The Benefits of Having Your Organization’s IT Managed
Companies of all sizes place a priority on operational efficiency, but not all organizations are equally equipped to maintain this efficiency. Small businesses may have limited IT resources, meaning they can quickly fall behind in updates and network management, placing the company’s system at risk of an outage or breach. For many, the solution is managed IT services.
Managed IT services have been steadily growing, as the preferred solution among some 64 percent of businesses back in 2016, and showing no signs of slowing… the same statistic even predicted the market growth rate of managed services by 12.5 percent between 2017 and 2020, ensuring it as a relevant staple among businesses.
What Are Managed IT Services and How Do They Help the Small & Mid-sized Business Owner?
It is not only large companies that need technology to compete in their respective markets. Reliance on IT is growing, but are the efforts to increase IT support within small businesses moving at the same rate? To keep companies from being overwhelmed due to limits on IT resources, managed service providers, or MSPs, have entered to identify threats and fix potential problems as warning signs arise.
Essentially, managed IT services involve delegating IT tasks and operations to a third-party provider who is responsible for around-the-clock monitoring, management and repair. There is a good chance this approach to technical support differs greatly from what you’re used to if all you have ever considered in the past is a traditional break/fix solution.
A Shift in Thinking Regarding Technical Support Services
Waiting for problems to arise and systems to fail before acting is no longer a viable option. Our increasing dependence on automated systems and digital databases means technology outages can have a profoundly negative impact on business operations and to that effect, profit. If a network goes down or an email server is inaccessible for substantial periods of time, the loss in productivity and revenue could be devastating.
The Difference Between Break/Fix Services and Managed IT Services
Break/fix services
Involves the arrival of an outside technician to your location to diagnose and fix your problem, charging an hourly rate upwards of $200 per hour.
Managed IT services
Offers a consistent relationship between you and your service provider as they handle your network on the go for a monthly service fee.
Break/fix maintenance offers assistance only once something goes wrong, leading to decreasing levels of performance while you wait for the expert to fix your issue. Not only is the timing unfortunate, but in the end, these services may not be as reliable as your needs require.