All That You Need To Know Before Adopting A Managed Services Model

The recent years have seen the growing adoption of Managed Services Provider (MSP) model by businesses of all sizes and across all domains. With this model, the IT infrastructure of the business is looked after by the provider so that its employees can focus on the core processes. The benefits of MSP are numerous as organizations can avail extensive technical expertise to set up and maintain the IT and cloud operations. Not only does it relieve their stress but also serves as an affordable option for those who do not want to block massive funds in the form of IT infrastructural and operational investment. If you are planning to move your business to the MSP model, here are the steps to be taken:

1. Evaluate your business thoroughly

The initial phase of business transformation to managed services model (or any other model) involves a thorough examination of the existing business model. It encompasses a complete assessment of the current processes, practices, culture, markets, financials and the skill sets of the employees of the business. You should also analyze the challenges, opportunities and priorities for adopting the new model. Another key factor to bear in mind is the key skills that you would look for in your provider based on the analytical insight about your organization. While the parameters related to the current setup are one aspect of the analysis phase, you also need to consider the future prospects for the sake of scalability. After all, the expectation from the service provider will grow once you expand your market and business in future. Finally, you need to be clear about the business transformation budget that you have for the project.

2. Verify the capabilities of the provider

In the next phase, you need to identify the differentiated service offerings that you get from the provider after the adoption of MSP model. The key service that every business focuses on is handling their infrastructural and security needs. A provider should be capable of delivering both so that your business no longer requires employees and resources to store, process and secure the data and infrastructure. Consistency is another factor that your provider needs to focus on as they should ensure that the operations run seamlessly 24 hours a day. With round-the-clock availability, any issues can be resolved at the earliest without hampering the processes even for a short span of time. An efficient provider is also capable of handling different levels of security based on your business requirements. Some other capabilities that you need to look for in the provider relate to working with backup and data recovery, Internet of Things (IoT) and wearable devices, mobility applications and any technology updates in the future.

3. Check their domain experience

The IT requirements of one domain differ greatly from those of other domains. The reason is that the infrastructure, security and compliance are different for different businesses. When you look for a managed service provider, ask if they have enough experience of working with organizations in your domain. Check their credentials and ask them for the names of other companies they have serviced. You can even check their reviews by connecting with real-life clients of the provider. Before engaging with a managed service provider, check a few more of them and compare their services and cost to find the one that provides the best deal.

4. Understand the need of SLA’s

Finally, when you have chosen a managed service provider to look after your business and IT requirements, you should get everything in writing. Do not take a chance with verbal promises as they may not be fulfilled in the end. Even if your provider is a trustworthy agency, there might be some misunderstandings and miscommunications as you discuss the project verbally. Everything needs to be well-communicated and well-understood and then placed into the Service Level Agreement (SLA) that puts the entire plan on paper. This adds to the reliability and trust that you should have in your provider as you entrusted them with the most important business process.

Adopting a MSP model for your business can be a transformative decision as it opens new opportunities for higher efficiencies and growth. However, you have to make sure that you choose only the best provider for the project. You can check providers such as https://www.voxns.com/ online to know more about their key skills, capabilities and experience. Avail the expertise of seasoned IT specialists to handle your business infrastructure and security so that you can work on achieving higher profits and booming growth.