When you start a business, your tech needs are minimal. You’ll probably do periodic backups and scan for viruses but won’t need an advanced IT solution for a while. However, once your business takes off, you’ll have to start thinking about managed IT services.
What does “managed” mean? It means that you’re relying on an outside IT management team to take care of all your tech needs. You’ll only be responsible for running your business while all IT issues are resolved behind the scenes.
If this sounds like something you need to meet the needs of your growing business, keep reading to learn all about managed IT service solutions.
What Are Managed IT Services?
Managed IT services let you outsource your IT needs to an external team that takes care of software maintenance, updates, and backups.
These services especially help in cases where the business belongs to a specialized industry and has a lot of documentation and legal responsibilities to fulfill. Managed IT can help such businesses stay regulatory and maintain client confidentiality.
However, businesses of any scale can take advantage of external IT management – they just might have low maintenance requirements. Later, we’ll explain the different tiers of managed services providers and help you understand which one you need.
What Is Included in Managed IT Services?
It’s up to you what you’ll include in the managed IT services. Most common responsibilities include checking backups, making sure the antivirus is running, and inspecting computer performance.
Your managed service team is also responsible for giving you advice on how to remain secure and compliant. Any IT concerns you have, you can address with them. This helps a lot, especially due to the growing concern for cybersecurity threats. Gartner predicts that around 50% of C-level executives will have to meet specific cybersecurity risk management goals in their work contracts by 2026, making managed IT essential for businesses.
What Is an MSP (Managed Service Provider)?
An MSP is the company you’ve hired to manage your IT. Depending on their level of involvement, there are three main types of MSPs:
Basic MSP
These services are requested by small businesses with general IT needs like software maintenance and cybersecurity. They’re the cheapest and ideal option for startups like small commerce businesses who want to maintain the integrity of their financial system but don’t have a huge cash flow to manage yet.
Intermediate MSP
Intermediate services are ideal for larger businesses with more specific IT needs, such as backup and disaster recovery and advanced employee cybersecurity. They usually include a 24/7 helpdesk for any IT-related inquiries due to how fast-paced the industry might be.
Advanced MSP
Advanced IT services are crucial for large organizations in specific niches, such as law or healthcare. These businesses require full-time IT infrastructure maintenance, regular backups, and threat assessment.
These businesses have industry laws they must comply with, such as customer data protection, and managed IT services help them maintain data integrity, availability, and confidentiality.
In some cases, they might request a custom software solution, such as a custom inventory management system for an e-commerce site.
5 Types of Managed IT Services
Now that we’ve looked at the different levels of MSPs, let’s go over the five main types of managed tech services:
Managed Cloud
Managed cloud services can help with cloud migration and maintenance. This includes
cloud hosting, data migration, and scalability in cases of workload fluctuations. The cloud optimization that these services bring helps businesses reduce costs that go toward unnecessary cloud expenses, such as cramped storage.
Network and Server Management
Network and server management services are responsible for monitoring and troubleshooting network health. They help manage communications on the network link for optimal bandwidth for more control over costs.
Backup and Disaster Recovery
Backup and disaster recovery services include a comprehensive plan for data preservation in the case of a software threat or natural disaster. They include automated data backups and do data replication to ensure multiple copies are available in case one of them is compromised.
Backup and disaster recovery helps businesses avoid interruptions in workflow due to missing data, reducing downtime and instilling customer trust.
Managed Cybersecurity
Managed cybersecurity services are responsible for developing a security plan for the business. They actively monitor and block suspicious activity to prevent data breaches and do security assessments to detect any vulnerabilities in the software.
Tech Support
Tech support is usually integrated with managed IT services, but businesses that need more comprehensive support may require more specific assistance. Tech support includes 24/7 IT support via phone, email, or chat, as well as direct support for employees and their IT issues.
The tech team is usually granted remote access to the business IT infrastructure so they can solve any issues on the spot. However, if on-site support is needed, they can also do a physical intervention.
Finally, these services may include user training in case a new software or app is deployed.
Benefits of Managed IT Services
The value that managed services bring to businesses is unmatched. From network security to threat assessment, these services keep your business operations running smoothly with minimal downtime. Let’s take a look at a few other benefits:
- Staying compliant with laws and regulations: If you work in a highly regulated industry such as finance and legal, user protection is placed at the forefront of your business operations. Managed services help you preserve sensitive user data and avoid legal liability.
- Keeping up with new technologies: Things move fast in the IT world, and keeping up with all the changes on your own is near impossible. IT services can help you seamlessly transition from one software to another or install new updates.
- Minimizing downtime: Some business owners think that they can avoid paying for external IT support by managing everything themselves. However, if you don’t have a specialized team at hand, it might lead to costly downtime. On the other hand, managed IT helps you avoid interruptions in your work, which can boost your productivity and profits.
- 24/7 support: It always helps to have a personal IT consultant for emergencies, even in the late hours. Managed IT includes round-the-clock support for any problems that emerge in your software infrastructure.
- Protecting proprietary information: Think about all the sensitive information contained in your cloud, such as employee data, work plans, client lists, financial data, etc. Sometimes, even an insider can cause a security problem, and this is something managed services can identify and prevent.
How to Choose the Right MSP for Your Business
The right MSP for your business must offer all the necessary services to meet your IT needs. Let’s quickly go over a couple of vital qualities of a good MSP:
- Responsiveness: Your MSP must be able to respond as quickly to your questions as possible to ensure optimal IT workflow.
- Backup recovery options: A good MSP will help you decide on the best backup solution for you, such as full backup, incremental backup, mirror backup, etc.
- Flexible pricing: Being able to tailor your pricing provides you with the needed scalability to manage your growing business. The right MSP will let you handpick the services you need and provide you with a custom quote.
- Adaptability: Being able to adapt to different programs and operating systems is a huge advantage when it comes to choosing an MSP. If you’re using a more intricate OS, such as MacOS, you need an MSP that will know it inside out.
How Much Do Managed IT Services Cost?
There is no fixed cost for managed IT services – MSPs usually give you a tailored quote, or you can sign up for a monthly plan. In some cases, you can choose to pay per user or device. Here are your most common options:
- Flat rate per month: This plan gives you access to a range of IT services at a set price. You can go up one plan once your business reaches a new growth stage, which will include a more comprehensive set of services.
- Tailored quote: In this case, you only pay for services you need. It’s also much easier to make changes to the quote to match your business needs at the moment.
- Cost per user/device: This option is best for businesses that shrink and expand quickly, as the price automatically changes with the number of users or devices. However, if you have a large business, costs will pile up quickly.
How Frontline Can Help
We mentioned five different types of managed tech services. Now, imagine the logistics of assigning each one to a separate team.
At Frontline, we offer it all in one place – cloud management, network and server management, backup and recovery, cybersecurity, and technical support. We’ll create a custom IT maintenance plan based on your industry, company size, and unique pain points.
Schedule a free consultation, and we’ll develop a step-by-step plan to enhance your business security.