Outsourcing IT services to a third-party takes the burden of maintaining IT from the customer and places it on the service provider. While this offers many benefits to the customer, it has many risks as well.
Managed IT services entails any IT related task that is provided by a third-party contractor to a customer. The third-party, who is the managed service provider, is responsible for the performance and security of IT equipment and service, while the customer pays a predictable price and focuses on other business operations. It does not matter if you require managed IT services in Cincinnati or which part of the US, you can have your IT services managed for you wherever you are.
Managed IT solutions can range from the installation of infrastructure and software, analyzing of data, NOC monitoring, data back-up services, IT help desk services, cloud services, uptime maintenance, merged communication, security management network, to networking.
6 Benefits Of Using Managed IT Services
Cost-Saving And Control
Managed IT services are less expensive compared to in-house IT as instead of paying a full-time administrator you only pay for IT services that are needed, and this expense is usually pre-determined and is easy to project and budget for. Also, outsourcing will save you from most IT-related costs of labor, software, network infrastructure, and hardware, maintenance costs, which decrease your return on investment. Reduced costs mean the consumers get the products/services at a lower fee, helping the business remain competitive. The customer also gets access to a wide variety of expertise that may not all be available in-house.
Security And Compliance
Security breaches are a major security concern for most businesses as besides the possibility of huge financial losses, but also a reputation loss that may also end in legal suits. Hiring the services of an IT management company that is well versed with security and compliance standards minimizes the risks pertaining to the maintenance of clients’ data and other sensitive information about the company, and also knows how to take quick action in case it happens. They can also supplement policies and procedures that the industry requires compliance with.
Efficiency And Reliability
Overburdened IT stuff and lack of knowledge and expertise in some IT areas lead to unreliability and inefficiency. Collaborating the efforts of your in-house IT department with those of a widely experienced IT outsourcing firm gets any IT issues sorted out fast, while also benefiting from current and innovative IT solutions for maximum profitability.
Technologies offered by managed IT services companies like remote management and monitoring, cloud computing, backup, and disaster recovery allow for an efficient and reliable IT infrastructure. When the internal IT staff is freed up, they can concentrate on other tasks and projects, and ensure that the company's IT budget gets maximized.
Proactivity
Managed IT service providers are always keen on any potential disturbances and threats in business and fixing them before the business is even aware of it. The in-house IT team does not, therefore, need to worry about the IT infrastructure like network connection speed or dependability or managing it reactively due to unfamiliarity and inexperience. Managed IT services companies have the mechanism to set up policies and practices to prevent IT problems from happening, which is a proactive approach, increasing the operating efficiency of the business by reducing the downtime.
Scalability
When a business outsources its IT services, it allows for scalability flexibility, in that it can scale up or down its IT resources as may be needed. While the IT service provider can provide additional IT staff on a temporary basis when the demand is high and reduce them when the demand is low, hiring and firing of in-house IT employees is not easy and can be expensive too.
However, it is worth noting that seeking managed IT services in Cincinnati does not mean that you get rid of your in-house IT team, as both are meant to complement each other. The external IT service provider can also help troubleshoot problems that the in-house staff is facing and guide them on how to handle the same in the future, saving them the time that they would otherwise have spent trying to identify them and get them fixed.
Access To A Variety Of IT Solutions And Expertise
Many businesses are not able to hire, train, and maintain the best experts in the IT fields. However, getting into an agreement with a managed IT firm gives you access to a wide variety of perspectives and experiences that would otherwise be hard to access. Their professional services will range widely from the daily IT needs and maintenance to the improvement of the existing processes and systems. MSPs have highly skilled IT personnel and are equipped to be all-round in handling each IT function, giving your business access to IT expertise.
3 Risks Of Using Managed IT Services
Data Security Challenge
The outsourced entity gets access to the business data and other confidential information about the company. When a business chooses to terminate the services of such an outsourced entity, the sensitive and confidential information from the business is jeopardized. The release of such sensitive information can be damaging both to the business and the clients.
Also, the process of transition of software, hardware, and other assets from one service provider to another, or from the business to a service provider, may introduce new risks to the business environment.
Reduced Personalized Experience With Clients
Outsourcing IT services can either reduce or completely stop any direct communication between the business and its clients. This limited communication interferes with the direct relationship between the business and its clients, and may lead to dissatisfaction and even possibly business loss.
Loss Of Control
When a business outsources IT services, it loses complete control over the IT needs and projects in the business as it would with an in-house team. This means that timelines' implementation may suffer as the decisions are not in their control. Also, the business is dependent on the proprietary software, and the differences between the two may leave the business at a disadvantage, limiting the flexibility levels that the business can exercise. In case of downtime or slow network connectivity, the business technicians may not have the know-how on how to sort it and have to depend on the IT service provider to handle it.
Conclusion
Each business must take time to weigh its IT needs and see how much they are able to handle internally and just how much they spend on IT support and fixing of technical issues, to make an informed decision on MSP. If they lean more on outward support, then an IT MSP will be the better option.
