Outsourcing Application Support and Maintenance

In today’s environment, businesses are highly dependent on IT systems for their day to day operations. As business evolves, applications need to evolve too to suit new business requirements. Application Support and Maintenance takes up large proportion of IT spend. According to Pareto Analysis (80:20 Rule), about 80% of typical IT costs are utilized for maintaining existing applications leaving only about 20% for development of new applications. Application Support and Maintenance is an important element towards enhancing and extending the life of the applications. Application Maintenance is not just about maintaining software, it is also about maintaining relationship and expectations of those that use, deliver and are involved with the software and the problems which the software is designed to address.

As the need to drive greater efficiencies and business value from IT increases, organizations can no longer allow their current ASM functions to be dormant. By taking a more proactive and efficient approach they can free up capital that could be allocated towards more innovative transformational projects.

Some of the benefits of outsourcing application support and maintenance are:

1. Customers can focus on their core competencies
2. Customer benefits from provider’s experience of working with different clients on different assignments
3. Improved quality and consistent services levels
4. Lower recurring cost of maintaining existing applications
5. Lower risk of downtime
6. Greater end-user satisfaction

Hence, in order to lower organizations application maintenance costs, gain significant processing efficiencies, improve customer satisfaction, and enhance focus on core business activities it is advisable that organizations outsource their application support and maintenance.

About Author:

Nisha Tolani is consultant and part of Systems Plus Pvt. Ltd. She is a part of consulting team that delivers Sourcing and Vendor Management Office projects. She can be contacted at: nisha.t@spluspl.com