As technology becomes more and more integral to the way we conduct business, the importance of managed IT services becomes more and more clear. Are you still being reactive to your IT needs and requirements? Still trying to ensure your technology can keep your employees working smoothly, no matter where they are or what device they're using?
Even if you have in-house IT staff, Managed IT Services can support your organization's unique needs. This is because Managed Services are highly customizable. Whether you need help with operational IT (like password resets, software or hardware support, or remote desktop support), or you want to focus on more strategic initiatives (such as assembling a proactive security strategy, getting licensing support, or guidance on how to reduce your IT costs), Managed IT Services can ensure that you have the right technology, infrastructure, and support that your business needs, at a budget that works for you.
In this blog, we want to highlight the 5 key benefits of Managed IT Services, and help you to understand why your organization should consider engaging a Managed IT Services provider - even if you already have in-house IT support. Let's get started!
Meet Your New Best Friend - Managed IT Services!
ProServeIT is an expert in IT Managed Services and we’re here to help! As your new best friend, you can leave the tech to us so you can dedicate more of your time and effort to your business.
What are Managed IT Services?
If you're unfamiliar with the term, Managed IT Services is a strategic outsourcing of your organization’s IT responsibilities to an external provider, with the intent of letting that provider assume responsibility on an ongoing basis for your IT systems and functions. That provider monitors, manages and/or resolves issues within your IT environment on a proactive basis, which, in turn, gives you peace of mind that your organization’s IT issues are being dealt with in an efficient and professional manner.
Some of the services provided by Managed IT Services providers include:- An increase in automation, freeing you up to focus on more important things.
- Data Backup and Recovery, to keep your organization going in the event of a disaster.
- Improvement to your operational efficiencies.
- Management of your servers, routers, switches, databases, and licenses (so you don’t have to).
- Desktop support for you and your end-users.
Simply put, by offloading your routine infrastructure management requirements to an experienced and trusted Managed IT Services provider, like ProServeIT, you can spend more time concentrating on running your business.
Now that we've covered what Managed IT Services are, let's talk about the five key benefits in greater detail!
Benefit #1: Minimize IT Burdens for Better Peace of Mind
Maybe your organization already has an IT department who takes care of and supports the IT requirements that your organization has. Or, perhaps your organization doesn’t have the budget or the resources to have in-house IT resources and you're looking for ways that you can outsource some of the more vital requirements. Whatever your situation, having a reliable provider can minimize the IT burdens that you have.
If you don’t have an IT department, a Managed IT Services provider can be an extension of your organization, performing all your routine IT infrastructure monitoring 24x7x365, and helping you to avoid many technology-related issues that you might come across.
For organizations that do have an IT department, a Managed IT Services provider can free up those IT resources to focus on more high-value projects. Strategically adopting Managed IT Services within your organization gives you the opportunity to offload the more repetitive, monotonous, or non-strategic tasks (like end user support, backup, disaster recovery and security, resolving server issues, and more) to your Managed IT Services provider.
Benefit #2: Switch from a Reactive to Proactive IT Model to Increase Security
When you implement Managed IT Services in your organization, you’re opening up the opportunity to switch from a reactive to a proactive IT model. This can increase your overall IT security in a major way.
When you try and manage your own IT security, you can fall into the trap of only reacting to situations that arise. But, when you engage a trusted Managed IT Services provider to assist you, you can rest assured that they know what risks are out there, and they will proactively work to secure your environment by patching your servers, backing up your data, monitoring your environment, and advising you of potential threats before they become a crisis.
Your Managed IT Services provider can also become your administration team, which reduces or eliminates the need for your organization to have in-house admin privileges. That’s not to say that you can’t have in-house admin privileges, but it reduces who in your organization has full access to your system. This increases overall security, especially when you consider that many organizations are breached because of human error.
Benefit #3: Have a Team of Resources at Your Fingertips
Another important benefit of implementing Managed IT Services in your organization is that, when switching to a Managed IT Services model, you can increase your technology expertise (without having to hire additional head count) and easily tap into a full team of IT professionals who have a wide range of talents, expertise, and skills.
Have a question about anything in your IT environment? These professional and knowledgeable people are just a phone call or an email away, and they can provide the answers and support you're looking for, without the costs associated with hiring full-time employees.
Not only does your Managed IT Services provider become the go-to resource for end-to-end customer support, focusing on ensuring your end users have the best experience possible, but your provider also becomes your partner. They learn everything there is to know about the unique ins and outs of your business, including all of your IT infrastructure requirements. This way, if something needs to be replaced or upgraded, your provider knows about it and can ensure that work is done proactively, on your behalf.
Benefit #4: Gain Industry Insights
Technology is constantly changing, with new apps and services and updates and policies. It’s practically a full-time job just keeping up with each new update that is released, or new program that comes out, or new app that is designed to make your life easier. With Managed IT Services, though, you have access to skilled IT professionals who can help you to gain industry insights and advise you on what technology has just gone to market, and what technology should be implemented in your organization.
Remember, a Managed IT Services provider, like ProServeIT, is your subject matter expert for anything technology-related. They're able to manage both the current technology you have, and the new technology you need to implement. Having dedicated IT professionals whose job it is to stay up to speed on all the ebbs and flows and shifts and currents of the technology industry puts you at a competitive advantage.
Benefit #5: Decrease Costs While Increasing Value
How much easier is it for you to have a predictable monthly expense?
Your response to this question was probably along the lines of, "that's a no-brainer" . Of course, organizations prefer predictable costs.
Partnering with a Managed IT Services provider who offers a fixed monthly payment plan provides your organization with just that - predictable costs - and eliminates unexpected charges. Plus, by selecting such a Managed IT Services provider, you can take advantage of the IT support and assistance you need, at a fraction of the cost of having to replicate those same services in-house – no need to pay extra salaries and benefits; just one flat monthly or annual fee.
But that's not all we mean when we say that Managed IT Services reduces costs. Consider this, as well:
One of the key costs of a new technology project is the discover and design phase. This is where your IT provider will map out all your core dependencies and determine what needs to be implemented, and how they're going to do it.
But, when you work with a Managed IT Services provider, they gain intimate familiarity with your technology and environment, and, more important, they are familiar with the projected technology roadmap for the organization, as well. So, when it comes to new technology projects, your provider already has the knowledge they need to be able to work on implementation, which, in many cases, means that they can skip the design and discover phases. This can reduce the costs of each new project you implement, and allows changes to happen much faster.
Like what you've read so far? Ready to see how to get started? The first thing to consider is choosing the right Managed IT Services provider.
How to Choose a Managed Services Provider
When considering Managed IT Services solutions, it's important to select a Managed IT Services provider who aligns with your own business values and objectives. You want to make sure that the relationship between your organization and your new Managed IT Services provider is a partnership, with both companies working towards the same goals and objectives.
From understanding what to look for in a Managed IT Services partner, to questions you should be asking when signing a Managed Services agreement, to integrating Managed IT Services with your current IT resources, and more, ProServeIT's 4-part webinar series will help you to explore your Managed IT Services journey from start to finish and give you the holistic overview you need to determine if Managed Services is the right step for you.
Check out the first video, "What are Managed IT Services?" below!
Get A Free Estimate for Managed IT Services Today!
The 5 key benefits of Managed IT Services that we've mentioned in this blog can help you to ensure that you have the peace of mind you deserve. And don't we all deserve a little peace of mind?
If you'd like to explore what Managed IT Services could look like for your organization, fill out this short form, and let us provide you with a free estimate for Managed IT Services through ProServeIT. Got questions? We're happy to help - click here for more information on Managed IT Services, or give us a shout to get started!
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