When Managed IT services became popular 5 years ago it seemed like it would be great for everyone. The customer would have a fixed monthly cost for their IT support and services and the IT vendors would be able to level out there revenue streams and become more profitable. That is not exactly what happened. This new model works well for some companies but not for all. First, the IT companies had a hard time controlling the environments they were managing well enough so that they could level out their costs to stay in line with the revenue(fixed monthly charge to customer). Second, not everyone wanted the "all u can eat" model. A lot of companies want an onsite person in house who can help out or be the point of contact. In these times companies want to keep good people on staff to help with many "loose ends" of running a business. Some of the promises of Managed IT services did come true.
There are many basic activities which make very cost effective managed services:
- Assuring anti-virus definitions are up to date
- Performing regular system scans
- Proactive windows patching (patches being tested in advance)
- Automated backup
- 24x7 helpdesk support for 90 percent of desktop support issues
- Server monitoring with proactive remediation
- Asset management (managing and reporting on all IT assets)
Here are some items that don't necessarily fall under the fixed cost managed support model:
- Custom business application troubleshooting
- Custom application development
- Expansion projects
- On-site support of network infrastructure
No matter how much you may want to have it all covered for one monthly price, that may simply not be possible. Of course if price is no object.......... Well in these times companies are looking for ways to be lean. The way to do that is to make sure you break down the costs of your services so you know what is included in your charges. An "all-u-can-eat" model with no detail on whats covered is probably not a good deal.
In the IT world there are multiple levels of engineers. The large businesses pay one rate for the level 1 or 2 (typically helpdesk) and a higher rate for level 3. Some companies have level 3 people doing level 1 work and also the reverse. When this is the case I typically hear level 3 people being overloaded with work that is not appropriate for them and level 1 people who spend too long on a problem. Which ever IT support company you choose make sure they have this figured out. They should be putting the right people on the right work. If they don't they will have a hard time servicing you on a timely basis and providing quality workmanship.
The Managed IT Services providers are growing in number every month offering a wide variety of programs promising smooth sailing for your IT. I hope these ideas help you pick the right one.
Thanks for reading
