Solutions for HR bottlenecks in staffing the IT department

IT staffing is a delicate balancing act. Hire too few people and you face an overburdened IT department that may actually impede growth. Hire too many, however, and you waste money. Your goal, of course, is to make the biggest impact at the lowest cost. Companies that study their staffing requirements methodically, focus on efficiency, and make smart use of partners can keep IT headcount low and business performance high.

In solving the problems that apper in staffing the IT department of your company, there are two main questions you should answer: What is the right IT staffing model for your business? and Should I outsource the IT department?

Now let’s take it one by one.

In order to determine the right IT staffing model for your business  you should know there is no single formula for determining how many IT employees your company needs, or whether to outsource a part of your IT department, but by following a few basic principles you can strike a balance between controlling headcount and meeting business requirements. First, you have to calculate IT demand and supply. You can either conduct a benchmark study of IT staffing at similar companies in your industry or have an annual analysis of your company's specific requirements.

Then, focus on efficiency before hiring. There are two ways to address understaffing: increase your workforce or reduce your workload. Don’t forget that you can always use consultants and outsourced workers to fill in the gaps. Consider hiring contractors and vendors when you urgently need specialized talent but have trouble recruiting full-time staff. Furthermore, outsourcing routine technical jobs helps keep IT departments lean. For example, a company can use permanent staffers only for jobs requiring deep understanding of core strategies. And last, but not least, mind the IT skills: Think business, not technology! IT workers with expertise in security, disaster recovery, and storage are in high demand. But companies should consider business savvy as much as technical knowledge when hiring, according to many analysts and consultants.

Now let’s move on to the possibility of outsourcing the IT department. Outsourcing a part or complete IT department frees up a company's valued IT personnel so they can support their mission critical business processes. In addition many companies today are finding that they cannot take the risk or endure the financial burden of running their whole IT department in-house. But what are the drivers that will convince you to outsource? Is organization downsizing? Is your company growing so rapidly or making acquisitions? Is your company in start up mode? Outsourcing a part or complete IT department may provide benefits like: quick deployment, improvement of cash flow management, better risk management, cost and time savings.  But never forget that IT department outsourcing can expose the company with associated risks that potentially have a higher costs than benefits for the company. Loss of control over service quality or poor communication between the business and the third party are just two examples. But with a rigorous system in place, businesses can manage their external relationships and reputation more effectively. And the outset risks can be minimized by ensuring that due diligence is undertaken on prospective service providers.

These article has been published in eSkill Corporation e-newsletter. If you want to find out even more information on how to avoid problems staffing the IT department, you can download a more detailed white paper here.