In today’s highly competitive business environment, Information Technology (IT) has gone beyond mere working tools; it is now a critical component for every organization to compete favorably in the industry. In order to keep your internet, networking and general IT infrastructure up and running, it is important to invest in impeccable IT management.
With more organizations leveraging IT for competitive advantage, the demand for skilled IT staff has grown over the years. However, there are some businesses that do not have the financial wherewithal for a full IT department, but still desire to leverage IT for business efficiency.
The feasible way-out to this is to engage a Managed Service Provider (MSP). Managed Services is the practice of contracting out the management of the daily operations of your specialized IT applications to a third party IT firm; in order to reduce cost, improve service delivery, and concentrate better on your core business operations.
Partnering with a Managed Service Provider (MSP) will help ensure that you're always prepared for any eventuality related to your network or computer issues. It also ensures early diagnosis of any emerging IT problem. A great MSP will be proactive in their approach to your IT needs; and will always be on the lookout for ways to improve your IT's performance and security.
Services Managed Service Providers (MSP) Offer
Managed Service Providers help businesses by supplying a varying range of IT services to them, usually on a subscription basis. These services include:
IT Infrastructure management:
In today's business world, an effective network is paramount for business enterprises. An unreliable or ineffective network infrastructure can easily expose your business to security breaches, negatively impact on your users productivity and ultimately on your business bottom line. An MSP will usually provide a wide range of services to administer your network infrastructure such as:
Remote monitoring and alerting
Inventory management
Firmware upgrades and software updates
Installation of security patches
Access and identity management
Backup and restore of configuration and OS images
Technical support:
MSPs provide customer support for businesses who are seeking to delegate those tasks to a third-party. They serve as a one-stop shop to manage all your business' customer queries, complaints, needs, requests and support. This is usually performed following the ITIL framework and includes activities such as:
Incident Management
Problem Management
Change Control
Configuration Management
MSPs provide swift and effective resolutions for your technical queries. This helps you focus on the core business operations and increase your business efficiency. They also facilitate seamless experience for your customers if any by providing them (your customers) with a uniform business response and predictable business response times as committed in the SLA.
Consultancy, IT planning and road mapping:
The goal of partnering with an MSP is to decrease the number of IT related outages and start using the infrastructure efficiently to perform the core business operations. This healthy and stable state of the IT systems will usually be reached after a good amount of time spent in problem resolution, road mapping and IT planning. Thus, allowing to make changes to some or several systems throughout the hardware and software lifecycle. MSPs can be of a great help here since they have a very good knowledge and visibility into their customers IT environment.
Benefits of Managed Service Providers
Many businesses are now leveraging MSPs as it helps them improve service delivery and concentrate better on their core business operations. According to a recent survey by JumpCloud, 88% of IT Admins at SMEs in the United States and United Kingdom are currently using the services of Managed Service Providers; or at least considering using one.
Here are some of the benefits of onboarding an MSP:
Increased Efficiency:
According to Intelligent Technical Solutions, partnering with MSPs can help your business increase operational efficiency by 45-65%. When you outsource your IT needs to a Managed Service Provider, you can be sure that your network will be constantly monitored and maintained. This results in increased efficiency and uptime, which is essential for businesses in today's commercial world.
Reduced Costs:
When you partner with an MSP, you can reduce your overall IT expenses by an estimated 25-45% by taking advantage of their economies of scale. They can also help you avoid expensive downtime by proactively monitoring your systems and addressing problems before they cause major disruptions.
Access to Expertise:
Managed service providers have a team of experts who are up-to-date with the latest technology trends. So, when you engage an MSP, you will have access to industry experts who, with their cutting-edge IT tools/technologies, will help increase your business productivity and efficiency.
Focus on core business duties:
When you entrust your business' IT needs to a managed service provider, you can be confident that your network system is being managed by the best hands. This allows you to focus on running your business effectively.
Improved Security:
According to a report by CISCO, 40% of SMEs that were the target of a cyberattack in 2021 had at least eight hours of downtime. The main financial harm caused by a security compromise is downtime. One of the biggest benefits of working with an MSP is that they can provide much better security for your systems than you could on your own. MSPs have the resources and expertise to implement industry-leading security solutions and keep up with the latest threats.
Ease of Scalability:
With MSPs, you can customize the level of support you need, and only pay for what you use when you want to use it. As your business grows and changes, you can adjust your MSP subscription accordingly.
Whether you are looking to outsource all of your IT services, wanting to augment your existing IT staff or just need some regular assistance with few systems, at Altis Technologies, we can help you! Contact us