When it comes lớn procuring new equipment, capabilities, và software, IT professionals generally have two options:

Obtaining new capabilities and equipment as a capital expenditure (CapEx). Obtaining them as an operating expense (OpEx).

As many companies shift from traditional hardware và software ownership khổng lồ as-a-service models, IT & finance departments must reconcile how best lớn classify cloud costs.

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According khổng lồ Gartner, after a decline in IT spending in 2020, spending has picked up significantly in 2021. Experts project that worldwide IT spending will increase 6.2% lớn total $3.9 trillion.

In other words, IT spending is big business. The way companies think about it may deserve new consideration. In this article, we will:

Define CapEx và OpEx in relation to IT spending Compare when to lớn use each See how CapEx & OpEx plays out in a real IT purchase Explore recent changes that seem to favor OpEx nội dung additional resources

(Note: This articles discusses CapEx & OpEx purchasing in the United States. The points and ideas discussed may be different in other countries.)

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CapEx, OpEx: which is right for you?

The good news is that selecting CapEx or OpEx is not an either/or situation.

Companies need lớn choose which areas lớn bucket under CapEx & which to bucket in OpEx, understanding the trade-offs. Perhaps some enterprise systems must be owned outright và in-house, while other applications can come và go as the need & staff change.

Proper forecasting can help a company invest as necessary in CapEx, while accurately estimating OpEx. Experts also recommend considering the non-monetary cost of the transaction. This can include the friction users feel when switching from one type of giải pháp công nghệ to another, common in a CapEx/OpEx tradeoff.

Keeping in mind the pains of forecast and change, remember that the benefit of considering CapEx/OpEx for IT spending is about shifting money spending to lớn better benefit overall business needs.

Xem thêm: Xem Điểm Sinh Viên Đại Học Bách Khoa Hà Nội, Hệ Thống Thông Tin Sinh Viên

Regardless of what expense model you choose, having the visibility & control of your infrastructure—whether in a CapEx model on premises or an OpEx model in public or private clouds—gives you the ability to make decisions that will impact your overall business success.