A better approach to information technology support explained.
Streamline your technology to reduce complexity and avoid risk.
Top 10 managed services widely held but false beliefs or ideas.
Managed services is the practice of transferring day-to-day related management responsibility of information technology, as a strategic method for improved effective and efficient operations. The organization who owns the system being managed is referred to as the client or customer. The organization that accepts and provides the managed service is regarded as the Managed Service Provider (MSP).
According to the terms of a Service Level Agreement (SLA), a MSP manages hosted servers and applications, as well as the network equipment and applications on the customer premises. Most managed services are provided via remote tools, meaning that the MSP provides services to company employees over the Internet.
For small and medium-sized businesses (SMBs), managed services provide enterprise-class capabilities for a flat and predictable monthly fee. Companies that outsource:
Outsourcing system management to a MSP is more than a technology solution. By reducing costs and freeing up the IT staff to focus on core business, managed services can play an important role in the business strategy of a company.
Common customer challenges are escaping the high cost and reactive response of hourly support, gaining expert business insght and project implementation for less than hiring staff, and leveraging help desk and 7/24 system monitoring with no capital cost or learning curve.
Benefit | Reason |
---|---|
Lower costs | Gain access to innovative technologies and professional expertise for nominal investment that allows competitive advantage and reduces operational costs. |
Lower risk | Eliminate the risk of large capital expenditure to accommodate unplanned business changes, such as outages, inexperience, or unknown requirements. |
Higher levels of support | Professional support and Service Level Agreements (SLAs) for availability as well as performance. |
Predictable costs | Costs always remain at the level specified in the agreement, so that the IT budget becomes stable and predictable. |
Access to latest technology | Subscribing to managed services provides the latest security, up-to-date services, and newest standards. |
Access to enhanced skills base | Managed service providers maintain a staff of specialists. Technical solutions are implemented quickly and at reasonable cost, without having to continually expand internal staff. |
Adaptability | Quickly react to changing business conditions and avoid high capital and operating expenses by having the managed service provider expand or reduce services. |
Focus on core business | Managed service providers are devoted entirely to customer and system requirements, so IT staff can concentrate on core business. |
Capital expenditure reduction | Managed service providers reduce technology infrastructure through virtualization and cloud computing, as well as providing forecast for equipment refresh and software licensing. |
As an increasing number of solution providers try to get into managed services, there are still many myths floating through the channel adding to the confusion for customers. The following are the top 10 myths:
Often described as the holy grail of technology support, the Managed Services Model is an attractive proposition to both vendors and customers. The reason why is because vendors have a predictable revenue stream and operations schedule, while customers enjoy lower cost over both hourly support or staff.
Matrixforce is a Managed Service Provider (MSP) that provides delivery and management of information technology services and products. Our value proposition is specialized expertise with proven processes and systems for significantly less than alternatives.
Managed Service Providers have the following characteristics:
It is critical that the above characteristics are available in-house for a Managed Service Provider to meet the diverse needs of clients. Flat fee and monitoring alone do not make a Managed Service Provider. Managed Services are only cost-effective and efficient with a methodology, knowledge base, system integration, and available staff to respond to clients and monitoring alerts. Without all of these components, service providers cannot deliver the obligations promised for managed services.
How would my business benefit from Guardian® Managed Services?
Some of the proven benefits associated with Guardian® Managed Services include:
What organizations should utilize Guardian® Managed Services?
Managed Services are ideally suited to organizations with 25 to 250 employees. It efficiently serves the needs of businesses in a vast range of industries. Particularly those that are interested in saving money, improving the quality of IT support, and reducing operational headaches that slow productivity and take management and staff away from their core competencies.
How does a MSP support clients remotely?
Using proprietary remote management tools and a fully staffed service desk to manage IT environments anywhere in the country. When “on-site” support is needed, local engineering resources through established partnerships are utilized to meet the agreed upon service levels.
What are the client responsibilities?
Clients are responsible for maintaining support agreements for line of business applications, submitting case requests, acting upon recommendations, and regular executive review of IT operations.
Do most MSPs offer Hosting or Cloud Computing?
It varies by niche and competency, but many MSPs manage day-to-day operations, as well as business continuity of any hybrid infrastructure on-premise or hosted.
How does a MSP ensure the network is properly updated and configured?
System assurance is achieved by documenting the system upfront and throughout coverage in conjunction with proactive monitoring. Vetted MSPs meet regularly with client management to review IT operations, required upgrades, and implementation of emerging technology that benefit the organization.
Learn to avoid incompetent support using only vetted managed IT service providers.
Unqualified providers simply price by user or device instead of service.