As noted in previous communications, all contract partners will be officially supported solely by DoIT teams upon unification of AIMS and DoIT as of April 2023. Additional outcomes of this unification affect how DoIT customers will be billed starting in fiscal year 2024 (FY24). Beginning July 1, 2023, all DoIT contract partners utilizing Departmental Tech Support will be moving to a monthly node rate.
The FY24 node rates are:
- Core node: $765
- Hybrid meeting room node: $750
- Printer node: $204
- Visix digital signage node: $200
- Tablet node: $100
What is a node rate?
A node rate is a monthly charge to supported departments that covers the cost to provide end-to-end IT support for a node. The core node rate covers the support of the hardware used by department staff for day-to-day operations. This hardware includes desktops or laptops plus docks, if applicable, and attached peripherals: monitors, keyboards and mice. There are also separate node rates for printers, mobile/tablet devices, digital signage and hybrid meeting rooms. The cost of purchasing the hardware (the node) being supported is not included in the node rate. Additionally, the cost of any non-standard software (such as Visio Online or MS Project) purchased for the unique needs of a department is not included in the node rate.
The core node rate is recalculated each year to recover the actual cost to deliver support to all customers. This cost accounting calculation is based on the total cost to provide IT support services for the nodes divided by the total number of supported nodes owned by supported departments. The total number of supported nodes each fiscal year will be determined by calculating the average number of nodes reporting to our endpoint management systems each quarter of the previous fiscal year.
Example Node Count:
The count for this example supported department will be 51 core nodes for FY25 billing. The number of nodes (51) in this example was established by calculating an average based on each quarter during FY24.
FY24 Q1 Nodes reporting 50
FY24 Q2 Nodes reporting 47
FY24 Q3 Nodes reporting 53
FY24 Q4 Nodes reporting 54
FY24 Average 51
Assuming this supported department only has core nodes (therefore no printer, tablet, digital signage or hybrid room nodes) their total cost for FY25 will be:
Total cost: $765 (core node rate) x 51 (node count) = $39,015
Monthly bill: $39,015/12 = $3,251.25 per month
Once the total number of supported nodes has been determined, the node rate is set each year. Counts and rates will be shared with departments annually for budget planning. Departments will be billed monthly with a consistent monthly cost throughout the fiscal year. Any surplus or deficit generated by the service will be applied to the rate each year.
Information is forthcoming which includes detailed counts and costs at cost center level. Those will be emailed out to individual departments. In the coming weeks, we will send your detailed information to the cost center so you can understand how your rates are changing. We will also share details about rates connected to the other optional nodes, such as hybrid meeting rooms, printers, mobile devices and more.
Why is DoIT moving to a node rate?
AIMS was billing supported departments quarterly using a single node rate for all devices. DoIT was billing departments monthly using a complex set of rates within a chargeback model. With the AIMS and DoIT unification, a single billing model must be adopted. Consistent with the project goal to adopt the best of both organizations, the choice was made to move to the AIMS node rate model, which is most aligned with the cost driver of the service and consistent with cost accounting best practices. Lastly, moving to a consistent core node rate model with other optional node rates for different device types is inherently more proportional to usage and more transparent.
What changes for supported departments?
Departments supported by AIMS (formerly):
- These departments are familiar with the node rate model. It has traditionally covered the cost of a standard endpoint (desktop or laptop) plus a mouse, keyboard and monitors. Because we are moving the cost of hardware out of the node rate, most AIMS contract partners will experience a reduction in the node rate. However, they will begin paying for hardware at the time of onboarding a new employee or purchasing additional new or replacement hardware.
- When the new core node rate is implemented, July 1, 2023, any new hardware will need to be purchased up front and the node rate will be charged for support the following fiscal year.
- For existing hardware not fully paid off under the previous node rate, DoIT will cover the cost of the remaining balance for any laptops and desktops purchased before July 2023.
- If a computer in your department was scheduled for replacement prior to July 2023, those costs have been covered by DoIT. However, the replacement will be scheduled and may occur after July 1, 2023.
- For new hardware needed after July 1, 2023, departments formerly supported by AIMS will begin paying for new hardware purchases at the time of purchasing additional or replacement machines.
- For software needs, departments will begin paying for non-standard software licenses outside of the node rate beginning July 1, 2023. DoIT will carry out the transaction and the installation with a separate charge for the cost of any non-standard software.
Departments supported by DoIT (prior to unification):
- These departments are moving to the node rate, which is a new way of paying for DoIT Departmental Tech Support services. Instead of being billed monthly for support hours utilized over the fiscal year, a flat rate per node for support will be utilized as described above. DoIT contract partners already pay for hardware upon purchase, therefore there is no change in this regard.
Due to the unification of all supported departments under the DoIT umbrella, and the implementation of the new node rate, all supported departments will receive a new memorandum of understanding (MOU) for FY24.
How will we begin this transition?
For FY24, any department experiencing an increase in their annual costs for departmental tech support will be held harmless for one fiscal year. This allows departments an entire fiscal year to prepare for increased costs in FY25. Departments will receive a detailed inventory list of supported nodes by the end of this fiscal year.
Stay informed
To stay up to date on the transition, please visit the AIMS Transition project site.. There, you will find a regularly updated roadmap with current, completed and future project activities. Additional communications and major changes will be shared via email, as we are today.
Please share any questions or concerns about the changes planned above by contacting Sarah Hart McGuinnis, DoIT’s chief financial officer, or by emailing accounting_doit@wisc.edu.