Get the cybersecurity you need even when the economy is tight.
I have been reminded over these very difficult months of the old saying, “necessity is the mother of invention.” And hard times can be the ultimate catalyst.
Recently, I gave a presentation to a number of Hawaiian businesses, including several banks, healthcare organizations, telco providers and a credit union association. Due to the pandemic, we met via teleconference, which was far less fun than an actual trip to Hawaii but every bit as productive.
During the conference call, one of the business leaders asked what we at Quest are hearing from executives who suddenly must deliver technologies on tight budgets because of the financial impact of the shutdown. I told him that we’re seeing the same things we’ve seen previously when the economy took a downturn, whether it was the 2008 housing crisis or the dotcom bust of the early 2000s. Regardless of the circumstances, you still have to have equipment, deliver services, and protect your organization from attack.
Over the past few months we’ve seen people shifting their strategies to meet these necessities. Many are moving away from capitalizing these expenses and are instead purchasing them as a service, such as infrastructure as a service, or even outsourcing their entire security function.
We’ve seen a host of scenarios surrounding outsourcing. For example, organizations that had employees responsible for security found themselves having to lay off these essential staff. Or maybe the IT personnel in charge of cybersecurity had to be pulled from that focus because they were suddenly responsible for getting an entire office running remotely and went from addressing a few hundred helpdesk tickets a week to a few thousand.
We’re also hearing from clients who still have a need or a vulnerability but not the person they counted on to handle it. And many organizations no longer have the budget that they had in February or early March.
For our part, we have helped by letting them know that they don’t have to pay a half-million or million dollars for servers, routers, firewalls, or whatever tools are needed because it can all be provided for a few thousand dollars a month over the term of a contract. And it all comes wrapped in services, meaning that it can be maintained, monitored, and supported under one contract without worry. Ultimately, our clients are able to get their infrastructure and cybersecurity needs met with a predictable spend – to the relief of their Chief Financial Officers.
Here’s a real-world example. A client in Silicon Valley developed a food industry innovation and success came quickly. Even with rapid growth, their organization did not want to grow their IT department and take on the expense of the additional staff. Instead, they decided their best solution was to outsource critical technology and cybersecurity services.
We know how people have behaved historically, so as we begin to transition out of the pandemic, we expect the population to be scared, uncertain, and cautious about spending. While we cannot predict the future, we know that organizations will need to forge ahead, and that means rethinking their business strategies.
Thank you for trusting us to help with your cybersecurity business strategies.
Contact us any time —we’re always happy to help.
Jon
