Your IT provider has always been very responsive to your needs. Somehow, that hasn’t been the case lately. They keep saying there’s a bottleneck. They blame the global supply chain and shipping delays. What’s really going on?
As president of Kelser, an IT provider, I can tell you: they are telling you the truth.
In this article, I’ll explain the world issues driving the delays in IT and numerous other industries. The issues are real and while many of us were hopeful that things would return to a normal cadence once the pandemic calmed down, unfortunately, it now looks as though the issues won’t be resolved any time soon.
3 Reasons For IT Delivery Delays
Two of the reasons I’ve included below pertain to more than just the supply and delivery of IT equipment, but are still relevant to our industry.
1. Global Pandemic
We’ve all read about issues caused by the pandemic. Most of us learned first-hand about the impact of the pandemic through shortages of toilet paper, paper towels, and cleaning supplies at our local grocery stores. There is still some holdover, with everyday items not always available every day.
A combination of wage issues, health care concerns, and overall rethinking of daily priorities led to changes in the workforce.
Whether it’s an issue of a shortage of workers, unfair compensation, or health care concerns, the reality is that a combination of factors has affected the supply chain dramatically.
2. Semiconductor Chip Shortage
In simple terms, semiconductor chips manage the flow of current in electrical devices and perform the logical functions devices need to operate.
Among other things, semiconductors are used in computers, digital cameras, LED light bulbs, smartphones, appliances (from refrigerators to robotic vacuum cleaners), gaming devices, medical equipment, and cars.
In computers, semiconductors facilitate processing and memory functions.
The current shortage of semiconductor chips has affected manufacturing across the board and the popular thinking is that this shortage will continue into 2023 if not beyond.
Which leads directly to my final bullet….
3. War In Ukraine
The invasion of Ukraine by Russia is exacerbating the semiconductor chip shortage.
An article published by Reuters explains that “Ukraine’s two leading suppliers of neon, which produce about half the world’s supply of the key ingredient for making [semiconductor] chips, have halted their operations as Moscow has sharpened its attack on the country, threatening to raise prices and aggravate the semiconductor shortage.”
The article goes on to say that between 45 and 54 percent of the world’s semiconductor-grade neon, critical for the lasers used to make chips, comes from two Ukrainian companies.
And, CNBC confirms that, noting that neon is “required for the lasers that are used in a chip production process known as lithography, where machines carve patterns onto tiny pieces of silicon…”
While I wish I had better news, the common thinking is that the delays we are seeing are here to stay for a while.
What’s The Solution To IT Equipment & Device Delays?
While I don’t have any real solutions to offer at this point, Kelser believes in being transparent and honest with our customers.
We are publishing this article to educate business leaders like you about the reality of the delays. No one likes this news, least of all IT providers, but when we all understand the issues and where they are coming from, we can work together to develop responses that mitigate delays as much as possible.
So, my advice is:
1. Plan ahead and order early
2. Be patient
3. Expect delays
4. Make sure that you are keeping your current equipment and devices managed and patched to prolong their life span.
As I noted above, I work for Kelser, an IT managed services provider, so I realize that the approach I’ve outlined above in number four may sound self-serving. But, the reality is that whether you manage your updates and patches yourself or use an IT provider, it is imperative (now more than ever) that you stay on top of your updates.
Would we love to have you work with us? Of course, we would! But we aren’t here to sell our services.
We know that managed services aren’t the best solution for everyone. The important thing to us is to provide the information you need to keep your IT infrastructure safe, available, and efficient. This is especially important during this time of uncertainty.
If, however, you’ve been wondering whether managed services might be the right solution for your business, take the quiz below.
