Why use IT Managed Services? Benefits and Reasons
Thinking about the ways to lower infrastructure expenses and enhancing IT staff productivity? Or maybe about getting immediate expert-level support without having to spend a lot of time on finding a suitable specialist? That’s when managed IT services come into play and become a forward-looking investment for the company. There are numerous benefits of IT managed services that can be translated into cost savings or various corporate initiatives.
In this article, Qubit Labs has decided to tap into the topic of managed IT support services and see why they’re gaining popularity and what it is about the managed IT services providers that make them sought-after among customers.
What is managed IT services?
It’s the activity of outsourcing certain services of your business to an external IT managed services provider that takes on the full responsibility of these operations. Usually, this includes constant monitoring, IT support on-demand, and problem resolution. In this way, businesses have access to the latest technologies and innovative solutions; hence, they can maximize productivity, which results in increased profits.
The managed IT support services allow for reducing the hassle associated with IT and making sure you know how much everything will cost and whether the outcomes will match your expectations. In 2020, the managed services market size was valued at $152,02 billion and is expected to reach approximately $274 billion by 2026.
What are the most commonly used IT managed services?
There are various responsibilities that can be transferred to an IT managed services provider, but most frequently, the companies outsource the following ones:
- remote monitoring of hardware and infrastructure and their management;
- security services, which includes a set of different activities, namely monitoring, penetration testing, threat hunting, and incident response;
- management of cloud services, including its configuration and monitoring;
- managed IT support services, like communication with the customers.
Taking into account the current situation in the world, managed services IT help to adapt to the constantly changing environment and add value to the business resilience solutions, making remote monitoring and management more efficient.
Why opt for managed IT services?
You might be wondering: “what is IT managed services, and what can they bring to my business?” Well, most of the companies of different sizes usually pay for different services, like data backup or infrastructure management, a la carte. However, managed IT security services can consolidate all of them because you will have to pay to just one provider, which will result in proactive bugs fixing, hence decreased downtime.
If your business requires employees to handle different maintenance issues, it’s more effective to ask the managed IT services company to take care of them. In this way, your team will be more focused on the strategic business initiatives and avoid being scattered over too many tasks.
In general, managed IT services are divided into those that are focused on basic IT support and more comprehensive ones, namely total IT outsourcing. It’s essential for your business to decide what kind of services you want to outsource and how many of them because the choice also comes down to a large or a small managed IT services company.
What are the benefits of IT managed services?
Efficiency and reliability
IT managed services provider established a collaborative environment that enhances the capabilities of an in-house IT staff. The issues are resolved more quickly, and businesses increase profitability because their IT operations become more efficient and reliable.
Some of the most common technologies that are used in this case are cloud computing remote monitoring and management, disaster recovery, and backup. Thus, your entire IT infrastructure will be efficient and reliable.
Cost-effectiveness
IT managed services allow for considerable savings for the company. They help to control outgoing expenses and enhance the return on investment. Managed IT services aim for scalability and flexibility, so you will also save money because your company won’t be using outdated software but enjoy modern hardware and software and network infrastructure.
Besides, managed IT support services enable greater transparency, and you can foresee the IT expenses and avoid unexpected spendings.
A variety of solutions
Each business requires specific solutions designed under its individual needs, for example, customer relationship management software (CRM).
Usually, managed IT services providers offer various ways of automating the processes and access greater visibility via surveys, notes, or campaigns. This results in improved monitoring of various spheres related to the company and helps it better understand the customers’ needs.
Access to cutting-edge and innovative technologies
Keeping up with the latest technologies, no matter whether you have a large or a small-medium business might be a tricky task.
Nevertheless, outsourcing enables reaching out to the expert in practically any field. So, you won’t have to spend a lot of time figuring out how to address the issue because the experts will do that for you. In this way, your company stays ahead of the latest technologies without you having to pay enormous sums for numerous courses for the employees.
Enhanced uptime
IT managed services companies enable their clients to be prepared for the worst-case scenario because they make sure your business has a disaster recovery plan. The outsourced professionals will constantly monitor your IT systems to make sure there won’t be any unexpected issues that might negatively affect the company’s performance.
Reduced infrastructure expenses
Managed IT support services allow the downsizing of the amount of your on-site infrastructure because the providers will be using their data centers. Thus, you will buy less hardware and pay less for the used energy and rent to have an office that is large enough to house everything.
Besides, there will be savings related to licensing, training, and consulting. You will pay once a month, and all the needs will be covered.
Small initial investment
A monthly investment paid to the IT managed services provider implies less money compared to spending thousands of dollars and software once you set up your office.
Also, the regular software updating is included in the mentioned services, so there won’t be additional charges for keeping it up-to-date.
Internal employees can concentrate on strategic projects
Managed IT services will take on a lot of tasks that are usually handled by the internal staff. So, all the projects will be promptly addressed, and you won’t have to worry that the employees don’t pay enough attention to certain tasks because they are focused on other ones.
The managed IT services providers can professionally handle various tasks, like migrating over to Microsoft Office 365, and require much less time than in-house employees.
Data protection
Since security is a top concern for any organization, the security efforts should never sleep.
Therefore, IT managed services enable constant security measures running around the clock within your organization. You won’t have to be concerned about losing your customers’ trust because skilled cybersecurity experts will implement next-gen applications aimed at keeping your devices, employees, clients, and data safe.
Types of managed IT services providers
Usually, managed IT support services provide different levels of services and customized packages to enable your company to choose the best one according to its needs. Most often, there are four major levels of managed IT services providers.
Basic
If you have numerous internal resources but want to reduce the load put on your internal team, this option will perfectly fit you. In this case, the managed IT services will focus on rather basic tasks, like monitoring and fixing the customers’ problems.
Consulting
If you need strategic guidance for a new project or future growth and have certain internal IT resources, it’s better to opt for such kinds of services. The managed IT services company will provide some basic functions and help you with several strategic initiatives.
Full outsourcing
Having highly trained staff that uses its own facilities and equipment is a forward-looking activity because you can choose from a full spectrum of IT services offered by these employees. They offer various managed services IT, from basic ones to consulting and virtual CIO.
Cloud-managed service provider
If you want to emphasize cloud management, you can opt for the professionals in this area because they will focus on traditional and cloud services. The IT managed services companies of this type usually offer different packages, and you can choose whether you need only cloud services or traditional ones as well.
Wrapping Up
As you can see, managed IT services provide a set of benefits that can significantly affect your company’s growth speed. You will access a larger talent pool, decrease expenditures, and take your business to the next level.
Qubit Labs can help you uncover the advantages of IT managed services, so feel free to contact us and get a free consultation.
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