1. What can they do that my staff can’t do?

Limited resources mean that your IT staff is stretched further than ever. They are busy fighting fires and keeping the business running. In order to achieve long-term, sustainable cost savings, it is important to have a focused effort and review costs from a broad and objective view – Financial, Technical and Sourcing. You need to go fast, and that requires people with experience. Our team has a proven and successful methodology – we are specialists in IT cost reduction. We bring an experienced, cross-functional team that can objectively identify all opportunities – even those that may be unpopular.

2. Will I get savings this year?

Many of our cost reduction strategies are targeted at “Quick Hit” opportunities. These are opportunities that can be attacked quickly with immediate (and, sometimes, retroactive) results. Of course, the sooner we start, the sooner the potential savings can start.

3. Is this the right time to use consultants to save money?

Yes – we guarantee net savings. Because of our specialization and experience, we are confident that working with us will maximize your savings potential quickly. Consultants should be used when you need an experienced specialist for a defined issue. We help relieve the constraints of organizational boundaries to stay focused on solving the problem.

4. Will this be a burden to my busy staff?

Our goal is to capture the savings without capturing you. We set ground rules designed to minimize the time drain on your staff. We don’t ask you to create things for us; we work with whatever is available. We need your involvement but have developed many ways to efficiently interact with you and your team.

5. How does a savings guarantee really work?

It is simple – if you don’t think you got value from us, you don’t pay us. Each of our flexible pricing options – percentage of savings, fixed fee, daily rates – supports this guarantee. No arguments – you are the judge. Still skeptical? We were too when we sat in your chair. We are confident in our abilities and want to have the same “skin in the game” that you do.

6. How will this integrate with other cost reduction initiatives?

We will assist and collaborate as much as or as little as you want with any existing initiatives that your company may be working on.

7. Can I customize scope?

Of course. We will work your total spend, specific categories, or your third-party contracts – whatever you choose. Point us in the direction you feel is most important. Unsure? Let us help you decide by doing a quick assessment of your costs.

8. Can this really work?

We have been doing this for a while. We know where to look, and we know how to get the savings once we find the issue. Still skeptical? Pick a cost category and let us attack it.

9. How long will it take to realize savings?

Changes to your third-party relationships result in the fastest savings. These can be almost immediate and sometimes offer retroactive credits. Policy and process changes have a longer realization curve. Our initial assessment will show you the opportunity, implementation cost, and time estimates so that actions can be prioritized with other corporate initiatives, and you can control the timing.

10. What if you don’t find any savings opportunities?

We would be surprised. We feel there are opportunities to lower IT costs within even the tightest IT shops. A new set of eyes can often uncover savings that weren’t previously noticed. And if we can’t find any savings? We tear up the invoice and you have the confidence that a third party has confirmed you are running a lean shop.

11. What if you find too many savings opportunities?

With the current financial environment, there shouldn’t be any regrets when savings are found. It is a different world. IT departments are so focused on keeping the lights on and implementing projects, clean-up frequently isn’t a priority. There are never too many savings opportunities.

12. What will my internal customers say about this?

We will help you by creating a communication plan for your customers, showing them that you have their costs and service in mind and promising a “do no harm” approach. These efforts will help align the IT cost structure with business value. Our experience shows that internal customers are happy when you take a proactive approach and keep them in the loop.

13. Do I have time for this?

With the current environment, you don’t have time not to. An IT cost cleanup initiative shows the company that you are being proactive about reducing costs. It could take more time to explain to people why you aren’t doing this.

14. I have never heard of Swingtide. Why should I use you?

Swingtide is in a unique position to help companies analyze their IT costs:

• All of our consultants have a minimum of 10 years of IT department experience
• We have held top IT management positions in Fortune 100 firms, with spend in excess of $1 billion annually
• We have developed and perfected a methodology for analyzing and optimizing IT costs
• We specialize in Technology Business Operations (TBO)

A boutique firm with this specialty is who you want for this problem. We aren’t trying to sell you hardware or software offered by other parts of our business and therefore can be more objective in all your spend categories.

15. When can you start?

Every day that you delay means forgone savings this year. We can start now; can you?