Technology has made some significant advancements in recent years – from the evolution of artificial intelligence and virtual reality to the increasing role of cybersecurity in organisations large and small.
And as the digital revolution continues to take place across the globe – and IT becomes more sophisticated than ever – departments are facing increased pressure to innovate, with most internal services unequipped to keep pace with the demands of a growing business.
And outsourcing responsibilities to a managed IT service provider –either as a complete solution or partial management strategy – is one way to overcome this pressure. However, despite the fast-growing deployment and reliance upon outsourcing in organisations worldwide, the misconception of ‘stealing’ that prevents business owners from considering this as an option, remains a pressing issue throughout the industry.
Rather than viewing managed IT service as a ‘competitor’ or ‘outsider', it’s important to evaluate the true value that outsourcing can bring. Let’s delve a little deeper, to see exactly what the perfect partner could bring to your company…
- A breadth of experience: With the latest technology comes new potential issues – problems that your internal IT team might not have the time or knowledge to solve. And although recruiting employees or training your existing team are perfectly viable solutions, they can also ramp up significant costs for your business. When outsourcing either some or all of your technology needs, you have access to the ‘hive mind’. This means you can take advantage of the team’s combined years of experience and unlock the potential of a whole host of specialists – from technical experts to training consultants who can help maintain the efficiency of your systems.
- Efficient and reliable operations: If there’s a lack of skill and expertise across your organisation, this is not only a costly burden, but it also leads to inefficiency and unreliability. While managed IT services won’t replace your in-house team, they will significantly enhance its capabilities, complementing their activities, and ensuring any issues are resolved as promptly as possible – using innovation to maximise profitability and downtime.
- A proactive approach to maintenance: Managed IT services use advanced remote monitoring tools to identify, diagnose, and troubleshoot any potential weaknesses in your infrastructure before they arise – which is essential to minimising the risk of network downtime and security vulnerabilities. Essentially, if you opt for this service, your IT partner can offer an extra layer of resources and protection to make your infrastructure even stronger – that, and they have ‘eyes’ on your systems 24/7.
- Opportunity to scale up or down as required: Refreshing and overhauling your system to keep up with the fast-paced changes in technology and the wider market is critical to organisational growth and development. And this is where managed IT services can add even more value to your business. By addressing pain points and remaining receptive to your company’s needs – both short and long-term – your IT partner can continually support and enhance your key objectives, maximising productivity, eliminating unnecessary costs, and supporting essential growth.
- Cost effectiveness: We’ve already talked about the elimination of costs in terms of new hires or team training, but the extension of a managed IT service provider can also help you to control outgoing expenses and increase your return on investment. This is because your service-led agreement means you know exactly what you’re getting and for how much. And with the money you save, you can reinvest this back into your firm.
- Support for security and compliance: When appointing a managed IT service provider that truly cares about the needs of your business, you can rest assured that help is available whenever you need it – offering 24/7 flexibility, on-call options, and even weekend support, if required. And with security and compliance both major concerns for modern-day businesses, this kind of support is crucial. Your IT partner will not only help protect and take action against security breaches, but they will also spot potential infrastructure weaknesses before it’s too late, along with supplementing additional policies and procedures to ensure full compliance.
- A complete extension of your team: A great IT partner will integrate seamlessly into your business, working as a true extension of your in-house teams, to meet the same objectives. When you collaborate with a provider that has a truly customer-centric and thoughtful approach, you’ll notice this creating real efficiencies across the board which help to drive business performance forward.
- Focus on core objectives: As your company grows, so will your technical needs, meaning your in-house IT teams might often feel overwhelmed and distracted by the pace of development. Managed IT service providers are there to act as a ‘friend’ to your tech teams. By offering flexible models that allow you to determine the exact level of assistance you require, this helps to free up employee resource for the more strategic tasks, without having to worry about spinning too many operational plates at once.
Although it might sometimes seem daunting, outsourcing IT resource – whether fully or partially – can effectively remove the burdens and pressures from your internal teams by providing ongoing management and support, allowing them to place a heavier focus on core objectives and deliver the best possible service to both employees and customers.
And at Central, we think that service is even more important than the product itself. We always go the extra mile to look after our customers – and we’ve been doing this for 30 years. We’re committed to making IT as seamless as possible and placing people at the heart of everything we do.
If you’re looking for flexible, customer-focused support, why not contact our specialists?
