Small and medium-sized businesses (SMB) have to juggle many priorities and daily demands. Acquiring and retaining customers. Avoiding inefficiency. Delivering excellent customer service. Managing costs. Hiring employees. Meeting government regulations. Keeping current with industry trends.
Technology can help SMBs streamline their processes, improve employee productivity, and maintain a competitive edge. But technology comes with its share of challenges, especially as mobile devices continue to take over and computing needs rapidly change.
That’s where managed services come in. Defined as specialized IT support delivered according to a clearly described service-level agreement over a fixed period of time for a low and predictable cost, managed services are the safest bet in today’s tech environment. Especially when compared with reactive or break-fix IT services.
Stability and Expertise
Predictable IT costs. Managed services convert variable IT costs tied to the break-fix or reactive mode of support into the stable costs of proactive support. This allows business owners to budget effectively and pay what they can afford on a set schedule rather than getting hit with unexpected bills when tech problems arise.
Legitimate training. On top of hiring and training an IT staff, the cost of ongoing education and certification can break a small business owner’s bank. And if you’re not well versed in the IT world, how can you ensure an IT employee is actually qualified? Don’t let undertrained tech “experts” fool you into thinking they can solve all of your problems.
Real-world experience. And while certifications are important, so is experience. Leading managed service providers encounter very few problems they haven’t seen before, while an in-house IT employee often remains narrowly focused on a small set of problems. You’d rather an experienced doctor solve your physical ailments, right? The same goes for an IT support team.
Reduced Risk, Leveled Playing Field
A safe bet. Since market trends, government regulations, financial conditions, and technologies all change quickly, every business investment carries a certain amount of risk. Working with a trusted MSP that can assume and manage much of this risk for you is a major advantage that comes with specific industry knowledge and years of experience.
A real competitive edge. Most small to medium-sized businesses can’t afford to match the strong in-house support services that larger companies enjoy. Working with an MSP, however, gives small companies enterprise-level solutions by providing the kind of access and expertise that large companies enjoy. Managed cost structures and economies of scale like that can give your company a major advantage.
Compliance that counts. Is your firewall capable of fending off attacks? Do you audit your workstations and servers regularly? Has your company implemented PCI security standards and worked to maintain those standards? Small to medium-sized businesses have more ways than ever to handle commerce via credit and debit cards, e- commerce, wire transfers, and more. But with this increased transaction sphere comes a stronger need for due diligence. Employing a managed services provider allows your business to minimize the risks associated with maintaining client data and other sensitive information, the misuse of which can cause serious harm to your business.
Break-Fix: High Cost, Low Value
“Hey, Margaret!” Some little firms deal with IT in this method: relying on a non-IT employee to handle day-to-day IT issues. Margaret never asked for this role — it only evolved in her direction. But the impact of her being asked to fix co-workers’ urgent issues is not often calculated; neither is the likelihood that her lack of formal IT knowledge can lead to more costly repair bills in the future.
“I got a guy.” Small companies that have accepted the flaw in the “Hey Margaret!” support strategy try to solve the issue by engaging an experienced technical support specialist on a part-time, fixed hourly rate basis. Yet the “I got a guy” guy may maintain upper of a dozen part-time clients in order to make a decent living, also he may not always be available when a business owner absolutely needs him. In that scenario, the company does get a more technically qualified solution. But it’s also at the mercy of that independent operator with competing demands for his time and attention.
“Call in the Geek Squad!” After the business holder usually only notices the “I got a guy” guy when there is a problem, mayhem follows when upset calls go unanswered. Then, the business owner has no option but to open the yellow pages and also look for help, often settling for the first company that can respond to the immediate need. While these techies can indeed give relief for failed hard drives and other desktop problems, they often do not have the skills to support complex networks or understand a business’ specific wants.
“Hire an IT person — pronto!” As the lack of immediate accessibility develops within an issue(or when the “I got a guy ” and the “Geek Squad” fail to resolve an issue), the business possessor finally determines to hire an in-house resource that can answer empty complaints. The new hire is immediately handed a long register of issues to resolve. Unfortunately as both the internal IT resource also the company, the catalog never gets shorter and the internal IT support is forever in “react” mode, responding to the most severe problem and seldom getting ahead.
Managed Services: Low Cost, High Value
Proactive approach = resolution before the crisis. Monitoring and maintenance software can identify issues before they affect employee capacity. And everyone can rest easier knowing that resolution happens before situations turn into “white-hot” emergencies.
Uniform application of the optimum resource. The lowest-cost, most highly credentialed resources are applied to the recognized problem first, while bigger problems are escalated to higher-skilled resources in a fluid also seamless manner so that resolution can be fast achieved.
Fast response regardless of priority. With multiple levels of on-site and distant IT support available, problems can be addressed simultaneously rather than in sequential instruction. The proactive approach also makes sure the ultimate in responsiveness: resolving issues while they’re still disguised and before they’re disclosed by the end user. The immediate impact is improved productivity; the longer-term impact is a more tech-literate staff that’s an exceptional ability to leverage the company’s technology investment.
The Final Word
None of the problems faced by little to medium-sized businesses — relentless competition, technological complexity, the never-ending want to do more with less — are going to vanish anytime soon. So the value of a high-quality, low-cost solution to this problem will only cultivate. That’s why CMIT Solutions has spent years tailoring a variety of managed services that can help boost efficiency also the capacity for your business.
Proactive IT support takes the complexity out of technology by providing comprehensive support at one flat-rate price — no surprises.
The break/fix approach to IT support has not only failed to meet the wants of SMBs, but it has damaged the relationship between technicians also the small businesses they serve. small businesses feel vulnerable because they don’t understand their technicians’ jargon-heavy language, heavy workload, also unpredictable costs. Meanwhile, technicians feel overworked and under appreciated, locked in a loop of repetitive, high-stress tasks as they jog from one crisis to the next, unable to work on more satisfying projects that can did offer lasting value to the business.
Only a radical alteration in IT support philosophy and delivery can make the break/fix model obsolete and deliver higher efficiency and productivity to SMBs at a lower, more certain cost. Technology is elemental to the success of a small to medium-sized business, and CMIT Solutions understands that.
Via: Cmitsolutions.com
