Managed IT services allow businesses to contract with an IT services partner. These services can be used to relieve in-house teams of extra work, supplement teams that cannot meet IT demand, or replace in-house teams entirely. Managed service providers (MSPs) can help provide 24-hour, 365-day coverage of IT duties and add specific expertise or experience that would otherwise be unavailable.

Which managed IT services are most often used?

Managed IT services can cover a wide range of activities, however, they often cover the following:

• Monitoring and administration of hardware and infrastructure through the Internet.
• Security services include monitoring, penetration testing, threat hunting, and incident response.
• Configuration, monitoring, and management of cloud services These services can be given alongside or in addition to managed cloud services.
• Communications assistance, including IP telephone services.

Today, many organizations have gotten used to managed services and increasingly rely on them to address critical IT operations, most notably email hosting, storage, backup and recovery, and network monitoring, during the previous several years. Consider the following example: The IT team of a company is swamped with inquiries and has trouble resolving issues promptly. Further, they are experiencing considerable network slowness, but the IT crew is so overburdened with other difficulties that it takes a long time to get everything back up and running. The company is looking for help to decrease downtime. They investigate using a managed service provider (MSP) to supplement their everyday operations and free up internal resources for more strategic projects.

This is a regular occurrence. Organizations increasingly use MSPs to manage aspects of their IT needs in cooperation with their in-house IT personnel. With the rise in cyberattacks, it's hardly a surprise that security ranks at the top of the list of MPS benefits. Managed IT services allow the IT department to focus on higher-value activities that create development and income while ensuring the department runs smoothly.

In information technology, the rate of change is unrivaled. IT departments can no longer rely on a single or two computer models, a single operating system, and a limited set of pre-approved applications. Mobile devices and cloud-based technologies have resulted in a slew of devices, platforms, and apps for IT staff to manage and secure.

These issues add up to significant expenditures for many businesses:

• Recruiting and training competent personnel.
• Purchasing infrastructure to handle emerging technologies.
• Maintaining systems that are both current and secure.

Rather than straining to keep up with technological developments, many businesses seek help from managed service providers. Companies may focus their time and resources on their core business objectives by outsourcing cloud installations, data center solutions, mobile initiatives, collaboration tools, and cybersecurity.

Managed service companies handle IT services holistically, providing a higher degree of service than many organizations deliver in-house. In addition, top service providers document and supervise the underlying infrastructure and provide end-user support and service assurances.

Using a trustworthy MSP partner offers several benefits, including the following:

1. Access to IT personnel. The bulk of information technology departments are overburdened. Thus, organizations may concentrate their in-house IT knowledge toward initiatives that promote their core objectives and stimulate innovation by outsourcing back-end operations and sophisticated, rapidly developing technology to a managed service provider.

2. Meeting the growing need for IT expertise. Organizations worldwide struggle to fill important IT positions, particularly in cybersecurity and mobile application development. Outsourcing these operations to a partner with technically skilled and specialized experts in creating technologies alleviates these obligations.

3. Increased scalability. IT departments devote months, if not years, to the implementation of extensive systems. Many companies have learned that it is better to start small, develop rapidly, and expand as needed. The modular approach to managed services allows businesses to scale up or down in response to changing demand, such as a retailer boosting capacity during the holidays or a startup experiencing rapid development.

4. Accessibility every day, 24 hours a day. The 9-to-5 workweek is as antiquated as the phone booth. When users work around the clock, so must the network. With a managed services provider, help is accessible 24 hours a day, seven days a week.

5. Redistributing the compliance burden. In addition to periodic audits, many organizations must follow standards and laws while implementing IT initiatives. The provisions governing privacy, reporting, and security in the healthcare, education, financial services, and retail sectors are found in the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act, the Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act, the Gramm–Leach–Bliley Act, the Payment Card Industry Data Security Standard, and the Sarbanes–Oxley Act. SSI can provide the tools, processes, and reports required to guarantee that enterprises follow them – without putting pressure on in-house workers.

The cost of managed IT services

The cost of managed IT services varies greatly amongst organizations, which presents a difficulty. There is no such thing as a "normal" price for managed IT services. It depends on the partner.

There are numerous well-known models. Some are particular to a device or a user. Numerous businesses provide tiered pricing structures based on the services you want. A managed services provider may lead you on the correct path; their goal is to save you money to keep using their services.

Why do many customers feel that managed IT services are unreasonably expensive? This misconception arises from the reality that adequately staffing internal IT teams is generally rather costly. Managed services firms, on the other hand, provide several advantages over in-house information technology teams. They can have a large number of specialists and technicians on staff and the required technology and resources to solve difficulties promptly. More importantly, you are not paying the salaries of every member of your MSP team in the same manner that you would need an internal IT workforce.

The service provider, of course, is crucial. More expensive MSPs will always exist. A company that wants an MSP to augment its current services will never spend as much as a company that enjoys its service provider to manage its whole IT infrastructure. This is another thing to think about. Businesses that want to save money might outsource only the functions they need to managed IT service providers.

In reality, when people complain about "managed IT being too expensive," they talk about the cost of internal IT. So, how do managed IT services stack up against in-house IT?

To begin with, it has become increasingly challenging to utilize IT internally. Often, a company cannot afford to hire the best, but a managed services provider can provide access to this knowledge. When it comes to IT, needs are typically 24 hours a day, seven days a week. This means that a company must pay someone to be available on call. The firm only pays for the service hours used when using a managed services provider.

Many firms might save a lot of money if they stop hiring in their own IT department and outsource to an MSP. However, layoffs or hiring freezes are not always necessary. Businesses may decide to combine their in-house IT staff with the MSP to obtain the best of both worlds.

While managed services may often give a firm substantially more talent and tools, they can also do it cheaper. These costs are distributed throughout the whole customer base of the managed services provider rather than being paid solely by one client. As long as the services provided are evaluated on an apples-to-apples basis, a competent MSP will almost always be less expensive than an internal IT team.

Let’s discuss ROI

When it comes to managed IT services, there is more to consider than simply the introductory pricing. The following are some of the advantages of managed services that have a significant impact on return on investment:

There is less downtime. MSPs have the technology to detect issues before they exist and faster reaction times, allowing them to address problems regardless of when they occur. Downtime may cost organizations thousands of dollars each hour, depending on how reliant they are on their systems—the lower a company's downtime, the greater its return on investment.

Mitigation of breach. A single data breach may be disastrous for a company. Not only will liability costs be incurred, but the organization may also face negative publicity. An MSP can seek to fix these breaches before they cause significant harm. Data breaches are given minutes, with each extra minute costing the organization more in terms of cost, lost data, and productivity.

Making significant improvements. Due to a shortage of internal people resources, many firms postpone necessary upgrades and adjustments. These enhancements, however, may be critical to the organization's security and efficiency. A managed IT service may create a game plan for the company and support these significant changes, allowing it to update its systems more swiftly and efficiently.

Monthly expenses that can be forecasted. Related costs accompany each IT investment. Businesses must have enough networks, storage, and security. They are in charge of employee training, system implementation, and equipment management. Unexpected costs might happen at any time. Companies can delay enormous capital costs in managing systems in-house by outsourcing activities to a managed service provider.

In summary

Working with an IT services partner does not have to be costly — and they may help a business save money in several ways. However, until you meet with a managed services professional, you will not know the exact cost of a managed service. Get in touch with SSI today to learn more about the managed IT services we provide.

As a Managed IT Services provider, SSI can provide support around all aspects of your IT operations. Request an assessment today.