IT consulting is a process of providing expert advice to organizations about how Information Technology could help in achieving their business targets. While the name suggests just consulting, IT Consultancy services include Estimation, Management, Implementation, Deployment and Administration of IT systems for the client organization. IT consulting can also mean outsourcing the Management, Administration, and Maintenance of IT resources to an IT consultant.
IT Consultancy services generally fall into 4 major categories.
Professional Services
– These are consultant firms which offer the services of their large workforce to accomplish certain tasks for provide IT support for an organization. These are usually highly expensive services.
Staffing Services
– This is a service offered by consultants who offer to place staff, mostly temporarily, for overcoming employee absence, skill shortages, or specific technical projects.
Independent Consultants
– Due US tax laws on Form W-2 and 1099, some individuals offer their services similar to staffing companies. They work permanently or on contractual basis according to their technical expertise.
Security
– Handling the security of an enterprise’s IT infrastructure could be quite a difficult task. This is why some enterprises hire IT consultants as IT Security consultants.
Challenges surrounding IT Consulting:
The major challenges around IT consulting arise from the consulting fee. In common usage, IT consultants are paid under two categories they are Fixed Fee, and per day per consultant. Many enterprises usually opt for fixed fee consulting as it has a specified time frame for results and completion. However, in some cases, fixed fee could have certain drawbacks. When a project is not completed within a fixed time frame, the cost for completion could be ambiguous and expensive.
On the other hand, many consultancy companies push for per day per consultant basis of fee. While this option gives you the freedom of time, consultants could exploit the offering and prolong the period of completion leading to revenue loss and failed time frames.
Why do enterprises hire IT consultants?
As explained earlier, IT consulting could be used for diverse purposes. Some of the major reasons for enterprises to hire IT consultants are:
To get an external overview
– Many times, enterprises are unaware of their IT potential and its current standards. During these situations, enterprises hire IT consultants to gain external advice that is objective to achieving their business goals.
To gain special expertise
– On numerous occasions, enterprises do not need IT services on a permanent basis. They require just for sorting out their IT issues and getting them back on track. Here consultants with a special expertise are hired temporarily.
One time requirement
– Similar to the reason mentioned above, enterprises require help of consultants in setting up or updating their IT infrastructure.
Outsourcing
– Enterprises whose major sector is not IT, do not wish to spend more than what is needed to manage their IT resources. In this case, they could just outsource their IT management and other requirements to an IT consultancy.
Hiring the right IT consultant could transform your organization completely. In the present day, many enterprises are looking towards IT consulting to aid their digital transformation. XCEL Solutions Corp is one of the pioneers of IT consulting services in the United States. With over 15 years of experience across 20 different industrial verticals, XCEL Corp offers the complete range of IT consulting services.
If you are looking to initiate digital transformation in your enterprise or need temporary IT support, XCEL Corp offers highly cost-effective IT consulting services that produce incredible return on investment.
Bhavani Suri ( Content Writer)
Our in-house content writer, who develops and creates content marketing strategies. She writes about the latest trends and advances related to IT in particular, and Technology in general.