WHO is your IT partner?

I recently spoke with a CEO of a prospective client who put words to a challenge I see all the time in business IT. Paraphrasing, “IT is the area of my business I understand the least, yet it has the biggest impact on my success.” This CEO explained the need for?an IT Partner who understands the weight of the responsibility they are taking on given how important IT is to their business.

This CEO “gets it”.

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We went on discussing the intimacy and risks involved with an IT relationship. To be effective, your IT team needs keys to your castle and so much of your business success and progress are in their hands. I deeply empathize with these core challenges with an organization's primary IT relationship.

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Most leaders don’t go shopping for a new IT provider often, so when they do, they can struggle knowing "how to buy".

With the incredible pace of technology change, you’d think choosing an IT provider would be a highly technical decision. And with IT costs always growing, it’s easy to focus on price. Both of these matter—but they’re secondary to what really counts.

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It might sound trite, but success here comes down to things like trust and confidence and human connection. It’s tough to put these things on a spreadsheet when comparing the three companies you’re considering. It’s impossible to do if you’re delegating the “buying” to an employee.

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If you feel the same as the CEO I was talking to then start creating the relationship with your next IT partner at the very first "sales" meeting. Forget the tech specs and price tags—those will fall into place if you’re working with the right people. Start by asking: Do I trust these people with my business?