Your organisation’s IT infrastructure is vital to its success in the modern world. After all, the world we live in is a digital one. Business growth directly relies on how well you can leverage technology to have an impact, and the companies that triumph are the ones that can use technology in the most innovative ways.
However, with the current ongoing skills shortage and the rising cost of living, being able to spend on IT to the extent that is required for success is out of the question many businesses. This leaves the question, how can organisations still have a top-tier IT infrastructure without spending massively?
The answer is working with a managed IT service, that can offer the same efficiency, practicality, security, and expertise of an in-house IT team, but for a fraction of the price. In this article, we’re going to go over why you should look into working with a managed service provider, and the many benefits one can bring you.
The Impact of Managed IT Services on Business Efficiency
To stay competitive, your business needs to work efficiently. Without this efficiency, your whole business will slow down and won’t be as well-rounded to keep up with the workload of any modern business, and the trials and tribulations that come with this.
Without a large (and costly) IT department, it can be hard to stay efficient. A single IT technician or a very small team of personnel won’t be able to meet all your needs. They’ll be limited to being only able to help one or two people at a time, slowing down your processes and potentially leading to increased operational downtime. Time is money, after all.
A managed IT service eliminates this problem for a fraction of the cost, as you will have access to an entire team on demand, without having to hire and train your own IT staff. There will always be someone to meet your needs and ensure that all operations run smoothly.
Cost Savings and Budget Predictability
The IT skills shortage means that hiring IT personnel nowadays is simply expensive. On top of this, the surge in the cost of living over the past year has driven up wage costs. On top of this, both of these factors can lead to fluctuating wage costs, hurting your ability to predict your IT budget.
Moreover, hiring staff means that you need to accommodate their physical needs. This means thinking about office space, equipment, and anything else that they may require to be able to work, which can end up being costly when considering everything added together.
Building an in-house IT team is a question of capacity too. It’s difficult to size your team right, and getting this decision wrong is costly. Hire too many and you’ll have extra capacity you don’t need, hurting the budget efficiency. Conversely, having too few technicians will lead to operational downtime and reduced cyber security as your staff will have ‘too many fires to fight’.
With a managed IT service, you simply have to pay the pre-agreed service charge per term and you have access to a team of experts, and round-the-clock support. It frees up resources so you can spend more on growing your business.
Leverage Expertise for a Competitive Advantage
Access to IT expertise gives your business an edge over your competitors. Firstly, managed IT services have access to and knowledge of bleeding-edge technologies. They can act as advisers for driving organisational change, helping you make the most of technologies such as AI and business process automation (BPA).
Moreover, a team of experts at a managed IT provider may offer higher-quality support than an underfunded in-house team. This means you’re always going to get the best support and can get issues solved more promptly, reducing operational downtime.
As aforementioned, working with a managed service provider frees up operational resources (both time and funds) to focus on high-growth potential investments. That is, the less time and money you dedicate to maintaining your IT infrastructure, the more resources you have available to embark on lucrative projects, expand into new markets and grow your business.
On top of this, a managed IT service means you’ll have access to this expertise around the clock, all year round. There’s no need to train new staff, support and guidance are available from Day One.
Enhancing Security and Compliance
Much like physical security helps protect your organisation from anyone who wants to physically breach it, your IT security is just as important to ensure that nobody gains access to your organisation’s most important information and causes harm to your business.
However, being able to protect your business around the clock can be tricky. Even with hiring an IT expert to handle your organisation’s security, they will eventually have to go home and won’t be there to handle things if a situation arises overnight. On top of this, managed IT staff may have specialised cyber security and compliance experts who will keep up-to-date with the latest threats and compliance regulations.
A managed service provider will be able to protect and take care of your organisation around the clock and will be able to ensure that your business stays secure all of the time. They can also ensure that new security patches and updates are applied as soon as they become available and that your business is never left vulnerable.
On top of this, managed IT service providers will be able to help you understand compliance regulations and ensure that you’re never breaching compliance regulations, to ensure that you don’t fall under noncompliance (which can include litigation, at worst) and end up in hot water.
How We Can Help
IT for your organisation can be a costly endeavour and can lead to a lot of headaches when trying to find the right personnel for your organisation. A managed IT service removes this stress and gives you access to a team of experts who can help whenever you need it.
If you like the sound of all of these benefits, reach out to us now! We’ll be able to work with you to ensure that your organisation has everything it needs to prosper, as well as take care of anything else that you may require.
Get in touch with us now and see how we can help.
