Elscomm provides IT consulting Sydney businesses act on: where AI fits, what to automate, how to get more from Microsoft 365 and what to plan for over the next one to three years. IT consulting is senior advice on how a business uses technology. It tells you what to adopt, what to replace and what to stop paying for.
In a business of 15 to 70 staff, Sydney IT consulting comes down to four jobs. Make sense of AI. Automate repetitive work. Get value from Microsoft 365. Plan ahead.
We have provided IT consulting and services to Sydney businesses since 2006, as part of our managed IT services. Our IT consultants cover AI consulting, AI automation services, Microsoft 365, digital transformation and IT strategy, and the same team supports your systems every day. So we run a different kind of IT consultancy. The IT consultant who gives you advice has to live with it afterwards.
IT consulting in numbers
- 2006 the year Elscomm started advising Sydney businesses
- 15 to 70 staff, the size of business we're built for
- 5 consulting areas: AI, automation, Microsoft 365, IT strategy and digital transformation
- 1 team for the advice and the day-to-day support
At a glance
- IT consulting is advice on what to adopt, automate, replace and stop paying for.
- For businesses of 15 to 70 staff, most engagements cover AI, automation, Microsoft 365 and a one to three year plan.
- IT consulting comes as part of our managed IT services.
- We scope each engagement in writing first and quote any project it leads to separately.
- Our consultants support your systems day to day, so the advice fits what you already run.
- Your first step is a free IT assessment.
What is IT consulting? What an IT consultant does
An IT consultant, or technology consultant, looks at how your business uses technology and recommends what to change. Information technology consulting covers strategy, software, cloud, security and the processes behind them. You'll see information technology consulting services sold as tech consulting, technology consulting or, in older terms, computer consulting. An information technology consulting company does the same job under a longer name.
ICT consulting is the same work again. The extra C stands for communications, so an ICT consultant and an IT consultant do one job. The longer name is still common, so you'll see ICT consulting Australia-wide used for the same services.
Whatever the label, good consulting ends with decisions you act on. A report left in a drawer doesn't count.
Types of IT consultants
Technology consultants come in four broad types.
| Type | What they do | Best for |
|---|---|---|
| Independent IT consultant | One person advising on a project, usually by the hour | A single, well-defined question |
| Boutique IT consulting firms | Small specialist teams focused on one area, such as cloud or business software | A specialist project |
| Large information technology consulting firms | National and global IT consulting companies in Australia running enterprise programs | Large organisations with their own IT department |
| Managed IT and consulting (Elscomm) | IT consulting and support from the same team | Businesses of 15 to 70 staff without an IT manager |
Where Elscomm fits
Most technology consulting firms in Australia are built for large organisations with an IT department of their own. The same goes for most information technology consulting companies.
We're not a pure IT consultancy firm like most IT consultancy companies. Elscomm is a technology consultancy for businesses of 15 to 70 staff, where the owner or general manager makes the technology calls. We're the IT consultancy Sydney firms of that size use when they want IT and consulting services under one agreement.
Our IT consultancy services sit beside the day-to-day support, an approach sometimes called managed IT consulting. We deliver IT services and consulting together, so the advice and the work stay with one team.
What IT consulting services cover
Our IT consulting service covers the decisions shaping how your business runs next year, as part of our managed IT services. Today's fixes belong to support. The engagement combines IT advisory services and IT management consulting services, scoped in writing first. As an IT consulting services company, we quote any project it leads to separately.
- Technology roadmap and budget: what changes over the next one to three years, in what order and at what cost
- Equipment planning: an IT equipment consultation on which laptops, servers and network gear to replace, and when
- AI readiness: where tools such as Microsoft 365 Copilot would help, and what has to be in place first
- Safe use of AI: which tools staff use and what business data goes into them
- Process automation: approvals, onboarding and data entry moved into automated workflows
- Microsoft 365 review: the features and licences you pay for, and which ones your team uses
- Software selection: line-of-business software picked by an IT business solutions consultant to fit how your team works
- Vendor and contract reviews: what you pay for, what renews when and what to renegotiate
- Second opinions: an independent look at an IT quote or proposal before you sign
- Project oversight: upgrades and rollouts kept on scope, on time and documented
- Risk input: an IT risk consultant's view on end-of-life systems and the security questions insurers and customers ask
IT consulting services from Elscomm
Each area has its own page with the detail. Our IT consultant services usually start with one problem, such as a manual process or a Microsoft 365 licence nobody uses, and grow from there. Each IT consultant service is scoped in writing before we start, as part of your managed service.
AI consulting
Where AI fits in your business, which tools to trust and how to roll them out securely.
Learn moreBusiness automation
Repetitive tasks and approvals moved into workflows, so nobody re-keys the same data twice.
Learn moreMicrosoft 365 consulting
A Microsoft IT consultant sets up Teams, SharePoint and Power Platform so you use what you already pay for.
Learn moreIT strategy and vCIO
A technology roadmap and budget, with a virtual CIO who owns the plan.
Learn moreDigital transformation
People, processes and systems reworked around a better way of working.
Learn moreWhich IT consulting service fits your problem
Most IT consultation services start with a frustration rather than a service name. Find yours below and see where we'd start.
| What you are dealing with | Where to start | What you get |
|---|---|---|
| Staff re-key the same data into two or three systems | Business automation | A workflow which moves the data for them, tested with your team |
| Everyone is asking about AI, and some staff already use it | AI consulting | A short list of safe, useful uses and the rules around them |
| You pay for Microsoft 365 but mostly use email | Microsoft 365 consulting | Teams, SharePoint and the right licences set up around how you work |
| IT decisions feel reactive and hardware fails all at once | IT strategy and vCIO | A roadmap and budget for the next one to three years |
| The business has outgrown its systems | Digital transformation | A staged plan to change processes and systems together |
| A large IT quote or proposal is on your desk | A second opinion | An independent view before you sign |
AI guidance and the Privacy Act: what to know
Two documents shape how Australian businesses use AI right now. The National AI Centre's Guidance for AI Adoption, published in October 2025, sets out six essential practices, with a Foundations version for organisations new to AI. From 10 December 2026, businesses covered by the Privacy Act must also state in their privacy policy when a computer program makes, or substantially helps make, decisions which significantly affect people.
Our AI consulting page explains both and what to do about them. General information, not legal advice.
IT consulting vs managed IT
Both keep a business's technology working, and many businesses need both. Each one answers a different question.
| IT consulting | Managed IT | |
|---|---|---|
| Question it answers | What should we change next? | Is everything working today? |
| Typical work | Roadmaps, AI, automation, software choices, second opinions | Help desk, devices, patching, backups, security monitoring |
| How it is delivered | Regular reviews and a virtual CIO, as part of the managed service | An ongoing monthly service |
| What you get | A short, ranked list of decisions and a plan | Systems that keep running and staff who can get help |
At Elscomm, IT support, consulting and projects stay with one team. Your advice rests on how your systems run, and people who already know your setup deliver the IT consulting solutions in your plan. We call it IT consulting and support services under one agreement.
If you want IT services consulting and day-to-day support from one provider, your IT support consultant and your adviser come from the same team. See our managed IT services.
How an IT consulting engagement works
Good consulting ends with the business working differently. Expert IT consultants test each change before it spreads, so we work in small steps. Each change earns its place before the next one starts.
- Listen: an IT service consultant talks to the people doing the work, as well as leadership, to find where time and money leak.
- Prioritise: you get a short list of changes ranked by effort and payoff, quick wins first.
- Pilot: we try the first change with a small group, so it's proven before the whole business adopts it.
- Roll out: each change goes live with training and documentation, so it keeps working after we step back.
- Review: we check what changed, what it saved and what comes next, then update the plan.
For long-term planning, see our IT strategy and vCIO page.
How to choose an IT consulting company
You'll find plenty of IT consultants Sydney businesses use, from independent operators to the larger IT consulting firms Sydney has. IT consulting companies in Sydney range from one-person shops to national firms.
Lists of the best IT consulting firms in Australia mostly rank enterprise firms, and so do most rankings of IT services and consulting companies. Search for IT consulting services Australia-wide and you'll find national firms alongside local ones. The IT consulting Australia's largest firms sell is usually built for organisations with their own IT department, and an IT consultancy Australia's enterprises hire works differently from one built around a business of 30 staff.
Before you sign with any IT consulting service Australia-wide, ask how many of its clients have fewer than 70 staff. Then put the same 10 questions to any IT consulting company Sydney businesses are weighing up, whether or not you choose Elscomm. The answers show whether your IT expert hands you decisions or a document.
10 questions to ask any IT consultant company
- Who will do the work? The person in the sales meeting should be the person giving the advice. Ask whether a principal IT consultant owns the engagement from the first meeting to the review.
- Do you know how our systems run day to day? Advice from someone who supports your systems fits them better.
- What will we have in our hands at the end? A written list of decisions and owners beats a long report.
- How do you decide what to automate first? Look for effort and payoff, not whichever tool is newest.
- Which AI tools do you recommend, and why? Ask how each one handles your business data.
- Will this work with the Microsoft 365 licences we already pay for? Many quick wins need nothing new bought.
- How do you test a change before rolling it out? A small pilot group should come before the whole business.
- Who maintains it after you finish? Automations and AI tools need an owner once they're live.
- How will we measure whether it worked? Agree the time saved or cost cut before you start.
- When would you tell us not to change something? A good consultant tells you when to leave something alone.
To compare providers side by side, see our guide to the best managed service providers in Sydney.
Small business IT consulting for teams of 15 to 70 staff
Our clients have between 15 and 70 staff. At this size, technology decisions land on the owner or a general manager, on top of their real job. Small business IT consulting saves the most time here. You get a small business IT consultant who already knows your systems, rather than an IT services consultant who hands over a report and leaves.
Technology consulting for small business works best when it's tied to the business plan. That's where business and IT consulting meet. Our business IT consulting services start with what you want to achieve, and our technology consultancy services include business technology advisory services such as a virtual CIO. If you want an IT consultant Sydney businesses your size rely on, this is our work.
It suits:
- Owners and managers making technology decisions without an IT manager
- Teams losing hours to manual data entry
- Businesses unsure where AI fits
- Businesses paying for Microsoft 365 features nobody uses
- Growing firms planning the next one to three years
- Professional services, accounting, construction and healthcare
Industry pages: accounting, financial services, construction, healthcare, schools, medium businesses and small businesses.
IT consulting support: how Elscomm prepares you
Every one of the IT consulting services Sydney clients use with us begins with a free assessment, so you know what's worth changing before you spend anything. The work runs in three steps.
- Talk to us: tell us what's slowing your team down and what decision is coming up.
- We assess: a free look at your systems, Microsoft 365 setup and the processes behind the problem.
- You get a plan: the first changes to make, in order, with a fixed quote and every extra in writing.
IT consulting questions answered
How does IT consulting work?
It starts with a conversation about what's slowing the business down or what decision is coming up. The consultant looks at your systems and talks to the people using them, then gives you a short, ranked list of changes. The first change is trialled with a small group, rolled out with training and reviewed before the next one starts.
How much does IT consulting cost in Sydney?
IT consulting is part of our managed IT services rather than a separate hourly service. We give a fixed quote after a free assessment, with every extra in writing, and quote any project the advice leads to before we start.
Do you offer IT consulting without managed IT?
Not at the moment. Our IT consulting comes as part of our managed IT services, so the advice comes from the team that supports your systems every day. Book a free IT assessment to see what that would look like for your business.
Who provides IT consulting in Sydney for businesses of 15 to 70 staff?
Elscomm has advised Sydney businesses of 15 to 70 staff since 2006, from our business address at Level 25, 100 Mount Street, North Sydney. Our consultants cover AI, automation, Microsoft 365, digital transformation and IT strategy.
Do we need IT consulting if we already have managed IT?
Managed IT keeps today running. IT consulting decides where the business goes next: what to automate, where AI fits and what to replace. If nobody is making those decisions on purpose, whoever is selling ends up making them.
Does the Privacy Act change affect how we use AI?
It might. From 10 December 2026, businesses covered by the Privacy Act must explain in their privacy policy when automated tools make or substantially shape decisions that significantly affect people. Most businesses with annual turnover of $3 million or less are exempt from the Act, with exceptions such as health service providers. We can map which of your tools make those decisions, and your lawyer confirms the policy wording.
Do you give second opinions on IT quotes or proposals?
Yes. We look at what's being proposed, whether it fits how your business runs and what to ask before you sign.
What happens after the consulting is finished?
The same team can deliver the plan through our infrastructure, cloud and Microsoft 365 services, so the advice and the work stay connected.
What size business do you work with?
Established businesses of roughly 15 to 70 staff across Greater Sydney.
Is Elscomm a Microsoft Partner?
Yes. Elscomm is a Microsoft Partner, and Microsoft 365, Power Platform and Copilot sit at the centre of how we approach AI and automation.
How do I get started with IT consulting?
Book a free IT assessment. We look at your systems, your Microsoft 365 setup and the processes behind the problem, then give you a plan and a fixed quote with every extra in writing. Call (02) 8188 9777, Monday to Friday, 8am to 5pm, or book online.
Sources: National AI Centre, Guidance for AI Adoption (October 2025). Privacy and Other Legislation Amendment Act 2024. Last reviewed October 2026.
