If your business still operates on a break/fix model, it may be time to consider transitioning to Managed IT Services (MIT), especially if you own a small business. The break/fix model is one in which you call an IT company to fix something after it breaks; think of this model as reactive. Conversely, an MIT model is a continuous, preventative system; think of this model as proactive.

Why Choose Managed IT Services?

Managed service business models are on the rise, with some studies suggesting they’ll grow by as much as $193 billion in 2019. The reason for the rapid growth is a simple one. Small and mid-sized businesses realize MIT models are a cost-effective solution to the ever-expanding demand for IT services. For example, the amount of information security and technical support needed for both cloud and local applications is continually increasing. Businesses are having to significantly increase IT spending to meet demand. And for those companies that cannot support a dedicated in-house IT department, it makes sense to partner with an expert provider for support and strategic planning.

Managed IT Services are exactly what they sound like. The IT services your business requires are managed by an outside provider. Following an MIT model, you will have a dedicated room of experts at your disposal to manage your IT needs and equipment. Best of all, the IT solutions you receive will be customized to fit your business and needs.

In an MIT model, a dedicated provider manages your company’s:

• Firewalls
• Servers
• Workstation Services
• End-User Services
• Telecom
• Backup Monitoring and Administration

With so many responsibilities taken away from your shoulders and out of the hands of your employees, you will be able to rededicate your valuable time to the parts of your business that are most important to you.

The Benefits of Managed IT Services

When you switch to the MIT model, you get back all the time, energy, and effort you’ve dedicated to maintaining your IT services. You’ll be able to focus on your business and your own expertise, instead of putting out proverbial IT fires. But, more importantly, since the MIT model is proactive, saved time is not the only benefit.

In addition to allowing your staff more time to focus on in-house projects instead of shuffling between responsibilities, Managed IT Services also provide:

• More Efficient Operations – Instead of responding to problems when they happen, like in the break/fix model, the experts managing your services will be able to anticipate your needs. They’ll be proactive in preventing breaches or breaks before they ever have a chance to occur.
• Return on Investment – Using outdated software or waiting for a break to occur can be detrimental to your business. You never know when the next break could be a fatal disaster to your system. And if you wait until after the fact to react, you will pay the price. The costs of hesitancy can be excessive.
• More Security and Compliance – Technology and the regulations that go along with it are constantly evolving. It can be difficult to keep up with the changes. But with a dedicated provider managing your IT services you can be sure that you are always compliant and up to date. After all, they are the experts in their industry’s updates and security strategies.

Pricing Differences Between the Models

Choosing an IT company to transition to the proactive model can be challenging. Especially so when pricing and service expectations are different. With a break/fix model, you pay as you go at standard rates for services as you need them. Generally, these models do not have service level agreements (SLA) that dictate response time expectations. In the MIT model, a recurring monthly fee exists along with an SLA to provide a consistent expectation for both costs and service. The best service providers will discuss these options with you (upfront and periodically) to determine what best fits your needs. Use these discussions to plan for current and future issues. This way you’ll achieve the most efficient services for an improved bottom line and smooth day-to-day operations.

The benefits of moving from break/fix services to managed IT are simple and clear: more efficiency, better ROI, and more security and compliance. If you are interested in learning more about the Managed IT Services model, or if you are ready to make the switch to a proactive model, schedule a consultation  with Net3 IT to discuss solutions that can help to save you time, money, and headaches.

Are you not already using managed IT services? You should be!

Maintaining IT systems and solutions is an incredibly difficult job, even in a small business setting. But if you have only one person managing your company’s IT then it’s not just inconvenient — it’s a liability!

According to a recent Data Breach Investigations Report conducted by Verizon, approximately 50 percent of all IT security incidents are caused by people within your organization — and the vast majority of those are simply inattention or neglect due to overwork.

This is why using managed IT services from your local Knoxville IT company is the most important decision your small-to-medium business can make. An expert provider can offer support to your small or one-person team in the event of breaches or outages that they simply wouldn’t be able to handle on their own. And of course, if your one IT person should become ill or injured or otherwise unable to continue managing your systems, then where would you be? Again, with a managed services provider, you have an additional level of support and security to give your business an edge, not to mention a solid foundation for growth.

Here’s why you should be using managed IT services from a trusted Knoxville IT company for your small or medium business.

Disaster Recovery

When a breach occurs — and breaches, whether intentional or accidental, will occur — your response will define the future success of your company. Once your data and information have been compromised or when your network and infrastructure are down, you are unable to continue doing your job until they are repaired — and any downtime is detrimental to a company.

If you have only one person or a small team managing all of your IT systems, they will be unable to resolve the breach and recover your systems and data as quickly or effectively as a full team of experienced professionals would be. After all, simply fixing the breach isn’t enough, you also have to recover.

That’s where utilizing the expertise of a managed IT services provider comes in. Your trusted IT company will not only be able to solve your breach but will also have the tools and knowledge to ensure that your systems are recovered efficiently.

Increased Data Security

You know that your data is vulnerable — after all, anything from a natural disaster, like a fire or flood, to lax employee security, like shared login credentials or email forwarding, can lead to breaches and outages.

Not only that, but cyberattacks are also on the rise. Are your firewalls up to date? What security system do you have in place? Do you consistently review your equipment and processes for updates and effectiveness?

As technology evolves, the processes and procedures that go into maintaining your company’s IT solutions become more complicated. It can be incredibly difficult to keep up with all the changes, updates, and best practices — especially with everything else on your plate.

But by using a managed IT services provider, the crushing weight of all this responsibility is taken off of your shoulders, or that of your overworked one-person team, and placed in the hands of an experienced IT professional, minimizing the risks and keeping your systems and processes up to date and productive.

Better Tools To Handle Problems

With each passing year, the significance and influence of IT services on business only continues to expand. Since most small or medium businesses can’t afford to maintain a large in-house IT team to support the growing need, outsourcing them to a managed services provider levels the playing field by providing the same technology, expertise, and planning processes that large corporations utilize.

If a system goes down or an outage occurs, with a managed IT services team your company will have access to immediate solutions and assistance to solve the problem and get you back on track with minimal downtime — an absolute must for any business.

If you want your company to perform at its best, then you must focus on utilizing the best IT solutions and systems available to you — and that means upgrading from your one-person or small, overworked in-house team. Here’s why you need to be using managed IT services from a trusted Knoxville IT company:

1. For Disaster Recovery Plans
2. To Increase Your Data Security
3. For Better Tools to Handle Breaches and Problems

Give your small-to-midsized business the safety and security it deserves by outsourcing your IT services to a trusted, experienced IT provider and build a strong foundation for your business’s growth.