When a business outsources its IT needs to an external agency, these companies are called managed service providers. A managed service provider or MSP handle IT security, protection, performance, compliance, and everything in between. The business processes outsourcing industry is a growing market with an annual growth of 6.8% so you can rest assured that your business is in safe hands with a managed service provider like Creative Networks.
Using an external professional IT agency means a business has peace of mind for all IT-related things. Managed IT services help reduce downtown, are cost-effective, and allow you and your team to focus on your business’s core values and aims.
Outsourcing IT services is the future and is growing daily because of its continuous success. Outsourcing your IT needs to professionals adds expertise to your business without a substantial price tag.
IT can be taken for granted, yet most businesses couldn’t operate without it. Don’t leave your systems to chance; use MSP (managed service provider) to do the heavy lifting regarding IT.
Protecting and securing your business and ensuring security compliance, cyber security, data backup, phone systems, and continued IT support help any business thrive. Gone are the days when a company only needed to worry about its overheads and revenue. Now, it’s all about the tech for business growth and customer satisfaction.
At Creative Networks, we tailor our solutions to your specific needs and requirements; we can transform your IT operations beyond all recognition and support your business in going further than it has before.
This article explains what the purpose of outsourcing IT services is, when you should outsource IT services, how it works and some examples of IT services.
Table of Contents
- Assessing the Need for Managed Services
- Costs of MSPs
- Benefits of Managed Services
- Examples of Managed Services
- Managed Services Best Practices
Assessing the Need for Managed Services
So, you have a business idea that you’re passionate about? You work day and night to put everything in place to start your business, and things are going well. But did you know that you’d need to become an IT business too?
What IT looks like from business to business looks very different, but it includes many things from storing customer details and GDPR regulations to system operations and storage in the cloud.
IT is paramount and forever evolving for a business to grow, manage employees and handle data. Instead of running your business and the IT side, outsourcing to a reputable, professional IT solutions company saves you the hassle of running a business twice. The next step to becoming a successful IT literate company is to choose an IT support company that aligns with your working style, company values and budget.
At Creative Networks, we want to become part of your team to help your business see further and shine brighter. With flexible approaches to our working model, we can either run as your IT department or partner with your current IT team.
We run a fluid working model and always do our best to meet the needs of our clients with complete transparency.
Save money whilst improving your remote infrastructure operations. At Creative Networks, we have created packages and services for every company size, making it possible for any business to operate professionally without having to pay huge bills for the privilege.
Costs for MSPs
Using MSPs (managed service providers) is cost-effective and can save you time and energy later. Rather than employing specialist IT professionals full-time to handle all your IT needs, not only will it save you money using an MSP, but you will be getting a team of experts for the monthly cost.
A small, understaffed IT department within your own business can be expensive and less cost and time efficient than having a team of experts at your beck and call, all within your IT support budget.
Traditionally, MSPs would charge for their services if something in your IT model went wrong. The MSP would work to fix the issue and then bill accordingly. However, this was an inconsistent pricing model, causing conflict between the partner and MSP.
Now, MSP costs are far more consistent and predictable. A level of services model, widely recognised across all industries, helps make collaboration more manageable and the expectations from a partner business to know precisely what they’re getting in for.
Here at Creative Networks, we price our services on a monthly subscription basis. Our subscription services are tailor-made, meaning we can offer IT solutions that fit your business’s exact needs. As part of our service model, we provide a manned help desk with a high service level agreement to ensure you get the best, most efficient service.
Benefits of Managed Services
Better Cost Control
A fixed monthly cost for all your IT service needs. Don’t panic when something goes wrong, and expect a hefty bill. At Creative Networks, we want you to feel financially confident. We know your business can get IT protection and security without inconsistent bills.
Improved Risk Management
MSPs must use the best technologies, equipment, and skilled people to deliver a professional service. You never have to worry that your IT services will become outdated when outsourcing your IT requirements. Outsourcing to an MSP reduces risk and gives you a more reliable IT infrastructure.
High Availability, Efficiency and Production
MSPs monitor your systems 24/7, watching for alerts and fixing them promptly and remotely, often before a problem arises. Freeing you from the burden of IT monitoring means you have more time to grow a successful business.
Futureproofing IT services
Futureproofing the IT side of your business with an MSP takes the pressure off any business owner’s shoulders and offers risk management solutions.
Existing staff may not have experience with new technology or be able to maintain new services. Hiring contractors can cost a business a considerable amount of money. Futureproofing your IT services with a managed service provider is not only a fraction of the cost but no additional inconvenience if something goes awry.
Examples of Managed Services
IT services refer to anything when engaging with the technical expertise to enable organisations to create, manage, optimise or access information for their business.
Services can vary from simple to technical, depending on your business needs. Many MSPs commonly offer to monitor and maintain equipment, IT systems management, remote monitoring and management of servers, network monitoring, and so much more.
The break-and-fix traditional model of managed IT services is obsolete as the newer approach is more proactive and often pre-empts or diminishes issues before they arise.
Another example of a managed service that allows companies greater access to data, analytics, and storage is a cloud-based management service. Cloud is a generic term often used to describe services hosted and accessed anywhere, such as email, backup and storage, but it is much more.
At Creative Networks, we are experts in the cloud, often referring to it as having two flavours, the private cloud and the public cloud. We can help you utilise cloud facilities and features to increase volume output or productivity, globalise and get the most out of your workforce, reduce cost, and allow for more freedom and flexibility.
Find out more about what we at Creative Networks do and how we can support your business.
Managed Services Best Practises
Managed service models have evolved, and the industry has perfected its work. It is highly effective for a business to use an MPS to:
- Rely on managed services to properly support all their IT business processes and become a business’s IT department, rather than paying for an in-house IT manager.
- Be the IT experts for businesses without highly trained IT staff or the time, money and resources to properly train staff or deal with the maintenance, updates and repairs themselves.
- Pay one monthly fee for quality service and peace of mind.
Managed services use a 4-level system to support IT in businesses. Each level of the system is assigned issues, making it easier and more efficient to categorise problems. In addition, a levelled IT support system ensures the right professional is used within the correct, diverse areas of expertise.
When referring to level zero, this includes self, in-house IT services, not externally transferred.
Level One
Level one is the first level of support for companies. With Creative Networks, our Level One service includes helping to keep things running smoothly by fixing troubleshooting issues, assisting with hardware and software, reporting access issues, and maintaining a security complaint system.
In short, level one refers to any support offered at the first port of call for managed services.
Level Two
Level two is the next tier for technical support management, offers a more in-depth service, and is a bit more complex. Technicians will solve major issues that couldn’t be solved through level one and could involve complete system failures. With level two technical support, you will be given a multi-skilled professional to work on your case.
Level Three
Level three refers to the most senior level of professionals within a business or outsourced company, offering unique form and skills for a business’s IT needs. Level three IT support is the highest level, and support staff not only know how the products and services of the company work but also have access to the highest level of technical resources.
Level Four
Level four involves outsourcing to other external agencies for more specialised expertise in a particular area.
Here at Creative Networks, we work by our best practices. Offering a first-class service, we aim to:
- use simple-to-understand, jargon-free language,
- be customer focused,
- strive for excellence,
- be reliable by delivering on our promises,
- be resilient ourselves and be here to support businesses long-term,
- be passionate about tech, so you don’t need to be,
- always go above and beyond,
- control, manage and become your IT department.
To conclude, a managed support service provider will handle all your IT needs, so you don’t have to, saving your time, energy and money so you and your employees can focus on the core business model’s aims and values.
Creative Networks will become part of your business and flexibly work around you to meet your needs and expectations. Not only do we offer high customer service, but Creative Networks has become safe contractor certified, giving you even more confidence in us.
