11 Reasons To Consider An Orlando Managed Services Provider In 2020

3 Tips For Transitioning to an MSP

More and more small and mid-sized companies are realizing that transitioning to an MSP or outsourcing their IT services can be beneficial. Managed Services Providers (MSP) can handle many functions, such as application support and data center management, which in return, allows internal IT teams to concentrate more on strategic initiatives.

However, one challenge that service providers face is when the company won’t take a step back and let the delivery model work. To avoid this roadblock, it’s important to define Managed Services and learn how to make it work for your company.

What is Managed Services

Managed Services allow a business to offload their IT operations to a service provider, such as Tech Rage IT. The MSP assumes an ongoing responsibility for 24/7/365 monitoring, managing and/or problem resolution for the IT environment within a company. MSPs take efficiency, speed, and agility to the next level, and assure the client that the services will be delivered as promised.

Transitioning to an MSP

Moving toward a Managed Services approach requires a business to rethink the roles of both the MSP and their internal organization. It may be difficult for an SMB to give up certain or even full control and responsibilities. For example, in regards to cybersecurity, the business may want to use their preferred anti-virus and anti-malware protection. However, to allow an MSP to offer a higher level of services at a lower cost, the client is encouraged to focus on what work gets done, not how. This way, they will get the full value of Managed Services. And here are three tips to make transitioning to Managed Services successful.

1 - The client must let go of the traditional roles of control.

MSPs appreciate when the client steps aside from managing them, which in return allows the provider to perform, deliver and report successfully. When client resources jump in too quickly to fix a problem, instead of allowing the MSP to take charge, it duplicates work. If this happens for an extended period, the client is now paying two teams to do the work: the internal team and the service provider.

2 - The MSP must accept responsibility and deliver services.

To offer world-class IT support, the Managed Services provider must be willing to accept and perform all tasks under the agreed-upon structure. Additionally, it is the MSPs’ responsibility to stay within cost targets to ensure that periodic activities take place.

3 - The right person needs to be accountable for the MSP.

An internal person overseeing the service provider needs to focus on leadership, business knowledge, and collaboration, not on the technical environment. Many times, the same resource that managed the technical side is now overseeing the managed services side. This poses an internal conflict to try to fix the problems, instead of managing the service provider.

The transition to Managed Services may be challenging at first, but the ideal result is well worth it for SMBs: predictable costs, delivery of an agreed-upon outcome, and a higher level of service. If your business is looking to switch to Managed Services, contact Tech Rage IT today and ask about our Full Managed Services!