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Managed IT service is a solution for businesses looking to outsource their IT operations to managed service providers (MSP). Primarily, this setup aims at giving a company more room to focus on its core competencies.
Depending on the nature of your business, hiring managed IT services provider can help even out the road for you in more ways than one. Still, it has its corresponding share of disadvantages.
If you need more clarification about hiring managed IT services providers, such as Boomtech MSP, look no further. Here’s a look at the pros and cons of working with an IT MSP.
What Are The Pros of Hiring Managed IT Services?
Outsourcing your IT needs to an MSP has several advantages:
- It’s A Cost-Effective Approach
Hiring an MSP can keep the company’s expenditure to a minimum while optimizing the IT infrastructure.
There are at least five factors that dictate the price of outsourced IT: the complexity of the network, number of devices, number of servers, amount of data, and necessary upgrades.
Compared to an in-house IT team, it is potentially much less expensive, be it a partially or fully managed IT setup. It can prove financially sensible over time, depending on the nature of the business. To be precise, you won’t have to be burdened with the expenses associated with having an in-house IT team, to wit:
- Office lease and utility expenses
- Salary expenses
- Regular training expenses
- Equipment and supplies expenses
- MSPs Can Offer 24-7 Service
Another benefit of hiring managed IT services providers is their availability 24-7. Unlike an in-house IT team, which can only render services during regular working hours, an IT MSP can assist at any time, especially with a fully managed setup. So any time an IT problem within their scope of services occurs, you’re sure it will be attended to immediately.
- A Good MSP Can Offer You Quality Services
The fact that managed IT service providers can work with their clients 24-7 for the whole year means they have become experts in the industry. They can predict a problem before it can cause major issues. In most cases, in-house IT teams are usually fighting technology problems all the time. This leaves them with lesser time to develop plans and strategies.
With a managed IT service with proactive management, you’re likely to experience minimal downtimes, which translates to better uptimes.
MSPs are legally bound through a service level agreement (SLA), so you won’t have to worry about them keeping their end of the bargain.
- You Get Dedicated, Specialized Personnel
Hiring managed IT services allows you to meet technology engineers specializing in specific IT fields. These engineers continuously learn and train to ensure they’re updated with industry trends. They know how to deal with a problem the fastest way possible. They also ensure that an IT infrastructure is well maintained.
An in-house team with a few personnel needs more IT specialization and skills. This means they’ll need constant education and training to keep up with compliance laws, cybersecurity trends, and emerging technologies. All this is an added cost to your company.
- It Guarantees You A Competitive Advantage
Nowadays, technology is ever more advanced, so much so that any business will have little to no choice but to keep up.
A suitable IT MSP will provide your business with good strategic technological guidance. They will assist you in keeping up with IT trends in ways that will somehow let your business grow.
More so, by ticking major IT operations off your list of things to worry about, you can focus more on developing your core competencies. In other words, an MSP will help you boost your competitive edge and, therefore, take your business to the next level.
What Are The Cons of Hiring Managed IT Services?
Hiring a managed IT services isn’t perfect and also has downsides:
- Data Sharing and Control Can Be A Problem
Since you’ll be giving an MSP access to crucial and sensitive data, you need to know that you can trust them. Before signing the contract, pore over it, especially the terms of confidentiality. Also, be sure about the organizational core values or whether they have a good reputation. This way, you will know how the scales tip for you. Otherwise, such fundamental gaps in this setup can work against your favor.
Outsourced IT won’t give you complete control over the IT infrastructure that supports your business. This is usually the tradeoff when you involve a third party in your business processes—they may not scale with you.
- You Might Not Have The Same Goals
MSPs have other clients besides you. So, chances are, they won’t have a complete understanding of your business flow, especially the nuances. Unlike an in-house team, they will need more time to integrate their processes with yours.
If you have an in-house team, you should choose a managed IT services provider that can work well with them.
- On-site Support May Not Be Within Their Scope
The nature of an MSP is to provide virtual support and management services. Unless they are within the locality, they won’t be able to provide on-site support in urgent situations.
- It Can Get Pricey Too
Depending on the nature of your business and your IT needs, MSP support can be expensive too. It’s mostly ideal for small- and medium-sized enterprises and government organizations. With more network complexity comes a greater need for a wider set of services, thus higher costs.
- They May Offer Limited Services
MSPs can be experts in certain IT areas, but they typically only offer a limited number of software and applications. So a full-service setup might still be lacking if you’re a large, complex company.
Takeaway
Working with a managed IT services provider has several benefits and a fair share of downsides. If you are looking for a clear picture of whether to hire a managed IT service provider, this article has outlined the pros and cons. This will help you make a well-informed decision about whether or not hiring an MSP is a good fit for your business.