Welcome to the October Edition of That's Correct!
With only a limited time left to make the most of the Government's 50% Tax Deduction, we thought we'd utilise this month's edition to discuss two specific things to think about when deciding if now is the right time to invest money in your IT. It is easy for us to say it is the right time; probably harder to see the real black and white benefits in doing so from a business perspective!
The main things we'd like you to consider are:
1. Your motives for spending should not simply be gaining the tax deduction.
2. As a small business, you don't need to replace your server to take advantage of the tax deduction.
Ryan also gives us a wrap up of the Microsoft Australian Partner Conference....
...should not simply be gaining the tax deduction.
We understand that at times, spending money on IT can seem unnecessary and the "ain't broke don't fix" philosophy is often applied, so spending money now when nothing desperately needs replacement seems like overkill.
However, before you disregard the potential payback IT upgrades can have on your business we'd like to revisit briefly a story we ran in the June Edition of "That's Correct". At that stage, we had not long completed a server upgrade for one of our clients, Stemar Electrical Products that involved the virtualisation of their server environment.
Assistant Manager Marcus Maraldo at the time was really pleased about the productivity improvements gained across the company. Coupled with the fact he firmly believes the new system has enabled them to build a stronger interface with their clients, we are happy to say he is currently expecting to get a return on investment in less than 12 months!
"I used to spend more of my time running the IT than running the business," he said, during a recent interview with Hewlett-Packard "but the reliability and increased productivity of our new server releases me to concentrate on growing the business.”
“There is no way that our old set-up could have coped with the kind of growth we're expecting, but even at the busiest times of day our new HP server is not even being pushed, which means we can confidently move to the next level with the business."
So, what can we draw from Marcus' experience?
In reality, most companies will sooner or later reach the point where they have outgrown their current infrastructure. The "old set-up" is holding them back. A substantial investment in their infrastructure leads to staff being able to do things faster and more efficiently, which in turn means happier customers and a good return on investment.
If you're reading this and can relate, then it is likely you have a far greater motivation for spending than simply cashing in on the tax breaks.
...you don't need to replace your server to take advantage of the tax deduction.
Okay, so we know that the server forms the heart of a company's IT infrastructure and it goes without saying that if your server is getting long in the tooth, there has never been a better time to replace it! But what if you've replaced your server in the last 3 years and don't need to do so right now?
If the server is the heart, then things like backup solutions, workstations, printers and phone systems are the arteries and the veins. In the overall picture they are equally depended upon to perform well and encourage productivity.
The key thing for small business is that a tangible, depreciating asset of more than $1000 in value is considered 'eligible'. You can also buy sets of things which are meant to be used together and claim them as long as their total cost meets the minimum thresholds.
Consider the existing equipment in your network infrastructure.
Are you having ongoing issues with your tape backups and could benefit from investing in a new solution that provides greater capacity? New backup solutions incorporating upgradable external hard drives give greater flexibility and are very easy to manage.
How old is your UPS? Typically UPS batteries will have a 3 - 5 year life span and it can sometimes be more cost effective to replace the unit; particularly since in its lifetime a UPS, through server upgrades etc will often see a load increase close to or past its intended capacity.
It is also a prime time to consider upgrading all or part of your fleet of workstations. With the release of Microsoft Windows 7 this month many businesses will be looking at how they can best move to the new operating system. After 3 years, it is actually less expensive to buy new PCs than maintain old ones. Old PCs drain more power, slow staff down and can’t always handle the latest technologies. Plus, they can create weak points in the network due to their vulnerability to security threats.
The most compelling reason to look at upgrading is that the performance of a new PC or Notebook with the latest processor makes a huge difference to the working day. Staff get more done in more places, they’ll be able to run multiple applications much faster. All of this adds up and gives them back as many as 4 hours each week!
How quickly would 4 hours per staff member, per week add up to real dollars in your company? That sort of return on investment could be calculated even faster having taken advantage of the tax breaks!
Don't delay! December is only just around the corner. Call us now to discuss how we can assist in planning upgrades that will maximise productivity and ROI...
by Ryan Spillane
September was a massive month for Microsoft Partners - and not just for the Technical people who were kept very busy with TechED (Microsoft's technical conference). There was also the APC; Australian Partner Conference.
Both events were held on the lovely Gold Coast this year and the weather did its glorious best to make us feel like we should have been outdoors rather than in the conference centre.
This is the fourth Partner Conference I have been too, and by far the 2009 APC had the largest amount of content around our core clientele, Small to Medium sized Business (SMB). The content was relevant to the current economy with a good mix of Windows 7 information for its release this month. There was also a good chance for us to look at the new Microsoft Partner Network, which will be replacing the current Partner Program. The information was aimed at helping us understand the work we need to do to maintain our certification under the new program.
It was an intense few days of structured sessions that left the majority of the delegates feeling like they really had burnt the candle at both ends. Still, there was time to catch up with a lot of Microsoft staff for one-on-one meetings, as well as roundtable discussions where we were offered the opportunity to give feedback that will help shape the new Partner Program as well as marketing focused to our customers.
We were a finalist for the Small Business partner of the year, but unfortunately we were pipped at the post and missed out. We were still very proud of making it into the finals and would like to extend our gratitude and a big thanks to Stemar Electrical Products for their time and effort involved in being the case study for our award submission.
That's all for this month! If you would like more information on any of these articles, please give us a call on 02 8831 8200.
