Businesses re-evaluating IT suppliers due to increased energy prices
Business leaders re-evaluating IT suppliers as a result of increased energy prices, according to new research from ServerChoice.
The data centre provider has released new research, highlighting the widespread impact of the cost of energy increases.
The research, which surveyed more than 1,000 business leaders, found that 77% of businesses are experiencing price increases from their suppliers, with 84% worried about how the rise will impact their bottom line. Despite this concern, over a third (36%) of business leaders have not begun contingency planning to alleviate the pressures of the growing cost of energy.
However, of those who have begun contingency planning, 35% are currently re-evaluating their providers in an effort to help offset the growing cost of energy. Those most likely to be evaluated are utility providers, with 63% stating this, followed by IT suppliers, with 32% stating this.
This market exploration comes at a time when businesses are growing increasingly dependent on data storage, with 75% envisaging a need to increase their capacity over the next five years.
"For data centres, where the cost of energy continues to be the largest financial expenditure for the business, providers will have to think laterally about how to offer competitively priced services to help underpin the demand for data storage," says Adam Bradshaw, commercial director at ServerChoice.
The research also found that the largest deciding factor when determining a new supplier is competitive pricing, with 91% of business leaders stating it would be fundamental in their selection process. 63% stated service offering would also be a highly influential concern and a further 40% of leaders stated flexible contracts were amongst their top priorities.
"The coming months look set to be a period of upheaval," says Bradshaw.
"Providers that are always seeking new ways to improve energy efficiency will be able to offer the most competitive pricing as the cost of energy increases across the board," he says.
"Our research also found that a strong majority of decision-makers greatly prioritise valuable service offerings. Data centres that offer tailored data storage packages suited to individual businesses' requirements, whether that includes hybrid infrastructure options, assistance when moving provider or even negotiable contract periods, will be best positioned to aid the decision-makers looking for new suppliers."
Bradshaw says ServerChoice has always sought out new and innovative ways to improve the service it offers current and prospective clients.
Through its locations outside of London, it is able to access low latency connectivity and reduced overheads associated with being located outside of the capital, which can be passed on to the customer. Cost savings are also made by the implementation of energy efficiency measures. ServerChoice also assists customers with difficult data centre migration through its free FlexMove service and offers the most secure and safe method for hosting data in a sovereign location.
