IT Support and Managed Services Guide

IT Support and Managed services have become very popular. Companies are going for managed services to cut down their costs and get access to better IT services. However, still, businesses are not well informed about managed services and IT support. In this article, we are going to talk about IT support and managed services. This guide will help you in your IT decision-making. We will explain everything you need to know about IT support and managed IT services.

What is IT Support?

You need to hire IT support staff for supporting your business growth. This can be either one person or a team. It can be both an offsite and onsite team. You should know about what you are getting into before you make any investment in IT support. Thus, we are going to talk about the IT support duties first. Most people think that IT is all about tech support only. However, it is not limited to troubleshooting only.

Job Responsibilities of IT support

Some of the main duties of any IT support team are:

1. Computer System Installation

Computer systems don’t come ready for your employees. You need to integrate various devices for data input, output, processing, and storage. Someone in your company needs to set up these systems and connect them with your network. This is one of the main duties of IT support.

2. Software and Hardware Installation

You will also use various tools for doing your work task. Your IT professionals will help you in installing all these tools. They will also install the hardware. This computer software and hardware will become obsolete with time. Thus, you need someone for upgrading and maintaining your systems. You can’t do this work by yourself.

3. Systems maintenance

You need to provide regular maintenance to your computer systems. This will ensure that your computer systems are running smoothly. It is another role that will require a lot of time and effort. You need dedicated IT professionals who can help you in maintaining your systems.

4. Troubleshooting

If you have an issue with your computer, then you will probably call your IT support first. The on-site IT support team will come to your office for fixing your issue. If you have an offsite staff, then they will provide instructions on a phone call. They can also remotely use your system for fixing this problem.

5. Reporting

Your IT staff will help you in keeping track of all the issues in your systems. They will also help you in updating and upgrading your network. Everything will be tracked. They will review your system data for predicting trends. This will help you in finding areas of vulnerability. The best way to prevent an attack is by avoiding it in the first place.

6. IT Testing

You don’t want to use a new solution just to find out that it doesn’t work. Your IT support team will help you in avoiding this problem. They will first test the latest IT technology before they implement it. If there are any bugs, then they will resolve them first. This will ensure that you will get access to well-tested technologies.

7. Upgrading Solutions

Your IT team will also help you in determining which systems are vulnerable for your company. You can either upgrade these systems or get new systems. They will help you in upgrading your existing IT solutions. This will ensure that you are keeping up with the IT world.

Difference between IT service and Consulting

We also want to discuss IT consulting in this article. They are IT or technology experts. This doesn’t mean that your IT professionals are not technology experts. However, IT consultants generally have more breadth of knowledge.

If you are hiring an IT consultant, then they will ask about your IT goals first. They will help you in crafting a solution according to their IT expertise. There are various things that are different between IT services and consulting.

1. The relationship is important in IT consultancy

Your IT consultant should be someone who can help you in solving all your queries about tech and computers. Thus, you should be comfortable with your IT consultant. You might need to talk about sensitive topics like system vulnerabilities with your IT consultant.

Your IT consultant can’t win your trust on calls only. IT support is also about building relationships. However, it is not any job requirement for IT support. The main difference between IT support and IT consulting is that IT support can do their work without having a relationship.

2. IT Support offer more services

An IT consultant is very knowledgeable. They know about most technologies. However, they are more experienced businessmen than they are IT people. They will help you in creating a perfect plan for your business. You can implement their plan to quickly upgrade their network. However, not every IT consultant can help you in actual execution.

Your IT support staff members can help you in executing these plans. They will help you in carrying out whatever plans you want to execute. You can work with your IT consultant for creating an IT plan. However, your IT support staff will help you in executing this plan.

3. They always have some strategy

Your IT consultant will help you in taking your business IT systems to new levels. This will require a lot of strategic planning. You need to create plans for both the short-term and long-term. Your IT support team will also think about long-term plans. However, they don’t need to do a lot of strategic planning for completing their work.

Things to consider when hiring an IT support team

Price is generally the top consideration for companies when they are looking for an IT team. However, sometimes budgetary reasoning is not good for your business. You should also keep other factors in your mind. Some of the important factors that you should consider are:

1. Contract Terms

Contracts are legally binding. If you are signing a contract, then you are agreeing to the terms. Sometimes companies forget to review their IT contract. They don’t check the duration of IT service.

According to us, you should start with a short-term contract. This contract can be for six months. Consider this period as a probationary period with your IT support team. If you think that your MSP is helping you during these 6 months, then you can go for better contracts.

This will ensure that you can first test your MSP. If you are not satisfied with the level of service, then you will at least know that your contract is only 6 months long. Imagine a scenario where you have signed a 5-year deal without checking the contract probably. It will be a nightmare situation for your business as you can’t get out of the contract.

2. Your MSP must have good skills and certifications

IT is a fast-moving world. This simply means that your IT professional needs to keep learning. They must keep up with the changes to general tech, hardware, and software. This will ensure that they can properly serve their customers.

You should ask about the training that your IT team has gone through. Some IT professionals receive company funding and time to learn about new technologies. Others pay from their own pocket for learning about new technologies. It doesn’t matter who is funding their education. The main thing is that they should keep learning about new technologies.

You should ask about the certifications that your IT support has. These certifications are generally valid for two or three years only. If your IT professionals are not renewing their certification, then this might limit the breadth of services that they can offer. Some of the certificates that you should check for are CCNA, CCNP, MTA, cisco certification, and CompTIA A+.

3. Availability

If you need IT support on weekends or holidays, then you should ensure that your IT support team is available. You should ask about the availability of your IT professionals. If they are following the strict 9-5 timeline, then this might cause a headache for you. It is easy to avoid this issue by consulting your IT pros first.

What are Managed IT services?

Managed IT services will give you access to a great IT team. In the break/fix model you will outsource IT services only when something goes wrong. However, most companies are moving to the managed IT services model. The concept of managed services is not limited to IT only. Some of the main benefits of managed IT services are:

1. You can focus on your core business

IT support is generally not the focus of any business. Still, you need to spend a lot of time fixing your IT systems and network. Due to this, you can’t focus on your important business tasks. Downtime can affect your business reputation and revenue. Thus, you should ensure that you are getting good IT services.

MSPs will help you in solving all your IT problems. Your MSP will help you in taking care of all the IT-related tasks. This will ensure that you can focus on running your business.

2. Less Downtime

A simple IT issue can affect your entire network. If your network is down, then you can’t do your work. The response time of your IT professionals can help you in saving your entire business. If your IT pros respond after a day, then your business will be in a lot of trouble.

Time is the most important commodity for every business. Each minute of the workday is important for your business. Even one hour of downtime can cost like 100k$ to your business. Thus, it is important to ensure that you are focusing on reducing downtime.

3. Access to best technologies

You probably don’t have access to the best technologies as they are very expensive. Managed IT services can help you in getting access to cutting-edge technology. They will ensure that you can access the best software and hardware. If your systems are running properly, then you can properly serve your customers.

4. Reliable overhead

No company wants surprise charges. This is especially true for companies that are finding it hard to find their financial footing. Your MSPs will charge you only a fixed monthly fee. This fee is going to be constant for a good period of time. Your company can easily create a reliable budget. You don’t need to worry about any hidden or surprise charges.

How your business can prepare for Managed Services Consultation 

If you are going to have a meeting with a managed IT services provider, then there are a few things that you should keep in your mind.

1. Pricing Structure

The pricing structure of MSPs can vary. They might charge you for every device or user on your network. Some MSPs will also charge you a fixed monthly fee. Your company has to decide the pricing structure that you can afford. Make sure that you are clear about the pricing the MSP charges.

2. Communication Style

If you can’t communicate easily with your MSP, then it will be a bumpy ride for you. You should ensure that your communication style matches your MSP. Communication channels like text messages, instant messaging, phone, and email can be used.

3. Available Services

MSPs can provide a lot of IT services. You should check the services that your MSP is providing. Make sure that these are the services that you actually need. You should sit down with your MSP and create a list of all the services that they are providing. After that, you should figure out the services that you actually need. If you are meeting with several MSPs, then you should work with the MSP that can provide the most important services to your business.

Conclusion 

MSPs can help you in quickly troubleshooting your IT issues. They are not limited to fixing computer errors only. Experienced MSPs like Bleuwire will help you in making your operations more efficient. They will help you in creating an IT plan for your business. Bleuwire will also help you in executing this IT strategy. They will also help you in monitoring your network and systems. This will ensure that your network is secure from vulnerabilities. If you need more information regarding IT services, then you can contact Bleuwire.

Contact us today to learn about Bleuwire™  services and solutions in how we can help your business.