Managed service providers are in high demand, with market size of $319.5 billion expected by 2024. A recent study estimates that 90 per cent of Fortune 500 companies utilise an MSP to provide some or all of their IT infrastructure.
A managed service provider is integral to the ecosystem of your creative business, regardless of whether you lack valuable IT skills or do not have the time.
When there are dozens of MSP options on the market, how can you ensure that you select the right one?
It would be best if you first broke down your expectations of what an MSP should be. Managed services providers shouldn’t just be IT technicians – it’s complicated.
A successful business partner will be invested in your success by obtaining more clients or enhancing your creative team’s productivity. Delivering tangible business results by offering outcome-based services.
This blog post will explore what ‘outcome-based services’ are and why they can be beneficial for creative businesses.
How do outcome-based managed services work?
Services centred around agreed-upon standards and desired outcomes can be defined as outcome-based services.
Outcome-based service providers will be able to deliver technology solutions aligned with your internal business goals, along with the standard MSP responsibilities, such as security and compliance. As a result, a well-managed service provider should also offer consultancy services or virtual CIO services.
Consultations with your MSP will offer you an understanding of your creative business’s:
• Detailed budget plans
• Analysis of industry expectations, obstacles, and trends
• Current corporate goals
• Current organisational structure
• Concerns of employees
• Plan of action
Managed service providers who understand your wants, needs, and constraints will be able to provide you with the best advice and best-suited solutions.
In what way is MSP consulting important?
Put, managing services providers that invest in outcomes rather than just technologies will ensure that your business only invests in those technologies that will enhance both your creative operations and your client relationships.
An approach like this can:
• Technology cost reduction
• Make your employees more efficient
• Use existing tools to their full extent to accelerate your business’ growth
It would help if you made your technology mix ‘hype-free at the end of the day. Cloud computing, big data, or whatever technology you choose, make sure it will improve productivity and growth for your business.
The strategy for one company may not work for another. Therefore, a consultation and outcomes-based design are essential.
Managed IT services for creative companies: The real value
Small businesses struggle with managing technology, particularly those without the resources of larger organisations or enterprises. It gets noted that small companies have a secret weapon through managed IT services that help them compete with larger businesses. How do managed service providers dramatically change the dynamics of your business?
IT industries are no strangers to change. Technological advancements evolve at an accelerated rate, and they extend into new and sometimes unexpected directions. Digital transformation and cloud technology, along with the advent of advanced technologies, create a more complex IT environment for organisations, requiring ongoing optimisation and regular maintenance.
Managing IT resources and consuming them differently is the result of this shift. NTT Communications published a report listing the most outsourced technologies like security, cloud infrastructure, and IT systems management.
As of late years, more companies have sought managed services. Statistics firm Statista estimates that the managed services market will reach $ 356.24 billion by 2025 from its current $ 185.98 billion in 2019.
Any business, small or large, will need automation and technology to stay competitive. Technological advancements such as cloud computing and big data will make managed services grow in the years to come.
Managed services are also essential for businesses to increase their profit margins and keep up with this dynamic business environment. MSPs offer expert advisory services, including examining market demands, customer requirements, available resources, and more to help organisations chart their future growth strategies. Enterprises that wish to expand need to partner with MSPs.
Make the right choice for Managed Services and Managed Service Provider
As you can see, outcome-based services and consultations are essential. There are plenty of MSPs who can offer expert services and tailored solutions.
The company, NSW IT Support, is known for its ability to work collaboratively with creative businesses. Our team of industry experts evaluates your business requirements and goals in-depth and aligns them with technology so you move forward more successfully.
Before choosing a managed services provider, look for the following characteristics:
- Defining service level agreements ensure compliance and ensure expectations are clear from the beginning.
- Ensure your platform can allow data to be shared, integrated with other critical apps and be able to connect to your workload (on-premises or in the cloud).
- A certified professional must manage change, manage multiple networks technologies, manage security, virtualise, and more.
- Services need to include sophisticated technologies such as advanced analytics, prioritisation, automatically responding to incidents and remediation.
- Working knowledge of multiple vendors and multiple clouds is required.
- The ability to deliver globally is a must.
- The business model should be aligned with the desired goals.
- It is imperative to have a disaster recovery plan that is robust.
- Managing the latest technology is a necessity. ZNetLive manages Azure DevOps, Azure Media Services, and Azure Kubernetes for businesses that outsource their infrastructure and operations.
Exactly how much does Managed IT Services cost?
An in-house, fully-staffed IT team can be a considerable cost for any company. Recruiting, paying salaries, benefits, and paying overtime for many employees is a costly endeavour for almost every organisation. For this reason, companies throughout the world are choosing to outsource their IT management to Managed Service Providers (MSPs). The question is, of course, how much Managed IT services cost?
Total number of users & usage
Fundamentally, what determines the cost of managed IT services for a company is the number of users. A company with 200 employees is going to spend more on IT management than one with five employees. Getting these users set up with IT Services and upkeep and maintenance takes a lot of time and money.
Aspects of users
A diverse range of Managed IT services may be necessary based on a user’s role. A CAD designer will require more storage than a traditional administrative role, which requires fewer services. A user’s reliance on several applications can affect their overall service cost.
Provided Services
Your budget for Managed IT will also depend on the types of services you require. Consider the following questions regarding your business’s IT needs:
• Are you able to provide workarounds for traditional hours of operation?
• How much help desk do I need?
• Do I need to monitor any of my systems continually?
• Do I need cloud computing services, or is my data adequately backed up?
Obtaining an accurate and clear picture of your total investment is easier when you answer these questions.
Additional services from the Managed IT Service Provider
The security of your network is an essential aspect that you should strongly consider investing in from an MSP. A growing number of cyberattacks makes protecting your data imperative. Typically, a cyberattack costs more than $1 million!
Even though the cost may vary, the benefits of using a top-notch Managed Services Provider are well worth the investment. A managed IT services provider ensures business continuity and minimises network downtime, just two reasons why it is worth the investment.
Speak to an expert at Canberra IT Support to find out how MSP can help you maximise the use of technology in your business.
