Small to medium businesses typically do not have the budget, bandwidth or focus to fully manage its own IT operations; and with a growing business comes the pain of increasing IT infrastructure needs and costs. In a blog post we shared about why SMBs are turning to Managed Services Providers, we tackled how MSPs can resolve IT-related business issues. From predictable IT spend, to closing the skills gap, to improved security, it’s a win-win situation for both the business and your people.
Choosing the wrong partner, however, can be costly and frustrating in the long-term. So, before you decide on partnering with an MSP, here are some of what you need to consider.
#1 Industry Experience
Most MSPs have professionals onboard with extensive technical and functional experience providing support services for certain industries. Some even have specializations such as the case of Systema Solutions with our deep understanding of the Microsoft Dynamics applications. Dealing with partners that have familiarity in your industry or the application that you use provide a much better customer service experience than those that do not have the same capability.
#2 Referenceable Customers
Your MSP partner should have customer references to show that you can also verify. Talk to their customers to get a feel of how well they deliver customer service and technical support.
#3 Established Processes and Response Times
Your MSP should have established service level agreements (SLA), escalation procedures and response times to determine courses of action for any service request. They should have contract agreements that detail the service inclusions. Discuss with them a typical procedure for troubleshooting an issue so you know if their standard SLAs work for your business needs. Otherwise, if it doesn’t, discuss it early on to save yourself from headaches in the future.
#4 Highly Innovative
Your MSP should not simply cover business as usual support services. They should be at the forefront of latest technological developments and applying it to how they serve your business. It should go beyond the usual phone and email support. A good way for you to take advantage of the innovations of your MSP is to have regular scheduled visits. You can utilize that time to learn how you can keep your company modern, secure and relevant.
#5 Availability
Your business might not be operating 24/7 but having someone look after your systems and applications round the clock sure is a good benefit to have around. You get assistance instantly from a helpdesk to take appropriate action to an issue at any given point in time.
The right MSP can boost productivity for your users; deliver a timely resolution to issues; can take a big picture approach throughout your IT environment; and share real-world experience and expertise to support your business. You should engage with an MSP that can discuss business challenges and solutions with you.
At Systema Solutions, we pride ourselves with not only having talented and dedicated consultants but also having one of the most competitive monthly support plans. Designed for SMBs, it is intended to support your IT needs without breaking your budget. Check out what we can do to help you here.
Comments