Choosing the right managed service provider (MSP) can make or break your business in today’s...
Build Your Tailored IT House with Managed Services
Every business is different. We’ve all heard that adage – because it’s true. What does that have to do with managed IT services?
Managed services packages, such as Exigent’s Assurance Managed IT Services offering, typically address fundamental IT solution needs shared by small to mid-sized businesses regardless of their focus—B2B, B2C, retail, law, restaurants, etc. But beyond that, a reputable MSP offers a portfolio of integrated managed solutions that address specific needs an individual organization may have, from security to compliance to disaster recovery and more. That is because (say it with us): Every business is different.
If MSPs addressed every conceivable need within their standard managed IT services offering, prices would be exorbitant. But by building a reliable, rock-steady foundation for each customer with affordable managed IT services, MSPs can then add highly tailored solution sets on top of that bedrock, creating custom environments for a client’s unique needs. In a word – bespoke technology ecosystems.
This is why MSPs such as Exigent start each customer journey with a managed services offering. The Exigent Method is simple: Start with a strong, secure foundation of managed services, and then create the tailored IT ecosystem each customer needs. Those needs might be advanced cybersecurity or migration from an on-premises backup to a cloud solution. Whatever that unique business needs.
Let’s walk through how this works. It is much like building a custom house – you pour the foundation first, then start adding walls, personalize finishes and distinctive add-ons as needed.
Advantages of Building on a Managed IT Services Base
Working with a managed IT services provider offers multiple benefits:
- Small or large, your company gains access to advanced IT resources
- Get reliable, proactive IT support
- Enjoy predictable IT costs
- Downtime is reduced with proactive monitoring and maintenance of your IT infrastructure
- Improve IT responsiveness and streamline operations with 24/7 skilled IT support
- Access scalable, cost-effective technology expertise that flexes with your needs to support business strategy and expansion
Managed IT services partners will evaluate and address fundamentals such as network management, security, and backup. If your organization does nothing beyond engaging an MSP, your organization will enjoy an improved IT ecosystem. But what about those unique needs?
Let’s Build That Bespoke IT House
While the value of managed IT services is well-established, many businesses overlook the key next steps of the process. Once your MSP evaluates your technology stance, onboards your organization into their managed services offering, and goes live with responsive IT support and the reliable monitoring and maintenance that delivers so much value, the journey has just begun.
At Exigent, we follow a process of evaluation and discovery as part of our managed IT services onboarding process, striving to understand each client’s business strategy, challenges, and special provisions, such as cybersecurity improvements, cloud computing needs, compliance requirements, and business continuity needs.
For example, as a law firm works with our MSP to onboarding in a managed IT services solution, we will explore specific security needs they may have, backup and data retention standards they must meet due to compliance standards, and perhaps address that their firm may be a remote-only workplace. Customization around each element of their IT infrastructure means they can be confident they are compliant with sensitive data secured, have business continuity strategies in place that include retaining data as required by law, and are enhancing employee productivity with a responsive, reliable IT environment – even those working from home.
In another example, a small startup may require customized redundancies and security due to innovative intellectual property being used in a location susceptible to natural disasters. With managed services in place, we can then tackle those needs with layers of cybersecurity, access control, and extremely redundant IT infrastructure and backup systems in the cloud.
Why We Don’t Start Partnerships With Projects
Many businesses approach IT investments as projects, hacking away at immediate needs with little to no long-term strategy. That leaves them constantly putting out fires and spending money unexpectedly. We often field questions from organizations that have left technology issues such as cybersecurity or legacy hardware unsolved until there is a breach or system collapse. While our team can certainly handle any IT need, we won’t simply patch a broken IT ecosystem.
Read more about the impact of legacy technology on your IT ecosystem
Rather, Exigent clients begin with managed IT services, often deployed alongside a larger project, to achieve IT modernization from the bottom up. Simply replacing a server or deploying a firewall is irresponsible on the part of an MSP, much like having a mechanic change a car’s oil without checking to ensure the engine is running smoothly in other ways.
Reputable MSPs will engage new customers and right-set their IT foundation before exploring the next steps because new products installed on an unstable foundation will operate at a substandard level at best – and fail at worst. MSPs deliver tremendous advantages, but only when they are accepted into your organization as a trusted advisor. Only then can you reap the benefits of deep technology expertise, leverage your MSP as a virtual CIO, and enable the team to fine-tune your IT ecosystem for the optimized performance your organization requires, secure and protected.
