The Force, The Empire and the MSP

Managed services are becoming an important discussion for small and medium sized businesses. Is it better to have your own in house IT expert, your Jedi, or to outsource your IT services to an MSP (Managed Services Provider)? Some choose a third option of paying an MSP, reactively when things break. Different models for different businesses.

With more businesses depending on the internet, computers, databases, emails and the general exchange of information, outsourced IT services are becoming more and more an important discussion. No doubt you've heard, or you've at least read about, the benefits of managed services. Managed services refer to clearly defined outsourced IT services delivered to you at predictable costs. You know the exact IT services you'll be getting and what you'll pay for them.

The misconception is that MSP’s are evil and only work off of the break fix mentality or over charge for no service. I like to refer to this as The Empire MSP program, never around when you really need them and only there when something breaks after you’ve already felt the effects of the downtime. The majority of smaller companies take this route because they feel as if they're too small for a more sophisticated 24/7 approach to IT services. They also feel pressure to direct all resources on the product or service, not behind-the-scenes operations. Using on-call IT services only further complicates and frustrates most users, the on-call’s lack of familiarity extends downtime, wastes time of employees to re-discuss issues and is reactive, not proactive, and it's a costly mistake too often made.

Now we have our famous Jedi, your in house technology expert. This is a very valuable person. Typically this Jedi manages a company with anywhere from 20-60 employees. This one employee usually comes with a high salary and will need to be extremely proficient and cross trained in a diverse environment. Managing both the end user and vendors as well as the software and hardware including workstations, servers and network equipment. This Jedi will likely be overworked and vulnerable to error or oversights that may prove to be costly, and what happens if he/she is out sick or on vacation?

This is why many SMB’s today feel that managed services are the most cost-effective way to support their IT infrastructure and the best way to get more bang for their buck. Full time support, dedicated help desk with account managers, engineers and help desk technicians. Outsourced IT solutions, Managed Service Providers are a welcomed solution helping business grow and stay focused on what’s most important, growing your business. Sign uptoday for a network evaluation to see where you can save or fix and get your productivity back on track. Don’t fall victim to The Empire, let an MSP be your cost-effective IT Solution.