It’s Time to Graduate to REAL IT Support

See if this scenario comes close to your situation: You are a few years past your company’s ‘startup’ point. You’ve been hiring, and you’ve grown from two computers in your home to ten in an office. Things are looking up and your company continues to grow. At the same time, your network has become more complex and your IT problems are growing as fast as your business.

Businesses start up in many ways, from whacky events that sparked an idea to methodical, calculated plans, but there certainly are common stories. Over the years, we at ITFirm.com have heard them all. The one we hear most is this:

You start your business by yourself in your den. After a while, you bring on a second person, then a third. Your laptops still suffice, and perhaps you’ve put together a rudimentary file-sharing system, but the business still isn’t complex enough to do anything else.

Who handles your IT support at this early stage? If you are not good with computers it’s usually a friend’s family member. Perhaps one of the employees ‘knows a little’ about computers. This method of is cheap, and it works well enough… for now.

ITFirm.com has often heard the results of such a situation. This one happened with an architect just recently:
“My son has been doing a great job, but now he’s going away to college.” This is literally what he said to us. He had ten computers somewhat strung together (inefficiently), with an outdated and useless firewall and no Anti-virus. No data backups in place – just what was stored in the computers. Makes one hope his son takes some Computer Science courses.

When cybercriminals find a network so badly configured and maintained, they say something akin to “Woohoo!” As a matter of clarification, it is important to note that “Woohoo!” coming from a hacker is never, ever good.

Casual IT hobbyists often know how to do simple things. Maybe they can get a computer working again after a failure, but these erstwhile ‘IT guys’ are ‘small picture’ players. Even a modest network of ten computers falls into the province of ‘big picture’ players. With a payroll of ten or more employees, you have a lot riding on your network.

Just like the example above, with the IT son (who wasn’t always available when he was needed) going off to college, a smart business owner will seek out experienced, professional IT services. The problem here is that most of them do not know it when they see it. How do you separate the Good from the Bad in IT Services?

Bad IT

The IT industry is largely unregulated, so anyone can call themselves an IT company. There are no licensing requirements beyond a simple business license. ‘Break/Fix’ vendors primarily populate this low-end segment of the IT community – something breaks, and they fix it at an hourly rate. In the meantime, you wait:
You wait for them to show up.
You wait for them to figure out what the problem is.
You wait for them to fix it.
While you wait, your affected workers are non-productive.

Break/Fix practitioners make their money from billable hours. This means they are not invested in fixing things quickly or permanently: More hours equal more money. Eventually, the client will get tired of the excessive downtime waiting for what’s broken to be fixed. It’s the IT equivalent of having a hamster on a wheel trying to power an automobile.

Good IT

Managed IT Services providers use a model that ensures a true Win/Win arrangement for themselves and their clientele. Clients pay a monthly retainer or subscription for comprehensive, all-inclusive services. A Managed Services Provider (MSP) sets up the network for constant monitoring and proactive preventive maintenance accomplished with the use of Artificial Intelligence (AI) and automation. The less time they spend on little ‘fixes,’ the more money they save and the more your productivity increases.

Using automation and AI among other tools, a great MSP is predictive – they already know when most problems occur and put the ‘fixes’ in early. Even if the IT HelpDesk isn’t on the phone and no field techs are poking around in the server room, much work is being done to provide as close to a permanent ‘YES’ response from the network as possible.

What should I look for in a MSP provider?

First, look for someone that listens to you and asks smart questions.

They ask about your business, your goals and how business flows through your workplace.
A litigation attorney is geared toward the steps between the initial client consultation and the entering the courtroom with a winning case.
A manufacturer is geared toward the steps between an initial order and transporting the final product.

Same needs? On a fundamental basis, certainly: computers need to work. The Best MSPs want to understand your workflow, any frustrations you have, and how that current model will support the company processes as the business grows.

How do you go about creating and handling increased production?

What ‘new ground’ are you planning to break in terms of their products or services?
How would you like to improve customer service?

Where are your workflow ‘logjams’?

What currently happens when your staff experiences network downtime?

Depending on your response, different questions will ensue, and they are listening.
The Best MSPs create a custom plan just for you based on what they’ve learned about you.

Overall, our top 5 key things to look for:
!) They listen and understand your needs and frustrations (no ‘Tell Sell’ from the representative).
2) Case Studies and Reviews. How they have handled issues in the past, and what their clients say.
3) 24/7 availability. Not just for remote monitoring and repair, but for onsite as well.
4) Qualifications. Certifications that ensure levels of competence. You need to see these.
5) Visit their Operations Center. Local ONLY. No IT HelpDesk on the other side of the world.

Isn’t it time to graduate to smoothly running, reliable IT?