Beyond the rate, the io4 360 model reshapes how you work together: budget predictability, a dedicated expert, weekly check-ins. Three clients share their experience.
The problem with the classic hourly model
The dominant IT engagement model in Québec is still time-and-materials: bill by the hour, add it up, send the invoice at month's end. Simple on paper. Insidious in practice.
For the client, it means budget unpredictability: a quiet month followed by an unexpected 40-hour month because a project went sideways. For the provider, it creates a perverse incentive: every hour billed is an hour earned, so efficiency is punished economically. And for the relationship, it breeds constant suspicion: "why did they bill 2 hours for that ticket?"
The io4 360 model is our answer to all three problems. A bank of hours bought up front, drawn down as needs arise, with a dedicated expert.
How the io4 360 hours bank works
You buy a block of hours in advance (50, 100, or 200 per quarter depending on your size), at a single rate negotiated at the outset. Those hours can be spent on any service: a one-off project, Tier 2/Tier 3 support, strategic advice, a security audit, Copilot enablement, Azure optimization.
- A dedicated io4 expert is assigned to you. You talk to them directly, with no ticket to open. They know your tenant, your topics, your constraints.
- A 30-minute weekly call to review consumption, priorities, and what's coming up.
- A real-time dashboard of hours consumed by category: project, support, advisory, training.
- Hours not used in a quarter roll over to the next (up to 25% of the volume).
- A single point of contact, a single invoice, one person who knows your file.
What it changes for the client
The most visible change: the relationship shifts from transactional to a true partnership. When your io4 expert spots a security gap or a Copilot opportunity during a routine engagement, they bring it up - because they have no incentive to let the problem grow so they can bill for it later.
The second change: budget predictability. You know at the start of the quarter how much you're going to spend. No nasty surprises at month's end.
The third: speed of execution. No purchase order to issue for every request, no quote-approval-kickoff cycle. A request in the morning means work starts that afternoon.
Three client perspectives
A 180-employee manufacturing SMB, after 18 months on io4 360: "We used to have an IT provider that billed us for every call. We'd hesitate to even pick up the phone. Now we have a Mehdi who knows our shop and who sometimes calls us himself to suggest an improvement. It changes everything."
A 90-person engineering consultancy, after 12 months: "Budget predictability let us calmly plan our Law 25 compliance work. Before, every project was a negotiation. Now it's in the bank, and we just move forward."
A nonprofit organization, after 24 months: "Our average hourly cost dropped 20% compared to our previous provider, because we no longer pay for time lost in back-and-forth quoting."
Who it's for, and who it isn't for
io4 360 is designed for organizations that:
- Have between 30 and 800 Microsoft 365 users.
- Want a stable partner rather than a ticket vendor.
- Prefer a predictable budget over an optimized hourly rate.
- Are ready to invest in the relationship (the weekly call, the transparency).
- For very small organizations (fewer than 20 users), or those that already have a full IT team and only need very occasional expertise, the classic hourly model remains a better fit.
Want to talk it through?
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