On this episode of The Bridge, I’m joined by Eric Russo, Senior Vice President of Lifecycle Services at Bridgepointe. We’re talking about IT cost management and why it’s become a top priority, second only to cybersecurity.
The Bridgepointe Lifecycle Services team advocates for their client's success during every step of the technology lifecycle, from sourcing through implementation and ongoing expense/mobility management to negotiating their renewal. Having completed thousands of client projects resulting in millions of dollars in savings for clients, working with Bridgepointe’s Lifecycle Management Services team helps clients drive greater efficiency while proactively managing their technology costs.
During our conversation, we got into how the post-pandemic budget run-up is over, but the demands on it to deploy next-gen tech, like AI, have never been higher. We also parse out why cost management is a more important priority than data analytics, cloud, automation, and AI, and the role procurement experts play in optimizing technology spending.
Topics covered in this episode:
● Eric’s background and experience.
● Eric’s business superpower.
● The importance of cost management, optimization, and containment in the IT industry.
● Why many companies are focusing on reallocating budgets for digital transformation projects and AI initiatives.
● Why ROI is an essential factor in justifying technology investments.
● The importance of finding cost savings and optimization opportunities in technology spending and how it impacts business cases for technology investments.
● The impact of COVID-19 on the mobile landscape and how it varies for different customers.
● The challenges businesses face in rationalizing their communication investments and the role of Bridgepointe in helping businesses make informed decisions about which solutions to keep and transition to.
● The importance of understanding users' requirements and leveraging Bridgepointe's expertise in technical requirements gathering to make informed decisions.
● Bridgepointe's involvement in managing digital transformation, including the transition process and managing organizational changes.
● The increasing use of RFPs (Request for Proposals) by businesses to validate their technology decisions and how Bridgepointe helps customers navigate the RFP process.
● A shameless prediction for the next 18 to 24 months.
ABOUT ERIC RUSSO
At many large enterprises, IT departments are limited by their tech budget, headcount, and legacy systems that turn new initiatives into huge headaches. We’ve been helping the heads of these departments overcome these limitations for over 25 years.
We take a deep look at your tech stack, your operations, and what it all costs in order to find opportunities to improve. But we don’t stop there. Like other companies, we’ll analyze where you can improve and give you detailed, accurate reports and recommendations.
Unlike other companies, however, we’ll actually take some of that work off your plate. So that your headcount isn’t tied up managing thousands of invoices or wrangling the service and support for every desk phone or mobile device in your company. And you can finally see beyond the daily wave of “break/fix” projects and start on that digital transformation you’ve been planning.
CONTACT ERIC
Web. https://bridgepointetechnologies.com/team/ericrusso/
LinkedIn. https://www.linkedin.com/in/erusso/