How to Determine Your IT Needs Business owners and tech pros often have different views on IT needs. Here is how to strike a balance.

Q: How do business owners and tech pros differ when reviewing IT needs?

Seldom do these two factions sing from the same hymn sheet. Business owners want to know what their IT professional is going to do to keep things running smoothly within the parameters of a tight budget. They reason that until the business starts bringing in money, every penny used to achieve that goal is precious, so costs must be contained and understood.

To tech pros, saving a few dollars on a technology or process that is unreliable or will need to be revisited a few months later is a waste of time and money. IT pros are concerned about management: What happens when something breaks? How do I track it down and fix it? What about backups and key data? How do I offer 24/7 support and still manage to sleep at night?