With costs rising and a prolonged recession looming it is time to take control of your IT expenditure, writes ALLAN BROWN
Prior to joining Capito in early 2022, I’d spent more than 20 years in consumer tech sales where spreading the cost of, for example a mobile phone, over a series of regular payments is common practice. Likewise, when it comes to buying a car, the PCP model has now become ubiquitous, allowing you to pay a monthly fee and then return the car at the end of the term, without worrying about reselling.
Therefore, I was surprised to see that businesses still tend to favour the capital expenditure route for procurement of their IT rather than making this part of their organisation’s operational costs. Surely there must be other options that don’t require such a large outlay up-front?
This led me to look at the benefits of Device as a Service (DaaS).
With DaaS, your device, accessories, software, services, and support can be rolled into one ongoing monthly payment rather than a one-off upfront payment at the start.
Although we may not realise it many of us are essentially using the DaaS model to procure our personal tech. Let’s go back to the example I gave earlier with mobile phones. If I’m interested in purchasing a new handset, I can make one call to my provider who’ll order and arrange delivery of the device and any accessories I may need, a suitable tariff, technical/warranty support, etc, all rolled into a monthly cost. All I need to do is switch on the device when I receive it and I’m good to go. At the end of the fixed term, or earlier, I can upgrade to the latest model.
According to a Gartner forecast from last year, the worldwide DaaS market is expected to grow by more than 150% between 2020 to 2023. There are a number of factors influencing this.
The first is the rise of remote working since the pandemic. With DaaS, an organisation can have their user’s pre-configured device delivered straight to their home ready to be unboxed and used immediately. For many employers, the days of devices being delivered to one location where the workforce is located are long gone.
Then there is the convenience factor to consider. With DaaS, your hardware, software and support services are packaged together and delivered from a single source. This makes it easier to track overall device costs as they are all bundled into one payment. In addition, it also frees up staff time in an IT department, allowing them to concentrate on more strategic core activities rather than keeping the lights on or Business As Usual activities.
There is also the convenience of not being left with outdated equipment. At the end of the term, it is returned and reused, repurposed or recycled by the supplier. Maximising the length of the product life cycle in this way has a number of environmental benefits, helping you to meet your sustainability goals towards a circular economy.
DaaS is also flexible so that the operating needs and working location of each individual user can be catered for.
In the current financial climate switching from a Capital Expenditure (CAPEX) procurement model to an Operational Expenditure (OPEX) model when procuring devices may also be more practical.
Not only does DaaS allow you to conveniently spread the cost into regular, predictable amounts rather than having to make large upfront payments, it also brings a number of other significant benefits, including flexibility, enhanced security, faster deployment, improved sustainability, and a better user experience.
With so much uncertainty over how our business overheads may look in the coming months, could moving to a DaaS model help you to make better use of your available resources? And a predictable monthly cost over a fixed contract term for tech? That could catch on….
Allan Brown is EUC account executive at Capito
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