When Should I Hire A Tech Resource Internally?

A question I hear every so often is…

When should I hire a tech resource internally?

And as with most questions the universal answer is…

Well, it depends.

All things being equal.

Hiring tech internally requires 3 things.

Mindset, Budget and Need.

Mindset

How you think about the tech in your business is paramount.

If you want to grow your business and understand that leveraging technology is the key.

Then you’re thinking in the right direction.

If you understand that tech is strategic.

You’re thinking in the right direction.

If the tech that you’re implementing requires technical ownership.

You’re thinking in the right direction.

But, if you have a mindset of — “I’m just going to hire somebody and have them fix PCs or assist staff with computer problems.”

Start-over.

You’re not heading in the right direction.

IT support is best outsourced.

It really is.

It’s the only way to get the right amount of education, experience and exposure to tech that you need to do it right.

Your mindset needs to be strategic.

Budget

Obviously you need a budget.

You need to be big enough to afford the new position.

Hiring with no allocated budget is a recipe for failure.

Salaries are typically the largest expense for a small business.

And finding ways to be efficient with your dollars is part of being a modern business.

If a role is not tied to an initiative or core competency for the company — Why do it?

Planning and budgeting for any role in your company is key.

If you’re just hiring someone to babysit things.

If you’re just hiring someone to do a manual task that could be automated.

You’re throwing money away.

Always understand how adding headcount benefits your business and where the dollars will come from for the position.

Need

The need for a tech resource is driven by the amount of effort needed to manage a certain piece of tech in your business.

Notice that I said manage and not administrate.

This may be managing your ERP implementation or system.

Or maybe you have an e-commerce platform that needs to be managed.

Or some other sort of online app or service.

Clearly just throwing a body at something rarely works.

Investing in a tech resource for your company is a good thing.

It means your company has reached a level of maturity most companies don’t.

Hiring a wrench turner and thinking that you have IT is not a thing.

Make tech hiring tactical.

Hiring someone who has the ability and vision to execute on your company’s key technical initiatives is how you win with tech.

Outsource the small stuff.

Insource core competencies and intellectual property.

Follow these three keys.

Mindset, budget and need.

And you’ll know when you should hire a tech resource.