Financial industry IT operations face stringent regulatory requirements. These firms face the same needs to streamline operations and provide a high quality of service, but the burden of regulatory requirements often paralyzes outsourcing decisions. E-mail hosting providers continue to improve security, privacy, and regulatory compliance offerings. Small financial services firms should re-evaluate the case for on-premises e-mail provisioning. Go hosted, where possible.

But, Is It Safe?

Financial services firms tend to assume that outsourcing, by definition, lowers the level of security and privacy. Often, the perception by small enterprises is that involving a third-party into core IT operations may increase risk and lower quality; in fact, it may do the exact opposite. Ironically, many hosting providers with Tier 4 Network Operations Centers can offer a higher level of security, while absorbing much of the risk.