Power supplies. Without redundant backups, your network is vulnerable to a shutdown. The lost productivity will make extra equipment seem inexpensive in comparison. Integrity. Faulty or contradictory data can break older networks. Newer equipment has solved these problems. Again, the potential cost of lost productivity makes newer equipment a good value. Firewalls. Hackers can leak trade secrets stolen from unprotected networks. Firewall software upgrades are relatively inexpensive. VOIP. Organizations worldwide are switching to VOIP--not just outside-line telephones but also switchboard and teleconferencing. If your network is out-of-date, it may fail when you eventually try this new technology.

Speed. Older platforms such as 10BASET will throttle your bandwidth. You can now upgrade to a Terabit or more. Just think of the seconds, minutes, hours, and days lost as staff wait for email to arrive and web pages to load. Final tip: show how cost-effective IT network maintenance really is. Get a firm cost estimate from a vendor. Just make sure your cost estimate is as competitive as it can be. You can often get new equipment at half the cost of retail by buying refurbished equipment. Close your case for a better network with this wisdom: no matter what you pay, keeping your network up-to-date is cheaper than the consequences of letting it fall into disrepair.