Assessing the Cost-Components of the Total Cost of Ownership (TCO) Of a Computer Network in Tertiary Educational Institutions: A Case Study of Three Institutions Date: In Kigali, Rwanda
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Date
2006-09
Authors
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Kampala International University, masters in business administration
Abstract
The citation above naturally leads one to pose the following question: Which are the
most important cost-factors to be included in the total cost of ownership of an efficient
computer network within a tertiary educational institution environment? This is our research
question. A new financial tool called Total Cost of Ownership (TCO) has been developed for
this purpose. The idea got under way in the mid-i 980s, when computers became popular and
widely used in many areas of business. TCO represents all of the costs involved with installing.
operating, and maintaining a network of computers over a period of time.
Our basic assumption was that TCO can provide a financial statement reflecting the
cost of acquisition and of all aspects involved in the further use ai~d maintenance of a computer
network in a tertiary educational institution. Therefore, this study assessed the TCO of
computer networks in tertiary educational institutions, taking as a case study three tertiary
educational institutions in Kigali (Rwanda), namely, the Kigali Institute of Education (KIE).
the Kigali Institute of Science and Technology (KIST) and the Université Libre de Kigali
(ULK). The ultimate aim of this study was to propose a structured methodology to perform a
TCO analysis for the adoption of computer networking. TCO analysis varies among
companies. and different consultants use different models and formulas to calculate it. in this
study, the TCO was evaluated (i) in terms of directs costs related to networking itself
(hardware and software acquisition, retrofitting costs, operations and technical support,
administration and professional development; ‘(ii) in terms of indirect costs, i.e., costs related to
the loss in productivity when users have to stop and fix their own computers or the network is
down because of poor maintenance.
Our major recommendations contain a number of factors to he taken into account in order to
control and, consequently, reduce each of the above mentioned cost categories.
Description
A Dissertation Submitted in Partial Fulfillment Of the requirement Of the Award Of The degree of Master in Business Administration and Management of Kampala International University
Keywords
Assessing the Cost-Components of the Total Cost of Ownership, Kigali, Rwanda