In the race towards digital transformation, many South African enterprises are unknowingly dragging a hidden weight: unseen ICT costs embedded deep within fragmented cloud, telecoms and mobile environments.
Despite the billions poured into modernisation strategies, countless CIOs, CFOs and IT leaders still struggle to connect technology investments to tangible business outcomes. Why? Because they lack a single source of truth for ICT expenditure. The result: operational inefficiencies, budget overruns and stalled innovation.
If your enterprise is serious about maximising return on technology investment, it's time to take a hard look at the costs you’re not seeing.
The hidden cost iceberg
From cloud sprawl and shadow IT to overlapping software licences and dormant mobile contracts, hidden ICT costs silently erode profitability. In a recent 1Nebula eBook, Maximising ICT ROI, the analysis is sobering:
- Over 30% of enterprises reported rising cloud costs year on year.
- Unmonitored SaaS subscriptions and auto-renewals are leading to double-digit overspending.
- Underused mobile assets, legacy contracts and decentralised spending compound the problem across departments.
The modern ICT environment has evolved into a complex web of services, vendors and user behaviours. Without visibility, most enterprises don’t know where they’re bleeding cash – let alone how to stop it.
Digital transformation demands visibility
Today’s CIOs are no longer technology gatekeepers, they are strategic enablers of growth. But with budget accountability spread across sales, marketing, HR and operations, visibility into ICT costs is more critical than ever. According to 1Nebula, organisations that centralise technology expense management (TEM) gain measurable advantages:
- 25%-40% reductions in direct mobile and cloud costs.
- Faster budgeting and reporting cycles.
- Improved cross-departmental accountability.
- Real-time insights that link spend to business outcomes.
As one leading petrochemical giant discovered through implementing 1Nebula’s OneView platform, uncovering hidden billing errors and redundant contracts delivered immediate ROI, including a 73% reduction in voice line subscriptions and an 86 Net Promoter Score (NPS) from users and managers.
Modern TEM: From cost tracker to strategic engine
1Nebula’s Maximising ICT ROI SmartBook introduces the concept of outcomes-based technology expense management – a far cry from outdated tools focused on IT bill reconciliation. Modern TEM platforms, like OneView, go beyond simple reporting to:
- Consolidate all ICT expenses across cloud, mobile and telecoms into one dashboard.
- Enable proactive alerts, cost anomaly detection and automated workflows.
- Empower IT, finance and procurement teams with role-based access for better alignment and transparency.
- Provide decision-grade data for vendor negotiations, renewals and strategic planning.
What you can’t see will hurt you
In an era where data is currency, invisibility is a liability. Hidden ICT costs limit agility, strain IT budgets and undermine your transformation agenda. Enterprises that take control now, by investing in a unified, analytics-driven TEM strategy, can unlock cost savings, increase profitability and accelerate innovation.
If your organisation is struggling with budget blind spots, fragmented tech stacks or underwhelming IT ROI, the journey towards optimisation starts here.
Download the full eBook, “Maximising ICT ROI: A Comprehensive Guide to Identifying and Reducing Hidden Costs” at https://www.1nebula.com/maximising-ict-roi.
It’s not just about cutting costs. It’s about aligning every technology rand with outcomes that matter.
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