“Why do I need an IT infrastructure assessment? Our current configuration is working just fine!”

Though this question is heard often enough when it comes to technology, the “set it and forget it” mind set doesn’t work. Regular reviews of an IT infrastructure provide businesses with multiple benefits. They can see where there are opportunities to improve efficiency and reduce IT related expenses, check for security vulnerabilities and improve system protection, and even make sure that the IT environment is operating in accordance to regulations set forth by governmental or private agencies.

Here are 3 reasons to have an IT infrastructure assessment performed at your company or business:

Optimize Systems for Enhanced Cost Savings

An IT infrastructure assessment takes a look at your overall IT environment. This can include all physical hardware and network components as well as software and processes. An IT infrastructure assessment can identify if there are aspects that could benefit from optimization or replacement to improve efficiency. As an example, the assessment may reveal that consolidating multiple physical servers with multiple virtualized instances would improve computing power, save costs on maintenance and replacement, and reduce the amount of resources required to keep your infrastructure running.

Or perhaps the assessment finds that based on an organization’s specific needs and goals, it would be beneficial to migrate to cloud-based applications using tools like Amazon Web Services’ EC2 or Microsoft Office 365. Reviewing all system components gives insight into what is working efficiently and what can be improved which streamlines operations and can lead to significant cost savings for a company or business.

Reduce Risk and Enhance Security

An assessment of a company’s IT infrastructure is a great way to beef up IT security. The assessment will identify if there are components of the IT environment that have security vulnerabilities, or have the potential to become vulnerable. The assessment may find that servers are running outdated operating systems or that the system-wide antivirus hasn’t had new definitions updated in a while. After completing a full review of the system, the assessment will identify areas of concern and will also offer suggestions on how to fix the issues. An IT infrastructure assessment can reduce risk of data loss either by a system outage or a data breach while increasing security measures across the entire system.

Ensure Compliance

If your business is subject to specific regulatory requirements, you may already know that navigating compliance related to IT systems can be complex. The regulatory body (whether they are industry standards or something set forth by the government, ie. HIPAA), will specify hardware and software requirements that need to be in place in order to be considered “compliant.” An IT infrastructure assessment can determine whether existing systems and controls align with regulations and identify steps for remediation if not. Companies operating in some regulated industries no doubt understand the importance of compliance and potential liabilities of noncompliance.