Computers grow old, servers require replacement, new software licenses need to be ordered. Companies require a lot of hardware and software to continually stay on top of everything they need to run as smoothly as possible. As a managed services client with MyITpros, you are able to take advantage of our procurement service to handle all this for you.
What is procurement?
MyITpros’ procurement service encompasses the sourcing, quoting and purchasing of IT equipment for our clients. When we say “equipment,” we’re referring to hardware and software, such as servers, a UPS, a battery backup or Office 365 software.
When you need new IT equipment, our procurement service will do the research required to make the best buying decision. We ask:
- Which types of equipment best meet the needs of your business?
- Does a particular piece of equipment integrate with other hardware and software in the company network?
- What (if any) problems are anticipated when the item is installed on the network?
- Which vendor is best?
There are numerous factors to weigh and compare, which is why we encourage clients like you to utilize our service and let us do the legwork for you.
How does our service work?
Our procurement process starts with the MyITpros service team. They identify a business need, determine which parts or software will address it and send the information to our procurement coordinator, who will put together a quote.
Following this, our procurement coordinator begins the shopping process, looking at offerings from vendors that we know do not sell counterfeit or refurbished items. We also evaluate which vendor has the best:
- Pricing
- Availability and delivery time
- Return policies
- Warranty and service after the sale
It’s important to note that there are a variety of factors to consider in addition to price. For example, you might have a business-critical piece of hardware that needs immediate replacement, but the cheapest offering is overseas and won’t arrive for two months. With these types of individualized requirements in mind, we try our hardest to procure the best items for your business, with the optimal speed and warranties – and hopefully pricing as well.
After receiving the initial service request, our procurement coordinator takes about one to two business days to put together an official quote, send it for client review and solicit any questions. Once approved, the order is placed and a client invoice is sent out. Following this, the coordinator checks the tracking information daily and, once the item has arrived at its destination, notifies the service team so they can follow up.
Fun facts about procurement
We sat down with our procurement coordinator to tackle some of the most frequently asked questions about our procurement service.
- What types of items do you not handle purchasing for? We don’t buy line-of-business applications, general office supplies like toner or printer, or anything that has to be registered direct-to-company and cannot go through a third party.
- When replacing hardware, do you handle the disposal of old items? MyITpros does not directly facilitate the transport or storage of client equipment that needs to be recycled, but we have partnered with ATX Global Trading to meet our clients’ e-recycling needs. You can talk to your account manager for more information.
- Do you have a personal stock of items onsite? MyITpros does not keep stock of any items on premise, and we rely on vendors when it comes to lead times, ship times and stock. Although we do our best to stay on top of stock availability and item tracking, we cannot make vendors ship things out any faster than their policies allow.
The procurement process involves multiple moving parts that extend far beyond simply Googling items and ordering the cheapest option. You can read more about working with your MSP versus handling procurement yourself in this post. At MyITpros, procurement is part of our managed services offering and is provided no additional cost to you or burden on your resources! Contact us for more information.
