IT purchases have a large impact on every facet of a modern enterprise, from sourcing and financing, to end-users and future investments. To be successful, IT buyers know that their decisions carry a lot of risks, and they feel pressure to stay on top of technology trends and invest in new offerings that will add long-term value to the company.
A recent Forrester report, "The Top 10 Technology Trends Enterprise Architects Should Watch: 2012 To 2014," predicted that business intelligence, mobile applications, application platforms, cloud computing and data governance are the top areas where we can expect to see high levels of growth and development. Most IT sourcing professionals would not be surprised by these predictions, but many may not yet be experts on these new trending technologies.
To make matters worse for buyers, inconsistent pricing, new vendors, and uncertainty go hand-in-hand with new technology. If organizations are to make the best financial decisions when purchasing new IT, they must consider these three things:
Transparency is a must
Many IT buyers simply don't have the benchmarking data available to know if they are paying a fair price for new technology. Luckily, third-party pricing experts are ready to provide this data so that you don't overpay for your next big IT purchase.
You need to know your vendors
When new technology is introduced, new vendors will likely join old ones for the chance to sell it to you. Buyers can quickly be overwhelmed with the multitude of available vendors and not know which one to choose. A third-party expert that understands the new trends, as well as the vendor and contracting landscape, will allow you to select the best fit option while reducing risk.
Avoid complexity
Making sound IT purchases has always been a difficult job and it continues to get even harder as new, complex technologies and their vendors enter the scene. Third-party vendor contracting experts are able to simplify IT sourcing and purchasing by removing the uncertainty and guesswork. They will provide you with valuable data so you can make more educated purchases quickly and with more confidence.
A recent Forrester report, "The Top 10 Technology Trends Enterprise Architects Should Watch: 2012 To 2014," predicted that business intelligence, mobile applications, application platforms, cloud computing and data governance are the top areas where we can expect to see high levels of growth and development. Most IT sourcing professionals would not be surprised by these predictions, but many may not yet be experts on these new trending technologies.
To make matters worse for buyers, inconsistent pricing, new vendors, and uncertainty go hand-in-hand with new technology. If organizations are to make the best financial decisions when purchasing new IT, they must consider these three things:
Transparency is a must
Many IT buyers simply don't have the benchmarking data available to know if they are paying a fair price for new technology. Luckily, third-party pricing experts are ready to provide this data so that you don't overpay for your next big IT purchase.
You need to know your vendors
When new technology is introduced, new vendors will likely join old ones for the chance to sell it to you. Buyers can quickly be overwhelmed with the multitude of available vendors and not know which one to choose. A third-party expert that understands the new trends, as well as the vendor and contracting landscape, will allow you to select the best fit option while reducing risk.
Avoid complexity
Making sound IT purchases has always been a difficult job and it continues to get even harder as new, complex technologies and their vendors enter the scene. Third-party vendor contracting experts are able to simplify IT sourcing and purchasing by removing the uncertainty and guesswork. They will provide you with valuable data so you can make more educated purchases quickly and with more confidence.
About the Author:
Joseph B. Kappernick specializes in helping Fortune 500 companies save money. He recommends that you visit NPI to learn more about IT expense reduction consulting solution