5 things you need to make sure your managed service provider is doing
Your IT is working and seems to be doing just what you need it to in the day-to-day. But will doing just enough today be enough for your business in a year? Hell, is it enough for the next six months?
It’s all too easy to fall into a hands-off mentality with your MSP. After all, that’s why you hired them, right? But just because everything is working doesn’t mean you shouldn’t check in from time to time to make sure your technology is ready to grow with you.
Here are some things you need to make sure you’re getting from your managed service partner to make sure your technology is empowering your business.
Regular cost analysis
You’re willing to pay for the value of a great solution that helps your business. But that doesn’t mean you should be overpaying. It’s important to assess what you’re getting vs. what you pay and to make sure you’re getting the same level of service that you got when you were first onboarded.
Cybersecurity to suit your needs
A recent study showed that 89% of SMBs would switch to a new MSP if they could offer better cybersecurity support. It makes sense, hacking attempts are some of the biggest problems facing SMBs today.
And trust us, your business is always at risk of a cyberattack. That’s why it’s becoming increasingly important to make sure you understand what cybersecurity infrastructure you have in place and compare it against what you need. This is easily one of the biggest risk-sectors your business faces, you need to treat it like that.
Support that doesn’t quit on you
Downtime costs the average SMB $141,000. We don’t need to tell you that’s a bad thing. That’s why 24/7 tech support isn’t just a bonus service — it’s required.
Make sure your current managed service partner provides you with round-the-clock service (hopefully at no additional cost!). Your business can’t wait-out an outage. You need a partner who understands that.
A process for streamlining processes
An efficient business needs efficient business processes. And a great IT support partner will have a process for that.
From unified communications to workflow automation, any IT provider worth their salt will offer solutions that save your business time and money.
Educate and advise
Sometimes, your business needs a more hands-on approach. Hopefully, you have a managed service provider who doesn’t shy away from that. If you operate in a heavily regulated industry, such as healthcare, an IT support provider shouldn’t just understand your compliance requirements – they should regularly educate your staff on what they can do to help you maintain those compliance standards.
With the help of an excellent IT services provider, employees will understand how to better mitigate risk. And even if something changes, you will know their training needs are always addressed.
A partner who is there to guide you
Working with an IT support provider should be more than a partner — they should be your guide through all the technology difficulties you can’t navigate alone. The right IT partner will empower more than your technology, they will empower your staff and your business with meaningful, impactful strategies.
For more information on what to look for in an IT provider, and what they can do for you, contact us today. We know what it takes to guide businesses like yours to better outcomes.
