“Oh, yeah I have a contact who can do that.”
In today’s world, if your IT contact is your company’s solution, you should be concerned. Do you really want to rely on one person to protect the technology that keeps your company running while cybercrime is at an all-time high and attacks are becoming increasingly sophisticated?
Over the last few years, the conversation around cybersecurity has shifted drastically. In other words, what was safe even a year ago is no longer secure. There are many benefits of entrusting your IT network with an organization that specializes in network management and security rather than working with an independent IT provider.
We understand. Your IT contact is likely someone you trust, and they’ve been working on your issues for some time. However, there are many aspects of business that must be evaluated on a regular basis, and securing the company’s network and data is one of them.
Here’s how an IT partnership with a Managed Services Provider (MSP) differs from working with your IT contact:
- Alone, your contact is a single point of failure. They are also human. They get sick, they go on vacation, they have other obligations. If you experience an IT emergency and they’re out the next two weeks, you may be out of luck. Today’s small business IT requires consistent care and monitoring. When you work with an MSP, there is a team of people who know about your issues. Some of these issues are corrected before you even know there is a problem. The bench is deeper, and you avoid the vulnerability of a lone ranger IT provider. When I think about a friend or contact handling stuff like my car or home improvement projects, I always have a little bit of anxiety. How reliable are they? Do they know what they’re doing? Did they schedule time for me, or are they just fitting me into their already crammed day?
- A contact is not usually a help desk. Do they assist all your employees with day-to-day requests if they are having trouble? Are they there during business hours waiting for your call? The “how do I, where do I, what do I?” questions are ones that can be quickly answered when you work with a team of professionals that provide this support when you need it. Keep your organization armed with the technology tools they need daily with the reliability of a helpdesk team.
- A contact is not a team. If your company is at all forward-thinking about technology, don’t you want a team behind your approach? An IT Managed Services Provider employs helpdesk technicians and network experts to handle the technical side of maintaining your network and keeping it safe. Look for a provider that dedicates a knowledgeable, technical person who can break it down simply for you. Their job is to ensure each of your IT solutions are executed without fail, and they provide the strategic planning element to your business as it relates to technology. They also manage licensing and warranties on your existing hardware to help make the most of your investment.
- It comes down to your company culture. Technology is available for companies who embrace it, but it is most effective to those who make it a priority in their company culture.
An MSP has the ability to assign multiple experts who specialize in various levels of security. Since no one person can be an expert on all of the resources we use, companies like ours take a divide-and-conquer approach to the increasing number of specialized tools. We now have more resources to combat the most recent threats, and we can continue to keep up with rapidly changing technology. As a company that specializes in network protection, we’re constantly investing in new technology for our clients and growing the expertise of our team.
Don’t put all of your business’s most valuable assets in the hands of one person. Contact us at info@foxnetsolutions.com if you’re ready to host a discussion on IT strategic planning and network protection.
