Modern, in-house IT teams can face a large number of challenges when it comes to providing a high level of service to your employees and the business overall. Although the world of technology is becoming more and more sophisticated, it means you need to ensure your IT team’s knowledge is up to date, as well as the technology your company is using.
This can mean investing in your IT team. At TSG we understand how difficult it can be to find the line between a budget friendly option and getting the most out of what you’ve invested. The right co-managed IT services provider understands you need more than just outsourced IT support – you need a supplier to support and enhance your IT team.
So, what are co-managed IT services?
A co-managed IT service helps to bridge a gap between your internal IT specialists, with the experience, resources, and knowledge of a managed IT services provider. In essence, this means you’ll be able to maximise the efficiency of your IT team by partnering with an IT provider to create an extension of your IT team.
How do I know if I need a co-managed IT services partner?
There are three initial steps you need to take to establish the need for a co-managed services provider:
- Evaluate the current state of your IT department by looking at its requirements, personnel, tools, and resources.
- Identify the necessary services and resources you need to achieve your department’s and/or organisation’s objectives.
- Determine whether a managed IT partner can provide these services for you and research suitable partners.
What can a co-managed IT services provider help with?
- Supporting the day-to-day IT operations
- Cyber security protection
- Keeping servers up to date
- Upgrading business applications
- Implementing and using cloud technologies
- IT compliance
- A point of contact if your internal IT team needs to escalate issues
What are the benefits of having a co-managed IT services provider supporting your team?
- IT functions as an extension of your team while allowing your team to maintain complete control over all operational facets of the organisation. Choose which processes to simplify with the assistance of your IT partner, and delegate the rest to your own personnel.
- You gain additional expertise whenever you need it.
- Lower overheads – you can save money in the long run by using an outside IT support provider rather than bringing in more employees to handle IT needs in-house (and remove the need for additional bonuses, pensions, hardware, etc.)
- More resources will be available to you without needing to invest more of the budget.
- Easier to scale up or down – the more resource you need for your team, the easier it is for your IT partner to provide it. They can also help with scaling back, which again, is easier to do with the help of an IT partner.
- It boosts morale by providing your IT staff with resources such as business intelligence, enhanced strategies, faster reaction times, expert consultations, and decision assistance. By equipping them with all they need to do their jobs well, you can foster a more productive and stable workplace.
- Support whenever you need it – one of the best things about a co-management IT strategy is that it can enable you to provide help at all hours of the day and night (of course, depending on the supplier). This is especially important for companies that don’t function from Monday through Friday on a typical 9-5. A co-managed IT services provider can also fill in for your team during absences due to illness or annual leave, allowing you to rest easy while you’re away from the office.
- You’ll always have a reliable point of contact who understands your business and the way you operate from a high level through to the day-to-day.
