Hiring IT support experts to manage your technology can be a great investment. But where do you start? Learn everything you need to know about managed IT services.<\/p>\n
Do you lay awake at night worried about your network going down? Are you dealing with security threats and technology problems in general, but don\u2019t have the in-house resources to put your mind at ease? If so, you could benefit from working with a <\/span>managed IT services<\/span><\/a> provider.<\/span> \u00a0 Outsourcing IT support is becoming more popular as businesses realize the value of placing their technology in the hands of experts. Managed IT services relieve the burden of hardware, software and network management from your in-house team.\u00a0<\/span> \u00a0 Today\u2019s IT landscape can be overwhelming, with technology advancing at an increasingly fast clip. If your existing staff can\u2019t keep up (wait \u2013 do you even have an existing IT staff?), hiring experts to manage your technology needs could be the best investment you make.<\/span> \u00a0 But, where do you start?<\/span><\/p>\n In a nutshell, managed IT services is the practice of outsourcing IT support. Rather than investing in IT personnel, infrastructure and technology, you pay a managed service provider (MSP) to come in and do the dirty work for you. What\u2019s not to like?<\/span> \u00a0 IT systems and technology play a pivotal role in keeping your business running optimally. Oversights lead to costly downtime, but managed IT service providers catch technology problems before they impact your business.<\/span> \u00a0 Outsourcing your technology and support needs frees your management team and personnel to focus on business concerns rather than time-consuming, ever-changing technology that few are qualified to handle.<\/span><\/p>\n When enterprise computing first began, IT services functioned on a \u201cbreak\/fix\u201d basis rather than long-term maintenance and strategic planning. When something stopped working, a technician fixed it. The technician was usually the only one who could fix it, as they were likely the person who built or installed the system in the first place. If that person was in-house (which was rare then), they were then unable to perform any other IT-related tasks until the problem was solved. Business often came to a grinding halt.<\/span> \u00a0 Information technology and manufacturing began to grow at breakneck speed, which created a backlog of work for break\/fix technicians. Break\/fix was costly and reactive, not to mention time consuming and labor intensive. Managed IT services grew during these early years to meet this need, as \u201cmanaging by fire drill\u201d ceased to be a practical business model (was it ever?).<\/span> \u00a0 As technology became more sophisticated, the need for proactive system monitoring, upgrades and support was suddenly in demand. Remote access, automation and cloud computing enabled IT technicians to provide support remotely, allowing greater efficiency and less resources.<\/span> \u00a0 This new business model led to managed IT service providers becoming the preferred method of support for a wide range of businesses, from startups to Fortune 500 companies.\u00a0<\/span> \u00a0 Today, businesses demand their computer systems be <\/span>\u201cfive-nines capable\u201d<\/span><\/a> (uptime rates of 99.999%), which means that the break\/fix model is no longer serviceable to any-sized business. In order to operate at maximum efficiency, convenience and continuity, MSPs have become the preferred providers for the technology needs of a majority of businesses today.<\/span><\/p>\n Keeping your organization running at peak performance isn\u2019t easy. Slow, unreliable technology can hinder business growth, and deciding which technology needs you should prioritize is much easier said than done.\u00a0<\/span> \u00a0 An experienced MSP knows the landscape and can approach your business needs with a long-term perspective. They will give you a strategic approach that streamlines systems and costs while keeping regulatory and compliance needs top of mind.<\/span> \u00a0 Here are some key benefits of using managed IT services:<\/span> \u00a0<\/p>\n \u00a0<\/p>\n IT costs can quickly spiral out of control, especially when emergencies happen. Finding an MSP that charges <\/span>by user and device keeps IT support costs predictable and scalable.<\/span> \u00a0<\/p>\n Security issues continue to be areas of great concern, with <\/span>small businesses<\/span><\/a> experiencing the majority of cyberattacks.<\/span> You need regular, complete security testing to determine the effectiveness of your defense systems and protect your business. Managing IT security needs is one area that you should seriously consider <\/span>outsourcing to experts<\/span><\/a>.\u00a0\u00a0<\/span> \u00a0<\/p>\n Regulatory compliance is crucial in fields such as finance, healthcare, education, government and manufacturing. MSPs live and breathe compliance and regulations (yawn) so you don\u2019t have to.\u00a0<\/span> \u00a0<\/p>\n How is your business currently at risk? MSPs evaluate your systems, security and processes to help you understand your current gaps and uncover areas to improve.<\/span> \u00a0<\/p>\n Who\u2019s happy when your network goes down? Nobody. Proactive maintenance of systems keep everything humming.\u00a0<\/span> \u00a0<\/p>\n Outsourcing your IT department allows you to focus on the most important parts of your business, enabling you to get ahead and stay ahead of your competition.\u00a0<\/span> \u00a0<\/p>\n Wouldn\u2019t it be great to have twenty less things to worry about? You can rest easy knowing that IT experts who are up-to-date with current technological advancements and regulations are minding the store for you.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n There is a wide variety of managed IT service offerings available. Any MSP you\u2019re considering should make an initial evaluation of your current situation before making suggestions. Then, they can make recommendations that mitigate current risks and position you for success.\u00a0<\/span> \u00a0 Make sure you know what you\u2019re getting. If a potential MSP cannot explain their service offerings in simple language, ask them to clarify.<\/span> \u00a0 Any managed IT services provider should offer the following services at minimum:<\/span> \u00a0<\/p>\n \u00a0<\/p>\n Managing your IT needs does not have to be difficult. In fact, it\u2019s never been so easy. While IT is no doubt an integral part of your business, maintaining its integrity should be in the background while you tend to your company\u2019s primary needs.\u00a0<\/span> \u00a0 Sugar Shot is a trusted technology growth partner that seeks win-win relationships with our clients. If you still have lingering questions, we\u2019d love to answer them. <\/span>Contact us today<\/span><\/a> for an obligation-free chat.<\/span> \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Hiring IT support experts to manage your technology can be a great investment. But where do you start? Learn everything you need to know about managed IT services. Do you lay awake at night worried about your network going down? Are you dealing with security threats and technology problems in general, but don\u2019t have the […]","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":665,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_exactmetrics_skip_tracking":false,"_exactmetrics_sitenote_active":false,"_exactmetrics_sitenote_note":"","_exactmetrics_sitenote_category":0,"footnotes":""},"categories":[27,52],"tags":[11,43],"class_list":["post-664","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-it-know-how","category-managed-it-services","tag-managed-it-services","tag-managed-service-provider"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.sugarshot.io\/api\/wp\/v2\/posts\/664","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.sugarshot.io\/api\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.sugarshot.io\/api\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.sugarshot.io\/api\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.sugarshot.io\/api\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=664"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.sugarshot.io\/api\/wp\/v2\/posts\/664\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.sugarshot.io\/api\/wp\/v2\/media\/665"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.sugarshot.io\/api\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=664"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.sugarshot.io\/api\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=664"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.sugarshot.io\/api\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=664"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}What Is Managed IT Services?<\/span><\/h2>\n
History of Managed IT Services<\/span><\/h2>\n
Benefits of Managed IT Services<\/span><\/h2>\n
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1. Controlled IT Costs<\/span><\/h3>\n
2. Greater Security Measures<\/span><\/h3>\n
3. Compliance Enforcement<\/span><\/h3>\n
4. Reduced Risk<\/span><\/h3>\n
5. Decreased Downtime<\/span><\/h3>\n
6. Competitive Advantage<\/span><\/h3>\n
7. Peace of Mind<\/span><\/h3>\n
What Managed IT Services Are Commonly Included?<\/span><\/h2>\n
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Looking to Try Something New?<\/span><\/h2>\n