Nothing drains the profits (and the reputation) of a financial services firm faster than uncontrolled IT costs and sloppy tech management. The stakes are sky-high as every dollar wasted, and every vulnerability left unaddressed, impacts your bottom line and client confidence. Between relentless cyber threats, mounting regulatory pressure, and the crippling impacts of a data breach, there’s no room for complacency if you want to stay competitive and relevant.
Letting IT spend go unchecked, watching your technology be guided by the wrong hands, is an invitation for decelerated productivity, compliance violations, and loss of client trust.
Now’s the time for ruthless discipline. When you have a solid IT strategy in place, tightly managed by a trusted managed services provider (MSP) that understands the pace and precision of finance, you can turn technology into your differentiator.
Evaluating your IT MSP: Are you getting the protection you pay for?
Is your current IT MSP or in-house IT team doing everything they can to protect your IT investments, ensure uptime, and guard against threats? We put together a self-assessment to help you know for sure.
The critical questions below are just a few of the evaluation points you’ll find in our new IT Money Pit report, a resource that offers a full diagnosis of the hidden costs and risks lurking in your business technology. Answering these questions can help you:
- Evaluate the health of your IT practices
- Assess the credibility and accountability of your IT partners
- Identify improvement areas
- Vet new IT partners if you’re ready for a switch
Ready to see how your IT partner measures up?
Protecting against threats
Q: Financial services organizations face relentless and ever-changing attempts from cybercriminals who target high-value assets. Does your MSP proactively monitor, patch, and update your entire IT environment daily, including core financial, payment, and transaction systems, to maintain security and regulatory compliance?
If your MSP does this, then you dramatically reduce the risk of breaches, fraud attempts, and compliance violations. You’re one step ahead of evolving threats, audits, and regulations so you can serve clients confidently, keep critical systems running, and avoid costly surprises. This level of protection is what separates resilient institutions from sitting ducks.
If they don’t do this, then you’re gambling with your operations. Data integrity, customer trust, and even your firm’s reputation are up in the air. Vulnerabilities can pile up quickly, tempting bad actors to exploit security gaps. You also run a much higher risk of regulatory fines, service outages, and catastrophic breaches that can erode your bottom line. The worst part: You may be forced into a public apology if an incident makes headlines or exposes client data.
Constantly communicating
Q: In financial services organizations, real-time awareness and proactive communication should be non-negotiable. Does your MSP provide routine, transparent reports and executive briefings on emerging threats to your specific business, changes in the risk landscape, and exactly what they’re doing to protect you?
If your MSP does this, then you can be sure you’re in the loop. You’ll be prepared to make strategic decisions and meet the expectations of regulators and clients. You’ll also be able to spot risks early, ensure accountability, and stay ahead of evolving threats.
If they don’t do this, then expect trouble ahead as you’re exposed to surprises. Security and technology gaps will go unnoticed, vulnerabilities will build, and you will risk falling victim to threats that proactive firms could see coming.
Removing tech stack waste
Q: In financial services organizations, problems like overlapping tools, outdated platforms, and unused security subscriptions are often uncovered. Does your IT partner regularly audit your tech stack to eliminate the redundant software, shadow IT, and licensing waste that can quietly inflate your IT costs?
If your MSP does this, then you can be confident about where your IT budget is leaking. You’ll have the ability to reclaim lost dollars and free up resources for innovation, client service, and risk management. You can also be confident that your technology supports your employees and clients instead of sitting on your books as a sunk (and forgotten) cost.
If they don’t do this, then hidden waste will continue to chip away at your operating margins year after year. Tech sprawl will grow out of control, which makes your risk surface larger. Finally, you’ll miss out on opportunities to drive business growth and trust because you’ll be too focused on plugging leaks instead of finding ways to create value.
Controlling and being transparent about access
Q: It’s critical for leaders of financial services organizations to know who has access to firm data, and what’s being done with that information. Do you know whether your IT MSP outsources any aspect of its support to a third party? If they do outsource, do you know what security controls are in place?
If your MSP communicates with you about this, then you know who holds the keys to your vault. You understand exactly who has access to your sensitive customer data and financial systems. You can verify security protocols and ensure compliance, which helps minimize exposure to breaches, insider threats, and penalties.
If they don’t, then your institution sits exposed. Unknown third parties could mishandle, compromise, or leak your data without your knowledge, putting your firm at risk of not only data breaches and compliance violations but also reputational damage and the loss of client trust. That’s a risk you don’t want to face willingly.
Is it time to rethink your IT approach?
If you didn’t answer an enthusiastic “yes!” to each of these questions above, then your IT partner probably isn’t providing the level of protection and service you need.
The most successful financial services firms are those that have help uncovering inefficiencies early, reining in IT costs, and treating their technology as a strategic asset. By partnering with a trusted IT MSP, you can tap the proactive expertise and accountability you need to ensure that your systems work, can scale, and are truly secure.
Want to make sure you’re getting the service you deserve? Complete the full diagnostic checklist to evaluate your current IT provider and approach.
