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Businesses today spin a lot of plates. There’s development, recruitment, marketing, sales, and customer support to take care of, plus more granular tasks like determining processes for internal communication and data storage. The sheer number of tasks has led many businesses to outsource certain activities, including IT services. Handing over your IT processes to a managed service provider can take a load off, but it’s important to choose the right MSP staffing solution.
In this post, we’ll talk about the top benefits of outsourcing IT management and questions to consider before partnering with an MSP.
What are the benefits of outsourcing IT services?
Outsourcing IT services to an MSP offers several advantages:
Fewer costs
Hiring internal IT staff is a costly process. You need to create job ads, filter out the best candidates, interview prospects, and onboard new hires — all of which take time and money. Outsourcing the process gives you instant access to a pool of experts without the overhead costs. You can spend your energy on business-critical tasks without needing to maintain an in-house IT department.
Scalability
Even if you already have an IT team, sometimes demand for their services exceeds their capacity. Outsourcing tasks to an MSP can help address short-term and long-term needs, as well as supplement in-house IT as and when it’s needed. For example, if you need your internal team to focus on implementing new software or handling a website migration, you could outsource the remote management of user endpoints to keep devices secure.
Many MSPs offer the option for monthly service agreements, so you can get the support you need without committing to a lengthy contract.
Enhanced security
Ensuring company data is safe and secure is a delicate but necessary task that not all businesses have the in-house knowledge to manage. It requires constant monitoring and investment to minimize risks — something that can quickly drain resources if not implemented correctly.
An IT team with the knowledge to secure your data keeps you compliant and removes the burden of responsibility internally. MSPs can confidently and effectively implement processes like patch management, which identifies, prioritizes, tests, and deploys patches to prevent security incidents before they impact your business and reputation.
Access to top-tier services
Most MSPs work within a partnership ecosystem that gives them access to the best industry resources, software, and services. Even better, these partnerships often offer great benefits that aren’t otherwise available, such as reseller pricing, no-contract service, and no minimum spend.
These partnerships expand what an MSP can offer clients, usually just as an optional upgrade, instead of the need for a separate platform and large initial investment.
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Questions to ask when considering an MSP
Choosing an MSP staffing solution requires careful consideration. It’s a good idea to talk to a handful of MSPs and get details about how they work before formalizing a partnership. Here are some questions to ask:
How do you communicate with clients?
Ideally, the MSP staffing service you choose is quick to respond to requests and has a process for providing status updates. Communication doesn’t always have to be real-time person-to-person conversations, either. Some MSPs have ticketing systems that automatically reflect the status of any request and give clients the ability to see what’s happening.
How do you manage security?
Detailed security procedures are essential, regardless of who you outsource your IT needs to. Handing over your IT management to a third party requires a high degree of trust and confidence that they’ll protect your sensitive data.
When choosing an MSP, evaluate their approach to cybersecurity so you can understand how they tackle threats and stay compliant. Most providers are open about their security protocols (it’s a red flag if they aren’t), and they should be comfortable answering questions about their security processes and standards.
Do you offer 24/7 support?
Most MSPs offer remote monitoring services that allow them to serve clients anywhere around the clock. That always-online reliability is usually made possible by automation that handles routine tasks and prevents security breaches, even when MSP technicians have logged off for the day.
Ask how an MSP approaches continuous monitoring and whether they can schedule critical endpoint or software updates for times outside of your normal business hours.
What’s your pricing structure?
Some MSPs offer fixed pricing with tiered service packages. But if your needs don’t align with the available packages, you might end up paying for services you don’t need. MSPs may also charge by the hour, by the number of endpoints, or a combination of those factors, which can make budget forecasting a bit more complicated.
When pricing is flexible and negotiable, you’re more likely to find an agreement that covers your needs and gives you room to increase or decrease the scope of your agreement as needed.
Discover what MSP staffing can do for you
Outsourcing your IT tasks to a professional and experienced MSP frees up time and reduces costs. It also means you don’t have to worry about recruiting in-house and managing an entire team. Instead, you can hand over responsibility for endpoint management, security, and compliance to a dedicated team and free up internal bandwidth for other business processes.
To learn more about the value of an MSP, take a look at this guide.
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