In today’s digital landscape, businesses are increasingly recognizing the strategic advantages of co-managed and fully-managed IT services.
This shift is driven by the need to stay ahead of technological advancements, bolster cybersecurity, and ensure seamless business operations. However, it can be tricky to determine which is the best solution for your business. In this blog, we’ll walk through a few common scenarios our Client Solutions experts see, and the solutions that are often best for each case.
While there are many scenarios where one option might be a better fit than the other, here are three frequent situations that our clients have:
- No IT department or IT manager at all.
- An IT manager or team that is stretched too thin as the business grows and technology becomes more complex.
- An informal “IT person,” but the business’s IT needs are becoming more complex.
In this article, we’ll walk through each of these common scenarios, as well as how we can provide your business with award-winning IT support providing you with total peace of mind, or as a reliable partner that seamlessly complement your existing team.
SMEs With No Existing IT Department
For many small to medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) and startups, establishing a comprehensive IT department can be too expensive. However, IT and cybersecurity aren’t just for large businesses. Just as an SME that doesn’t have the capacity for a full accounting or legal department should outsource these tasks, an SME without an in-house IT team should have an IT service provider.
The Solution: Fully Managed IT for Comprehensive Proactive IT Expertise and Dependable Support
Our team conducts proactive maintenance to prevent issues and provides cybersecurity training to keep your team aware of threats. If you experience business-critical software issues or a staff member accidentally clicks on a phishing email, our trusted team will address the situation immediately. This results in a faster response—and often, less time and cost—than trying to find an IT and cybersecurity provider during an outage or active breach.
In this day and age, it’s not feasible to wait until your business grows to invest in these critical areas because:
- The costs of downtime and fixing issues after they’ve occurred can be much higher than investing in proactive IT.
- Smaller businesses can be targeted by threat actors because they’re less likely to have security measures in place.
- Compliance requirements are becoming more stringent, and businesses need to prove they’re operating securely.
Investing in proactive IT and cybersecurity measures in partnership with experts ensures your business remains resilient, secure, and compliant, protecting your operations and reputation in the long run.
Businesses With an Internal Team or IT Manager Who Is “Spread To Thin”
Sometimes, businesses reach out to our Client Solutions team to supplement, but not replace, their existing IT person or team. Even businesses with an established internal IT team or IT Manager can face challenges when their teams are overstretched.
The Solution: Supporting Your Internal Team in Making IT a Competitive Advantage
Our co-managed offering aims to free up your internal team’s time and provide additional support, enabling them to focus on strategic initiatives and turn IT into a strategic advantage for your business. Often, internal IT teams in small to medium businesses focus on day-to-day maintenance, forcing them to put broader strategic initiatives like digital transformation, enhancing cybersecurity, compliance, or AI adoption on the backburner. Our team has encountered cases where a single IT manager is responsible for everything, increasing the risk of burnout and turnover.
With co-managed IT, we work side by side with your team to provide support in key areas and access to an entire team of experts.
Co-Managed IT also helps ensure full coverage and the continuity of IT. Should your IT person go on sick leave, need time for additional training, or take vacation, our team is there to provide coverage. “IT is a 24×7 job,” says our CEO and founder, Vince Fung. “You can’t expect your internal person to always be available, but there are components of IT such as monitoring systems and security that can’t wait until business hours.” By partnering with us, you can ensure your IT needs are met efficiently and professionally, allowing your team to focus on what they do best.
Businesses With an Informal “IT Person”
A third type of business we hear from is one that is somewhere between the two we’ve outlined above: their business is not completely without IT but doesn’t have a full-time IT Manager or IT team. This is often described as “we have an IT guy.” Sometimes, if a business has a small team, one team member may take this on in addition to their existing tasks: in other words, they’re wearing a few different hats, and IT is just one of them. Other times, a business may have an “IT Person” in an even more informal capacity, such as a friend or relative who is good with computers and offers occasional support.
The Solution: Leverage Our Team’s Expertise and Free Up Your Team Member’s Time
Either way, IT is not only a full-time job but one that requires 24×7 monitoring and the ability to respond to incidents at any time.
Depending on the individual business and team members involved, this type of business might be a good candidate for fully-managed or co-managed IT. In one scenario, the staff member with IT responsibilities may have the qualifications and desire to take on the role of an IT manager, with additional support from our team. Alternatively, a business and team may decide that the person who has taken on have their time freed up for other responsibilities, and completely outsource.
Whether your business opts for fully-managed or co-managed IT, partnering with a trusted MSP ensures that your IT needs are handled by dedicated professionals, and that your team is effectively supported.
Learn More
Whether a business lacks an IT department, has an overburdened internal team, or is currently doing their best with the part-time support of a team member or acquaintance, co-managed and fully-managed IT services offer tailored solutions to meet their unique needs.
By leveraging these services, businesses can stay competitive, secure, and focused on their core objectives, driving growth and success in an increasingly digital world.
To learn more about how our managed and co-managed IT services can benefit your business, be sure to check out our dedicated pages on Managed IT Services and Co-Managed IT Services, or chat with our team on how we can help you achieve your IT goals.
