“Buying cheaply isn't enough”

IT procurement is different from purchasing consumables. Taking quality as a given, acquisition costs alone are not the sole deciding factor. IT infrastructures are assets that generate costs throughout their productive lifespan and even beyond. This total cost of ownership is what ultimately impacts on the bottom line. Knowing this cost before you make the purchase is important – but having that knowledge is the exception to the rule.

They begin even before you issue a call for tenders. Regardless of whether you're looking at desktop PCs, smartphones, your printer fleet or a complete new data center, if you don't take usage patterns, servicing requirements and the consequences of loss or damage into consideration in your procurement decision, you are effectively buying an unknown quantity. This is even more true if a variety of different international locations are involved. In such scenarios, long-term transparency is needed. The purchase price alone doesn't tell you very much.

In my opinion, no one person can achieve this on their own. It requires reliable benchmarks and an assessment that is not just based on the claims of one supplier or service provider. An independent partner is the best choice for this type of project. With TESMA®, we have a technology and service management system at CHG-MERIDIAN that can bring transparency even to complex, decentralized IT projects. This helps the company to get the IT equipment that it needs and the numbers that will keep the CFO happy.