12-27-21 | Blog Post
Technology is changing at a rapid rate, and with the advancement of this technology businesses are facing new demands to keep up. Many in-house IT teams are struggling with the demands of upgrading to new technologies and keeping meeting customers’ needs at the same time. When managing IT resources gets in the way of day-to-day tasks, many companies can save time by hiring the right managed services provider. According to MarketsandMarkets the global Managed Services market size is expected to grow at a Compound Annual Growth Rate (CAGR) of 7.9% during the forecast period, to reach USD 354.8 billion by 2026 from USD 242.9 billion in 2021
Managed Service Providers can alleviate pressure from IT teams by taking over the monitoring and management of IT infrastructure and end-user systems while you focus on your core business goals. It is difficult to know which criteria to consider when choosing the right Managed Service Provider for your business.
Here are the Top 5 things to consider when choosing Managed Services Providers
When choosing a Managed Service Provider, it is important to evaluate their depth and breadth of technical skills and industry experience. Often, Managed Service Providers are a carry a variety of certifications and knowledge related to specific vendors or solution competencies. Ask about their employee’s skills and experience. Take a closer look at their core competencies, qualifications, and experience in managing similar technological environments to your business.
The needs of businesses are ever-changing, that’s why it is important to ensure that your Managed Service Provider can align with your company’s goals for growth and development. Good Managed Service Providers are those who offer scalable services, allowing you to easily add additional resources as needed. Maybe your business experiences seasonal growth and decline, maybe you need to add additional capabilities, or maybe you want to ensure you have options for future growth. Whatever the reason for your changing needs, it is important to choose a Managed Service Provider who can adapt to the ever-changing demands of your company.
Ensuring the continuity of your business operations, even in the face of the most unexpected disasters, is a priority for most IT managers. Disasters such as hurricanes, floods, ransomware attacks, and more can cause prolonged outages and catastrophic data loss. Finding a reputable Managed Service Provider who understands business continuity, can support and compliment your existing disaster recovery plan, and partners with you to test the plan, is essential.
Before you select your Managed Service Provider, take the time to prioritize your managed services needs. Daily repeatable tasks that can’t be automated are low-hanging fruit for outsourcing to a Managed Service Provider. Once you identify these tasks, compare the skillset of providers to find the one that can best support your business. While some Managed Service Providers focus on basic IT management and support, others offer more extensive solution and services portfolios. There is no right answer or one size fits all, do your research and pick the provider that checks your boxes.
If you’re looking for a Managed Service Provider, odds are that you are in need of additional support resources to complement your team. If that’s the case, make sure you understand the level of support you will be getting with your chosen provider. Often, Clients confuse the roles and responsibilities assigned to them and those assigned to the provider. Understand what falls on your side of the fence and what falls on theirs, and don’t be afraid to ask for additional support resources if you need it. Most providers should offer 24x7x365 support that spans Tier 1, Tier2 and Tier 3. To avoid headaches, make sure you understand the escalation process and SLAs for your provider.
Choosing the right Managed Service Provider can feel daunting, but it doesn’t have to be a hard decision. The first step in choosing a provider is to understand what your goals are and align them with a provider who can help you reach them. At Otava, we pride ourselves on partnering with our clients to ensure that we deliver the best possible service that meets your unique business needs. Contact us today for more information
