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Thinking about outsourcing your IT resources? Being successful in an ever-changing business depends upon your ability to focus on your strengths while mitigating your weaknesses. Outsourcing is a great way to address both these needs while staying flexible and reducing risk. Choosing to outsource your IT needs is an excellent way to access the latest hardware, software, and network security defenses while saving your business money and reducing long-term operations costs. You gain access to a team of IT experts with years of experience so that you can focus on your core business operations. If the benefits of outsourcing your IT could help your business, here are some critical steps to prepare you for the transition.
Clarify Your Needs
The fundamental goal of outsourcing your IT support and services is to access the latest technology while maximizing cost savings your business. However, the technology and strategies your business needs are going to look different for everyone. Depending on your industry, growth goals, and geographic location, you need to clarify what you need. Your managed service provider (MSP) can help you refine your needs, but nobody knows your business as well as you do. Once you’ve defined your core needs, stand by them.
Establish Length of Contract
Once you’ve decided on an MSP, the contract length is the next critical step in the decision-making process. The larger question you need to answer here is: how much does your business prioritize flexibility? Long-term contracts can secure an excellent contract price for your MSP services but can burn your business in the long run if your needs change or you end up being unsatisfied with your provider and need a change. If you’ve never worked with an MSP before, you may be better off negotiating for a shorter contract, so your business can adapt in the future.
Ask Questions
When searching for your next MSP, don’t ever hesitate to ask questions. If you want the right answers, the first step is to ask the right questions. We recommend asking questions like:
- What managed services do you specialize in?
- How does your support network function? Are there certain periods when live support isn’t available? Are there additional support fees outside of business hours?
- What certifications do your employees have?
- How much clarity and transparency do you provide during the decision-making process?
These are some critical questions that can get you started on deciding whether an MSP will be a good fit for your business. Before you ask a question, visualize what an ideal answer to that question would look like for your business. When you find an MSP that answers your questions with answers close to that ideal, you’re on the right track.
How We Can Help
Preparing to transition to an outsourced IT service provider can seem overwhelming at first, but when you’ve teamed up with the right provider, you’ll wonder why you didn’t make the change sooner. Our team works hard to ensure that we minimize the impact of a transition to your team members and exceed their expectations through the length of our partnership. If you have any questions, learn more about our services here or contact our team of experts today.
