WHAT IS IT?
We manage your IT from the budget down.
Most businesses pay for IT bit by bit: a support agreement, laptops when someone new starts, an internet plan, mobile phones, the odd project. Someone in the business has to keep track of all of it, and it's usually someone with better things to do.
With an outsourced IT department, we take that over. Your executive approves a yearly budget and only needs to be involved in the bigger decisions about where the business is heading.
COMPARED WITH MANAGED IT
How it's different from managed IT
Our managed IT service looks after the computers and systems you already have, and you still buy hardware, internet and projects separately. An outsourced IT department includes managed IT, and we also handle everything else your business spends on technology.
WHO DECIDES WHAT
You run the business. We make the technology decisions.
Most business owners didn't get into business to compare laptop specs or work out which firewall to buy. There are a lot of those decisions, and they're easy to get wrong if IT isn't your field. That's what we're here for, so we make them for you.
YOU TELL US
- What the business needs to be able to do
- How many people you have and where they work
- Any plans to grow or change
- The budget you're comfortable with
WE WORK OUT
- Which products and suppliers to use
- How everything is set up and secured
- When hardware needs replacing
- How to get the most out of the budget
WHAT'S INCLUDED
Everything your business pays for under IT.
If it's a technology cost, it goes in the budget. That means the internet bill, the phones, the laptops, the Wi-Fi, the software your staff log into every day and the support to keep it all working.
We start from what you need, not from a product name. If your team needs a PDF editor, we'll choose one that does the job at a sensible price, which isn't always the best-known brand.
Phones
Your office phone system and phone numbers, desk phones, and the mobile phones and plans your staff use.
Internet
Your business internet connection and the monthly bill that comes with it.
Network hardware
The equipment that connects your office: the firewall, Wi-Fi access points, switches and cabling.
Laptops and computers
Laptops, desktops, monitors, docks, keyboards and mice for each staff member, usually financed over two or three years.
Productivity software
Microsoft 365 for email, Word, Excel, Teams and file storage, plus tools like a PDF editor.
Business software
Subscriptions for the systems your business runs on, such as accounting, practice management or job management software.
Support and security
Our managed IT services: a local helpdesk your staff can call, plus the backups, updates and security that keep things running.
Projects and labour
Setting up new starters, moving offices, upgrading systems or rolling out something new.
Paying for some other technology that isn't listed here? Ask us. If your business pays for it under IT, it can usually go in the budget too.
HOW WE BUILD YOUR BUDGET
It starts with what your business needs.
We look after IT for more than 50 Territory businesses, so we know what most of them need. Every business needs an internet connection and reliable Wi-Fi in the office. Every worker needs a laptop and a mobile phone. That gives us a solid starting point.
Then we look at what's particular to your business. It might be the software your industry relies on, staff who spend their day on the road, or a second office. We'll ask the right questions to find these early on.
If something gets missed, that's fine. We add it when it comes up, as a budget variation your executive approves. The budget isn't set in stone, and it can change as your business does.
WHAT MOST BUSINESSES NEED
- An internet connection
- Reliable Wi-Fi in the office
- A laptop for each worker
- A mobile phone for each worker
- Email, documents and Teams
- Backups, security and someone to call for help
WHAT MIGHT BE UNIQUE TO YOU
- Software specific to your industry
- Staff working in the field
- More than one office or site
- Requirements from clients or regulators
How it works
STEP 1
Budget
Tell us roughly what you spend on IT now. If you've never had an IT budget, we'll work one out with you.
STEP 2
Plan
We put together a plan for the year: services, hardware, projects and when they'll happen. Your executive signs it off.
STEP 3
Deliver
We buy what's needed, set it up and support it, drawing on the budget through the year rather than all upfront.
STEP 4
Report
You get KPIs during the year and a budget performance report after the financial year ends.
REPORTING
You'll still know what's going on.
We report KPIs through the year so you can see how the budget is tracking and how well your IT is working. They usually include:
- Budget against actual spend
- Support response and fix times
- System uptime
- Device age and lease terms
- Backups and updates
- Security posture
Common questions
- What does it cost?
- There's no set price, because the budget is the price. It covers our managed IT services plus everything else in the plan, like internet connections and mobile plans. If you're not sure what your budget should be, we can build one for you.
- Do I get a say in what you buy?
- You tell us what the business needs, and choosing the products to meet those needs is our job. If you have a genuine requirement for a particular product, such as software a client or regulator expects you to use, it goes into the plan.
- What if something unexpected comes up?
- Anything that isn't in the plan goes through as a budget variation, and your executive approves it before we spend anything. New starters who need a laptop are handled the same way.
- Who owns the hardware?
- We finance hardware purchases, usually over two or three years. What happens at the end of the term depends on the lease agreement, and whether the lease is with Mawson Tech or a third-party provider. We don't budget for buying replacement hardware outright unless you ask us to.
- What if we spend less than the budget?
- We don't take the whole budget upfront, so anything we don't need stays unspent. The budget performance report at the end of the financial year shows where the money went.
- How long is the agreement?
- Our preference is three years. That's about the life of most hardware, and it gives us time to get your IT into good shape.
- Is it right for my business?
- Any size of business can use it. What matters is that you have a reasonable idea of what you've spent on IT in previous years. Startups can use it too, as long as you're comfortable with us building the budget.
Talk to us about your IT budget
Leave your details and we'll be in touch to talk about what you spend now and what a plan for the year might look like.