You got into business to do a specific thing, but there are so many other tasks that go along with operations, it’s easy to get dragged off course – IT management is a big one. Answer these questions about the last year:
- Did you experience downtime or data loss?
- Did you spend time tinkering with hardware trying to resolve issues?
- Did you miss goals because you ran out of time in the shuffle of managing all of your business functions?
- Were you concerned you may not have the best protection when you read headlines about cyberattacks?
If you answered yes to any of these, it may be time to consider outsourcing your IT management.
If you had to total the time that you spent managing your IT function last year, what would that number be? If you had used those hours, or days, to focus on growth and increasing productivity, could you be in a better position heading into 2018?
You may consider IT management a small piece of your daily workload, one that you can certainly handle on your own. But, do you keep up to date on the latest cyber threats? Are you monitoring your network to ensure you’re working at top speeds? Are you certain your drivers and software are up-to-date? The type of knowledge and time this takes is a full-time job, or at the bare minimum takes an expert who works with IT on a full-time basis. That’s where IT outsourcing can really make an impact.
Let’s look at this another way. Did you spend any of your time on regular maintenance tasks for your servers, computers, laptops, printers, and POS systems? Those simple daily, weekly, monthly routines of physical cleaning, memory cleaning, and updating software and drivers can add years to your equipment life. That means less money spent on repairs, downtime, and replacing equipment. These are small tasks that add up that no business owner has the time for. A Managed IT Service Provider can take over this seemingly simple, and often neglected, job.
We no longer live in a world where the biggest company with the most money always wins. outsourcing tasks like IT management helps you level the playing field so you’re competing only on your core competencies. You can gain access to a team of experts that can handle your IT management, maintenance, and monitoring without paying for a full-time employee, or the benefits that go along with it.
Managed service providers are often out-tasked to perform specific IT tasks that small-and-medium-sized businesses no longer want their IT guy doing in-house; typically repetitive monitoring and maintenance tasks that can be automated. MSPs can also be outsourced to completely manage, maintain, and secure your entire IT infrastructure. Here are three advantages to partnering with a MSP:
- Lower Costs: Self-managing an IT infrastructure is too expensive for most SMBs. MSPs offer an alternative at a lower predictable fixed cost.
- Proactive Management: Issues are identified and fixed before they become disruptive.
- Better Security: Up-to-date patches addressing the latest malware attacks and security risks continuously keep you in front of the bad guys.
If you think managed IT services might be what you need in 2018, contact us. We offer a full line of services that can help ease the burden of IT management so you can get back to doing what you’re best at.
