What are the advantages of in-house IT services?

Internal IT teams are crucial for success of the organization. With internal IT teams, organizations have a better control of their IT systems and operations. These internal teams should primarily consist Subject Matter Experts(SME) with deeper understanding of the business processes which gives them the ability to challenge the solution proposed by any SI/ Vendor enabling organisations to implement scalable and sustainable solutions. The internal teams can aid in getting right estimates for any new program and can also help in optimising the costs for sustaining a robust IT landscape.

Having an internal IT has its own advantage and dis-advantage. Advantage is the closeness to the business teams and time is available more for interactions. Challenges are how to grow them within the organisation. While grooming is easy growth needs a lot of innovative thinking from leadership. Parallel deployment opportunities are lesser which is a great cost lever for IT outsourcing companies. In my view the mix always works well when technology investments are conservative. Just in case you have more budget nice to have an internal team.

Facts, specially if the organization is local or a stand alone company not part of a group, or the products and services are so different and rare that you need higher levels of personalization. IT budgets are definitely easier to expand and contract while you are taking care of it yourself or with a large part of it in house.

Also having an in-house IT personnel’s to an extent protect your company’s ideas, and other assets from exploitation of whatsoever form. You also have on ground disaster recovery agents who are stationed.

Having complete control of the technology infrastructure, the IT team works directly for the organization, allowing it to set its priorities and policies in line with the mission and vision. This removes room for error in terms of providing service specific to their needs without bouncing between institutions and projects. There is an insurance that the work performed is exactly targeted to enhance the institutions brand and highlights the team’s successful deployment of services to keep operations running with as little to no disturbances as possible.

In-house IT resources have the advantage of more face-to-face interaction with each other and other departments. This allows them to collaborate closely and seamlessly as internal colleagues. Since they all belong to the same organization, they share a common understanding of the business, its structure, and its workflows. These factors enable in-house IT teams to provide superior internal services.

Control: Having in-house ICT services gives the organization greater control over its technology infrastructure, allowing for more efficient management and oversight of IT resources. Security: In-house ICT services can provide a higher level of security as the organization has direct control over its data and systems, reducing the risk of security breaches and data leaks. Faster response times: quicker response times to technical issues and challenges, leading to improved productivity and reduced downtime. Better integration with other business functions, enabling seamless communication and collaboration across different departments. Valuable knowledge and expertise retained within workforce, reducing reliance on external vendors

An in-house IT team has the advantage of being embedded in the company and being able to interact with employees at all levels. This deeper connection and understanding of the organization allows them to develop and implement IT solutions that are tailored to the specific needs of the business. An in-house IT team will have a clear understanding of IT infrastructure and systems, security needs, business processes and workflows, as well as the company culture.

Having worked in consulting through out my career, I have realized the benefits of working closely with some of the best IT teams on the client side. Its agreed that consultants bring an outsider market perspective to bring new dimensions to problem solving, but the kind of knowledge and expertise the internal IT teams enjoy about their business processes - it is tough for any third party vendor to bring this. This ensures more innovation, improvement in existing ways of working and importantly the change management - the key to success in IT transformation engagements.

In-house IT services foster a deep sense of belonging and alignment with the company's mission. Manufacturing IT professionals intimately understand the intricacies of production processes and technology, enabling them to devise tailor-made solutions. For instance, an in-house IT team in a automotive manufacturing plant can optimize production line efficiency by seamlessly integrating AI-driven quality control systems. This commitment and specialized knowledge not only enhances loyalty and retention but also ensures that IT initiatives directly enhance manufacturing operations, driving productivity and competitiveness.

I think cost could be one if not the most significant factor to consider, in house services should always come in a more affordable price and with a closer to the internal customer service. Personally, I don’t see much difference in terms of minimizing failures or disruptions as there will always be part of the business, if is not vendor quality, it can be an underperforming employee.

Definitely fewer costs. The costs that third party IT MSPs charge can be coatly despite the fact that they unfortunately may not always uphold to their agreed upon SLA for resolution.

Internal IT teams are crucial to accelerate business speed. They will be totally aware of the entire nuances of the value chain of their business. Even if they have to work with any other service provider, it will be easy to take the role of client department and get things done. May be the size of the internal team can be prudently maintained. If it’s 100% outsourced then business will suffer with speed and cost.

In this era of digital transformation, the success cannot be tasted without having their own ecosystem of partners. An organization which is ready to future proof its business, definitely needs a stronger IT team as only this team can create a perfect ecosystem of partners, external vendors and startups who can innovate for us.

Some types of services and/or data cannot be stored outside the HQ due to Compliance or legal questions. It is important to consider these topics as cloud, multicloud and hybrid environments advance in popularity.

It all depends on ROI and stage of business. While it gives more control, ability to optimize, innovate and integrate with vendors of choice it has also several cons in my opinion: that includes lack of redundancy for downtime, less specialized training and can create chaos in infrastructures ( lots and lots of repetitive processes/unnecessary , overlapping hardware with no coverage of a specific area ( it will be under no scope) Monetary wise, capital equipments are costly, so major cost is to be taken into account when planning in-house service. Also life cycle of the equipment / service delivered vs maintenance

I believe that having an internal IT-team that can coexist with an ecosystem of trusted IT partners is the best approach to organizations that have the resources. In the tech world, everything is constantly changing, so be ready to adapt. Having reliable external resources will help augment your IT team. The decision of whether to have an in-house IT team is a complex one, and depends on many factors such as the size of the company, IT needs, budget, and risk tolerance.