In today’s digital environment, enterprise IT teams are expected to manage their day-to-day service levels in addition to higher value, more time-consuming projects. As businesses grow and are pressured to innovate and reimagine the possible, they’re still expected to provide seamless experiences to their end users. This, in many cases, is a big ask of internal teams alone—leveraging managed IT services continues to grow in popularity because of this. This article will define managed IT services and outline some of the benefits.
What is a Managed Services (MS) model?
To alleviate some of the strain on internal teams, many businesses leverage managed services (MS). Managed IT service providers (MSPs) are trusted partners that help companies gain the management, people, and skills they may lack internally—typically more efficiently. This provides necessary assistance and specialization to enterprise IT teams that are tasked with juggling high-value projects with day-to-day maintenance. The MSP assumes responsibility for specific business processes or support areas, freeing up other resources to focus on planning and strategizing for the future.
MS differs from traditional staff augmentation. Where staff augmentation provides resources and hours, MSPs provide best practices with end-to-end service management of an entire business function or process throughout its lifecycle. This sort of managed IT support is often preferred in cases where you’re looking to refocus your internal resources on larger, higher-value projects and minimize downtime. Service offerings from MSPs can vary, but cloud services such as cloud computing and security services are especially common.
Choosing your managed IT service partner
Identifying the right partner depends on your specific business goals and will vary by organization. For example, some companies choose to leverage a single provider to assume business processes—this makes for a more streamlined, cohesive relationship with fewer points of contact. Others who are seeking additional specialization for managed IT solutions may consider working alongside multiple partners. This can be helpful when looking for very targeted services but can also come with challenges, as processes may become disjointed when dealing with multiple points of contact and different practices from different teams.
In all cases, it’s important to find a partner organization that will work alongside your teams throughout the entire project lifecycle and beyond. Rather than relying only on up-front, early project engagement, look for a provider who’s willing to work in lockstep with your teams long-term. Prioritize a partner whose executive leadership communicates consistently and displays a commitment to your teams beyond the initial kickoff. And, as with all projects, consider your long-term goals beyond the initial engagement to ensure everyone is aligned with your proactive approach and strategic initiatives.
Learn more about best practices for implementing managed service providers.
Benefits of managed IT services
While there are many benefits to leveraging a managed service provider, we’ll explore some of the most important benefits of here.
Controlled spending
When working with a provider, you know upfront what you’re going to pay for their work. You’ll also save time and money by outsourcing—your partner organization covers the cost of salaries, benefits, training, and more.
Supplemental resources
With your teams already stretched thin, working with a partner will alleviate some of the burnout that comes with rising expectations. Additionally, with a larger team working in your IT environment, the quality of the work will improve. When your employees can take the time to focus on key business essential tasks, instead of managing multiple workstreams, they’ll take more care in completing the work instead of rushing to meet deadlines.
Specialization and expertise
Managed service providers can be highly specialized and tailor their solutions to meet your specific business needs. Most will take a consultative approach to your engagement, offering recommendations for continuous improvement along the way.
Accountability and partnership
Leveraging managed IT services fosters a more collaborative environment by introducing new processes and perspectives to your teams. It also creates shared accountability among your team and your partner which can be very beneficial in times of problem solving.
The right IT partner will work alongside your internal teams to identify areas for improvement and optimization. For example, your MS provider can help you identify areas to automate processes, further streamlining your team’s time and freeing up resources for higher-value activities.
Getting started with managed IT services
Your business faces complex problems, and leadership demands efficiency, greater insights, and productivity. Your technology should be scalable, cost-effective, and produce fast results. And while these are key value drivers in your organization, it is not always easy to achieve internally. This is where leveraging managed IT services can be a game changer.
When looking for a provider to manage day-to-day operations and free up your skilled resources, start with an assessment of your current strengths and weaknesses. Once you’ve identified where your team’s skillsets and experience lie, you’re better able to identify where it makes sense to leverage a partner organization to take over a function. From there, consider whether it makes sense to leverage a single partner or multiple partners, and ensure your values align with the companies you’re considering. Your technology partners should be outcome-driven, business-centric, and agile, and they should work closely alongside your teams to provide the most effective support. With these best practices in mind, you’ll be well-suited to work alongside an IT support partner and innovate without disrupting existing service levels.
CAI leverages industry best practices and state-of-the-art tools to help businesses and organizations decrease software application maintenance costs, manage resources, and streamline business-IT alignment and innovation efforts.
