With innovation and transformation being two of the main drivers of growth and change in the business environment today, it is crucial that companies invest to keep up with customer needs and expectations. Often, innovation + transformation = technology…which in turns equals a significant investment over time for the organization. For many, it is a challenge keeping up with the pace of new technologies so they can remain competitive and stave off obsolescence.
So, getting value for your IT dollar in today’s fast moving business environment is more important than ever. Thankfully, the use of analytics can help optimize your IT spend and have a positive impact on your company’s bottom line. Understanding where your dollars are being spent, why they are being spent, and whether what you’re paying for is providing value is a key component in not only optimizing your IT spend but enabling you to make better decisions regarding future investments.
There are five areas that you can focus on to optimize your IT spend. They include the following:
• Data Analytics – Examines your past facts and figures to help you determine where you should focus your future spend. This type of analysis helps identify potential opportunities for cost reduction or to help determine which services are no longer needed as part of your IT portfolio.
• Vendor Management – A process that helps you select the right vendors for your technology service needs and negotiate with them to get the best pricing and terms.
• Technology Planning – The process of identifying new technologies that are needed and forecasting their costs. Using analytics, you can forecast where the most significant needs will be in the future so you can budget accordingly.
• Risk and Security Management – The process of identifying any potential technology-related risks or threats and managing them to minimize their impact on the business.
• Procurement and Contract Management – The process of negotiating contracts with your vendors and managing those contracts to ensure compliance and value.
With the advent of AI and machine learning, businesses can take advantage of analytics that leverage algorithms to parse vast amounts of data. and make predictions based on that data. Machine learning can be used in the five areas listed above to help manage your IT spend more effectively. It can help you understand your current facts and figures and determine where you should focus your future spend. Using machine learning to optimize your IT spend can help you get more value out of your technology investments and help you keep your IT costs under control.
The bottom line: it is critical for companies to understand where dollars are being spent. Once you know that, you can begin optimizing to improve utilization, eliminate unnecessary or underutilized plans and equipment, and as a result, lower costs.
