With the sustained evolution of technology, outsourcing complex and technical aspects of IT management to an external provider is no longer a luxury. It’s a necessity. However, there are several factors that can put you on the sidelines, unsure about the viability of MSP services.
In the early stages, business managers may view managed IT services as a costly initiative. This pushes them toward a “do-it-yourself” approach which brings more problems than solutions. In the long run, they fail to put into consideration the potential hidden costs and their repercussions – including unplanned operational downtimes, customer dissatisfaction, and adamant cybersecurity threats.
In this article, some of these hidden costs and their effects on your business are discussed in depth. Let’s dive in.
The Increased Risk of Downtime
Without 24/7 IT oversight, organizations live through a constant risk of unplanned downtime. Managed service provider in Charlotte NC offers remote monitoring service whereby they can easily access your systems using remote devices interconnected and managed centrally via the MSP’s infrastructure.
Managed IT providers further conduct regular risk assessments that help identify potential issues facing your IT infrastructure. Early diagnosis can spell the difference between smooth operations, productive workflows and overall success and frequent IT failures that frustrate both employees and customers.
Expensive Security Vulnerabilities
In addition to downtime, the lack of specialized in-house expertise in cybersecurity may leave you vulnerable to cyber threats.
Every day, 560,000 pieces of malware are discovered. Malicious threat actors are devising new ways to bypass existing security installations at a faster pace than most businesses can keep up with. Combined, these conditions pose a great threat to small businesses.
Managed IT providers offer skilled expertise coupled with advanced threat detection technologies. They are adept at pinpointing and resolving cybersecurity threats proactively from their years of experience in the field. At Spectrumwise, for example, we hone nearly three decades of managed IT experience, including cybersecurity for manufacturing, finance, healthcare, and construction firms.
For organizations with an existing IT department, augmenting your team with external cybersecurity experts can strike the perfect balance between cost and a solid cybersecurity strategy.
Regardless, ruling out MSP services altogether could leave you vulnerable to legal action for non compliance with your industry’s data protection requirements. MSPs help you navigate through the complexities of cybersecurity and data protection.
Higher Long-Term Expenses
Investing in an MSP is a cost effective option in the long run. Take for instance, a startup that chooses to hire and deploy its in-house IT team. They’ll need the equipment, incur installation charges, salaries and wages for the employees, and insurance. In the case that the organization realizes significant growth and has a higher reliance on IT, the question then would be;
- Are the current systems adequate and sufficient to support this growth? And if they aren’t,
- What further costs are you to incur inorder to make them efficient for the growth of our organization?
With a managed IT provider, organizations can enjoy scalable and flexible IT solutions at a predictable fee. Often, MSP solutions are custom-fit to meet your business’s needs. For example, systems such as those meant for cloud storage, are made scalable enough to accommodate the organization’s increasing critical data.
Inefficient Resource Allocation
When you don’t make the most out of managed IT services, your business often misallocates crucial resources, including time and personnel to non-strategic areas of operations. This misallocation stems from teams losing focus on high-priority mission-critical IT duties.
The consequences are multifaceted. For one, your IT staff may be overwhelmed with routine maintenance issues rather than focusing on strategic tech initiatives that propel your business forward. If you’re relying on non-IT staff, the situation worsens as these employees are likely to take longer to solve IT issues, and diverted from their primary job duties – possibly leading to critical errors due to their lack of specialized knowledge.
This approach also leads to reactive rather than proactive IT management. Without the insights provided by dedicated professionals, your business is likely to operate in a constant mode of crisis management, and always scrambling to address issues as they arise rather than preventing them.
Limited Access to Skilled Labor and Expertise
The global skills shortage in the IT sector is expected to affect more than 90% of global organizations. Many companies are still under equipped to meet the evolving business needs according to recent findings. This includes internal capacity to connect with customers, find and recruit talent – to state a few.
For companies with internal IT departments, regular training and retraining programs may be required to keep the department up to date and relevant. Still, internal teams may face a hard time navigating through the evolving IT landscape due to lack of specialization.
Managed IT services providers on the other hand have a deeper knowledge of the IT landscape, from different domains, and can offer your organization cutting-edge skills and a competitive edge over larger competitors.
Additionally, it wouldn’t be wise to deprive your in-house IT teams the chance to interact with the expert service providers as they would be able to pick up some skills and better suit your organization’s performance.
Conclusion
Increased downtime, heightened security risks, and spiraling long-term expenses erode your competitive edge. Without a managed IT service provider by your side, your resource allocation workflows become inefficient, updates lag, and access to essential expertise diminishes.
Embrace managed IT services to streamline operations, secure your assets, and position your business for sustainable growth and innovation.
Frequently Asked Questions
How does company size impact the need for managed IT services?
The need for managed IT services is dependent on the specific challenges facing your company. For SMBs, their IT requirements may not be as intensive. As your business grows, however, so do your overall IT needs. Larger organizations tend to have more IT requirements compared to SMBs.
Can managed IT services include custom software development?
Some managed IT services providers may offer custom software development services. However, most MSPs will maintain focus on cybersecurity, cloud services, IT management, issue resolution, and related tasks.
What training do managed IT service teams typically receive?
Managed IT providers train and assess their teams on areas such as network, infrastructure, cloud and security management. These skills are usually developed and taught by a subject matter expert within the organization or external trainers can be contracted.
What is the typical contract length for managed IT services?
Contractual services are offered to clients according to their specific requirements. MSPs can offer contracts lasting 1-3 years with an option to terminate at any time.
