A big, fat overview..? Ok, we guess another term is simply called an ‘ introduction to ‘ and today it’s all about lease finance around the acquisition of computer, telecommunications and software purchases your firm requires.
Long term strategies around the acquisition of these types of tech assets are important, whether your firm is in the SME sector or perhaps on of Canada’s top FP 100 firms. It’s all about the issue around buying the most with what you got, as no one will disagree that tech assets are expensive. And when you have a combination of purchase power plus the financial benefits around the flexibilities that come with lease financing thats a double benefit .
One of the key areas where tech assets such as computer and telecom equipment differentiates itself is that fact that savvy business owners and financial managers will view these sort of assets from a viewpoint of ‘lifespan’. In effect you are looking at these assets from a ‘ cradle to grave ‘ outlook – and that’s a smart thing.
We’re making the assumption you have chosen the software or telecom assets you require- now it’s a case of making those budgets work. Quite often your firm is in project mode, as you are in the position of contemplating technologies newest kid on the block, ‘ Cloud Computing ‘, or simply upgrading hardware and software licenses.
The eternal basics of lease finance apply totally to tech assets. When you are successful in obtaining the proper rates and structures on a transaction you have at the same time enhanced your overall working capital position, in effect conserving cash.
We spoke of the ‘ eternal’ benefits of technology leasing, one of those being upgrades to existing assets and projects. Can you think of another asset class that has as much importance tied to is as the ability to change, upgrade, refresh, etc. Quite frankly, we can’t.
Business financing has been a huge challenge for most firms over the last few years – a lot of those challenges are behind us and you’re now in a position to invest in growth assets such as IT investments that maintain your competitiveness.
In computer, telecom and software financing the key issues you need to focus on are documentation, the legals and terms around certain areas, and price structures.
Software is a growing area of lease financing in Canada. Typically we’re talking about application software, not internal software you may be developing or having a third party develop for you. Issues that you might have to address are source code, rights to use, etc. Thousands of firms finance software in combination with their other hardware and telecom needs.
Typical terms for leasing of such assets are 3 years, which is driven primarily from aspect of ‘ useful life ‘ of most tech assets. However all sorts of terms and amortizations can be structured that utilize a combination focus on your budget, the assets useful life, etc.
If your firm requires assistance on deciding whether you should buy or lease these asset classes, and if you want to mitigate the risks associated with technology financing consider speaking to a trusted, credible and experienced Canadian business financing advisor who can assist you with structures that makes sense for your firm.