time that they are needed — usually far less than the 40 hours per week companies have to pay for a dedicated IT specialist. What’s more, because a company devoted to computer services focuses on recruiting and training top talent as its core competency, customers are generally guaranteed a higher level of service and are spared the headache of trying vet a specialist in an area that the hiring decision-maker knows little or nothing about.
Even though there are a number of firms that offer to businesses IT service, Chicago is full of businesses that are less committed to their customers and more committed to themselves. Small and mid-sized businesses should see to it their the IT partner is not a fly-by-night company offering the lowest rates on service or remanufactured hardware. The most financially sound IT decision a company can make is to choose a partner for the long-run who is committed to customer satisfaction.
Because of the initial investment of time in mapping out, upgrading, and managing a network is substantial for a Chicago computer services company, getting the choice right the first time is a sure way for businesses not only to save money in the long-run, but to have peace of mind that they have a partner that is committed to profiting from a long-term relationship and not from hardware, peripherals, or implementation of unnecessary hardware or software.
Employing the help of an outside computer servicing firm makes a lot of sense for most small and mid-sized Chicago companies. But sacrificing service for price is a mistake that will cost more in the long run.

