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Vendor Discount Report (April 2015)
Market intelligence on current discounting practices for business equipment can be difficult obtain. As a result, buyers do not know whether a better deal can be negotiated. This updated report, based on our knowledge of recent deals, provides buyers with guidance concerning current discount structures on a variety of equipment. Categories include IT equipment (desktops, laptops, network equipment, printers, servers, and storage), office equipment (copiers, mail equipment), forklifts, medical equipment, test equipment, and miscellaneous equipment. Major vendors include IBM, HP, Dell, HP, Apple, and others. Includes a downloadable PDF workbook of more than 300 deals used in the report to calculate average discounts and soft cost statistics (14pp., 12 figs.).
April, 2015
Computer Economics to Present at ITFMA 2015
Computer Economics President Frank Scavo and Research VP John Longwell will be delivering executive presentations this year at the IT Financial Management Association conference, April 13-17, in Pittsburgh, PA. This Research Byte provides an overview of their presentations.
April, 2015
No Sign of Decline Yet for Desktop Support Staffing
This Research Byte looks at the six-year trend in desktop support staffing ratios, comparing the size of desktop support staff to the size of overall IT staff for each year since 2009 to the present year. It looks at how this ratio has changed year-to-year and overall, and explains some of the factors affecting these changes.
April, 2015
Desktop Support Staffing Ratios April 2015
This study provides benchmarks on typical desktop support staffing. We use two metrics to benchmark desktop support staffing: desktop support staff as a percentage of the IT staff and PCs per desktop support staff member. We also assess these ratios by organization size and sector. In addition, we provide benchmarks for the combined desktop support and help desk functions. We conclude with strategies for improving the efficiency of the desktop support staff. (17 pp., 7 figs.) [Research Byte]
April, 2015
IT Security Incident Management Has Room To Grow as a Best Practice
Despite a seeming rise in high-profile security breaches, IT organizations have been somewhat slow to embrace formal methodologies for responding to security breaches, assessing the vulnerabilities, and coming up with solutions to prevent future incidents. This Research Byte looks at the various factors which we use to establish a maturity profile for security incidence management.
March, 2015
ERP May Not Be Sexy But It’s Still Hot
The technology with the greatest current investment activity and adoption rate is far from the newest, sexist, or most disruptive IT solution in the market. It is Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP). This Research Byte compares the adoption and investment rates for ERP, compared to 14 other technologies in our 2015 Technology Trends report.
March, 2015
Security Incident Management Adoption Trends 2015
Computer Economics research shows adoption of security incident management is only moderately mature, despite the apparent escalation in threat levels over the past year, and that there is plenty of room for broader and deeper adoption of this IT management best practice. This is a practice that every IT organization should embrace with some level of rigor. In this study, we introduce the best practices and take a look at adoption trends for security incident management by organization size and sector. We also introduce some of providers of security incident management systems and services. (14 pp., 5 figs.) [Research Byte]
March, 2015
Unified Communications, IaaS, and Desktop Virtualization Show Best Risk-Reward for 2015
After a long ascent, unified communications rose to the top of the Computer Economics list of technologies with the best investment profile for 2015. The IT research firm’s annual Technology Trends study identified UC as the technology initiative that offers one of the highest chances of obtaining a positive return on investment coupled with one of the lowest risks of overrunning the budget for implementing and supporting the system.
March, 2015
Technology Trends 2015
This major study provides insight into the customer experience and adoption rates for 14 technology initiatives that are top-of-mind for many companies. The study also delves into the specific types of solutions under consideration and the amount of money being budgeting for these initiatives. With this information business leaders are in a better position to assess the potential risks and rewards of each of these technology initiatives. They also can gain insight into just how aggressively competitors and peers are making these investments. (100 pp., 98 figs.) [Full Description and Sample Pages] [Research Byte]
March, 2015
Disaster Recovery Outsourcing Trends and Customer Experience 2015
Disaster recovery outsourcing is a strategic consideration for all organizations. This study reports the percentage of organizations outsourcing disaster recovery capabilities (frequency), the scope of work outsourced (level), and the change in the amount of work being outsourced (trend). We also present data on the cost and service experiences of IT organizations that outsource disaster recovery, and we identify the business sectors most likely to outsource their disaster recovery operations. (17 pp., 8 fig.) [Research Byte]
February, 2015
No Sign Yet of Disaster Recovery Outsourcing Upswing
In this Research byte we review the growth trend in disaster recovery outsourcing. While we anticipate that the advent of cloud-based infrastructure services will improve the economics of disaster recovery outsourcing, our data is not as yet providing any strong evidence that growth in the use of these services is prompting a corresponding rise in disaster recovery outsourcing.
February, 2015
Help Desk Staffing Reaches Equilibrium
Over the past three years, help desk staffing levels have remained largely unchanged as a percentage of the IT staff, reaching an apparent equilibrium after a period of fluctuation. In this Research Byte, we review the five-year trend in help desk staffing as a percentage of the IT staff.
February, 2015
Help Desk Staffing Ratios 2015
This study provides metrics for benchmarking help desk staffing levels in the current environment. We look at the trend in help desk staffing over a five-year period and provide two benchmarks by organization size: help desk staff as a percentage of the IT staff and users per help desk staff member. Because companies organize the end-user support function in different ways, we also provide benchmarks for a combined help desk and desktop support staff. We conclude with recommendations on optimizing help desk staffing levels. (16 pp., 7 fig.) [Research Byte]
February, 2015
Help Desk Outsourcing Trends and Customer Experience 2015
The frequency of help desk outsourcing has declined in this period of recovery, particularly among smaller organizations. One reason may be the decidedly mixed customer experience. This study examines adoption trends and customer experience with help desk outsourcing. We report on the percentage of organizations outsourcing help desk (frequency), the average amount of work outsourced (level), and the change in the amount of work being outsourced (trend). We also present success rates for the customer’s cost and service experience. Finally, we show how these trends differ by organization size and sector. (13 pp., 8 figs.) [Research Byte]
February, 2015
Help Desk Outsourcing in Retreat with Hiring Upswing
The number of organizations that outsource help desk has declined for the second year in a row. In this Research Byte we review the five-year trend in the percentage of organization that outsource at least a portion of this important function.
February, 2015