Recent years have seen a gradual shift towards the uptake of managed IT services models where a partner looks after some or all of the client's IT requirements, as the cost, efficiency and security advantages have become more sharply defined, helping organisations maximise their IT investment.
In our capacity as a leading provider of ICT managed services, who have invested millions in high speed communications links, hardware, software and infrastructure, we come across the same reservations time after time from clients unsure about the options, and how the models work. The simple answer is that your managed services model can work in any way you want it to, whether you have an in-house IT team or not.
Here are just a few of the managed services myths debunked.
We will lose control. This is definitely not the case. With a managed services model you choose which elements of your IT will be managed in-house, and which areas would fall outside of the contract. For instance you could opt for ITPS to manage systems admin and security while your in-house team look after support, or we might provide a managed helpdesk working in partnership with your in-house team, or our team could work alongside your IT manager to implement the strategy that he or she creates. ITPS very much believes in a partnership approach with shared ownership.
It’s an expensive way to manage our IT function. You will almost certainly find that the efficiencies will far outweigh the costs. Your prices will be fixed and predictable, as you are only paying for what you need. Extra financial benefits come in the shape of freeing up in-house staff from mundane but essential tasks such as backups, recovery and storage, leaving them free to focus on projects that add real financial value to your business. There is also a huge value of having an extensive number of support professionals across a number of disciplines at ITPS that you are able to call upon as and when required.
We could be pushed in a direction we don’t want to go. Quite the reverse. While we don’t encourage our clients to jump on the bandwagon of every new and untested technology, we become your IT conscience by monitoring performance, offering insight and bringing new ideas to the table to boost performance and ROI, while you retain the choice about future directions. Our team works across a 500-strong client base and many of the principles behind the solutions and projects we have implemented for them can easily be applied cross-sector, so you benefit from our experience.
It will be disruptive to change models. It doesn’t need to be. Your managed services partner should work with you to create a migration plan involving little or no disruption. Fair enough, you may need to do some staff training, or implement some new processes, but the gain will far outweigh the pain.
We already have enough in-house expertise. Maintaining a workforce with high levels of expertise and the right range and depth of expertise across all disciplines and in the face of constant technology developments is expensive. As a managed services partner our clients have access to a pool of senior level technical experts across a broad range of specialisms, so they never have to worry about keeping pace with emerging technologies that could benefit their business.
Managed services can be the ideal approach for organisations looking to remove the headaches involved in IT management, while maintaining a flexible and resilient infrastructure that can adapt alongside the needs of the business.
If we have whetted your appetite for a new and more efficient approach to managing your IT, contact us now for a chat about how we can help.
Paul Anderson, Operations Director, ITPS