What Is A vCIO? Is A vCIO Right For My Company? Answering Your Most Common FAQs

One of the most valuable IT consulting services for small-to-medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) is a vCIO, or Virtual CIO. These executive consultants are particularly helpful for companies that have a small IT budget, or a limited number of IT staff.

In this article, we’ll discuss some of the most common FAQs about vCIOs and IT consulting, so that you can determine if hiring a vCIO may be the best option for your company.

What Is A vCIO?

A vCIO, as mentioned above, is a Virtual Chief Intelligence Officer (CIO). As the name implies, a vCIO takes on the responsibilities of a CIO – but is an outsourced individual, who often may work for several companies at once.

Most vCIOs have had experience as CIOs in large organizations, providing them with decades of experience in the field, and allowing them to be highly-useful when it comes to helping you run your company, and determine the future of your IT infrastructure.

What Does A vCIO Do?

Just like a traditional CIO, a vCIO is responsible for delivering strategic insights on how technology can be used to drive your business forward, make it more competitive, and transform your business model for the digital, cloud-based era. Depending on the needs of your business, your vCIO may be responsible for:

1. Managing IT budgets and resources
2. Making recommendations for purchasing equipment and IT assets
3. Developing and planning IT policies and security policies
4. Brainstorming ways to increase profitability using business technology
5. Creating technology roadmaps to guide IT budgeting and systems acquisition

What Are The Benefits Of A vCIO?

So, why should you choose a vCIO instead of hiring a new, full-time IT executive? There are a few good reasons.

1. Cost savings – Compared to hiring a full-time CIO, hiring a vCIO is much more affordable. Full-time CIOs typically command salaries of $150,000 or more – not including benefits. By outsourcing to a vCIO, particularly for part-time consulting, you can still get the services of a CIO without these increased costs.

2. You can hire a vCIO immediately – Interviewing and hiring a CIO is not a job you should take lightly, and it can take a long time to hire the right person. In contrast, hiring a vCIO is much simpler.

IT consulting companies like Transparent Solutions, typically have multiple experienced, dedicated vCIOs who can join your team on a provisional basis right away – so the cost and commitment of hiring a vCIO is much lower.

3. Reduce workload on you and your IT department – If you’re handling all CIO-related tasks on your own – and you’re not the CIO – chances are that your efforts could be better dedicated to other tasks. Hiring a vCIO will allow you and your IT department to focus on important, short-term tasks – while your vCIO plans for the future.

Is My Business A Good Fit For A vCIO?

Typically, vCIOs are best for smaller companies who are growing and need help planning for their future technological needs – and who have a relatively small budget, and can’t afford a full-time CIO.

This means most startups and other small businesses will commonly employ vCIOs, until they have grown to a point where they can afford to hire a vCIO full-time.

It’s also common for smaller companies to employ both an IT consulting company both for vCIO services, and for other services, such as on-site support, big data analysis, and even IT managed services.

Know If A vCIO Is Right For You – And Invest In The Future Of Your Company!

If you’re starting to feel a bit “out to sea” when it comes to your IT infrastructure, and you’re having difficulties planning for the future of technological innovation in your business, a vCIO is a cost-effective way to get the strategic help you need. So start looking for an IT consulting company that offers vCIO services today, and make sure that your company is on the path towards success in our modern, competitive, digital world.

This article does not necessarily reflect the opinions of the editors or management of EconoTimes.