No matter their size, businesses need to adapt quickly to the ever-evolving technologies and needs of their clients. Making sure that your business has the right technology in place allows you to meet the demands of an increasingly digital workforce.

While these changes often make a positive impact on your team, it can be difficult to keep up with the demands without rearranging your staff or feeling the need to constantly hire and train new IT staff.

Utilizing managed IT services makes it possible for your business to exceed your technology needs while having direct access to experts in the field–all without needing to maintain an expert IT team in-house. This saves your organization valuable time and resources while strategically helping your business thrive in an ever-changing tech landscape.

Keep reading to learn more about how managed IT services can help your business adapt and use technology as an advantage to hit your goals. For more information about our managed IT services in Charlotte NC, reach out to the experts at WorkSmart today.

What are Managed IT Services?

Officially, Managed IT services are defined as information technology tasks, managed by a third-party managed service provider (MSP). These services can often take up a lot of time, energy, and workforce, putting a major constraint on the productivity of your team. That’s why many organizations choose to  outsource these services to an MSP (like us!) to manage these tasks.

It can be expensive to maintain a fully staffed IT team that is up to date on the latest technologies and security best practices. Using a managed service provider gives your team the ability to stay on top of your IT infrastructure, without having to hire additional staff internally.  This allows  you to shift the IT support and proactive maintenance to experts in the field, helping to reduce costs and improve the quality of these services.

What are Managed Service Providers (MSP)?

This is where we come in. In a broad sense, managed service providers are businesses that provide third-party IT services to other companies. As the MSP, we  take full responsibility for the services we offer and the equipment used. The specific details of these services and equipment are defined in the service level agreement (SLA), which is all included in our flat-rate managed service plans designed to fit the needs of your organization..

Here at WorkSmart, we can provide IT support in two different ways. First, we can be your fully out-sourced IT team, keeping your business equipped with the right technologies to keep your systems and team members running smoothly. Or, if you already have an internal IT team, we can work alongside them to offer extra hands and strategic advice as your business grows.

Working with an MSP like WorkSmart allows your business to outsource the maintenance of a range of processes and operations. The right MSP can be fully trusted to proactively monitor your systems and anticipate future IT needs and adaptations. The knowledge and skills that a managed service provider like ourselves can bring, helps save your organization money, promotes better workflow, and improves efficiency of your team.

Benefits of Using Managed IT Services

Every organization can benefit from managed IT services, regardless of the size. Whether  you’re just getting  started and have yet to venture far into the IT world, or you’ve had a long history with IT, managed IT services can help  you adapt to  the changing tech landscape and keep up with developing technologies that support business growth.

Here are some of the significant benefits of using managed IT services.

Bridging the skill gap

Like we’ve mentioned, the world of technology is constantly evolving. There’s always something new to learn and comprehend, making it difficult for organizations to maintain a team of experts at all times. As your IT systems become more complex, a skills gap can quickly develop, leaving your organization vulnerable to being outpaced or missing opportunities.

Managed service providers give your team access to the top experts in the field, without the time and cost of maintaining an internal team. Our IT professionals can come into  your organization and quickly establish the right technologies, applications, and processes that not only help your business keep up, but they also give you a competitive edge. Instead of using energy and time just trying to make things work, your team can focus on what they do best – innovating and growing your business.

Reducing costs

Our managed IT service plans  consist of a  flat monthly fee that allows your business to easily budget and keep track of expenses more accurately. Instead of constantly trying to build up your company’s internal IT team and adapt as your business grows, a consistent managed IT service plan  gives you the flexibility to scale up or down over time without the fluctuating costs of recruiting, hiring, and training new staff.

Reliability

Unfortunately, tech issues typically don’t follow a 9-5 schedule. The right team of IT experts work around the clock to keep your systems up and running, regardless of the day of the week or time of day. You’ll worry less about outages and downtime because the WorkSmart team proactively monitors and provides support 24/7.

In most cases, an in-house IT team is responsible for a wide variety of tasks and systems, meaning it can take some time to respond to problems when they arise.Managed service providers, on the other hand, have clearly defined responsibilities and have designated team members to assist with anything that comes up – both proactively and reactively. Your service level agreement (SLA) will clearly explain what operations our team handles, letting you rest easy knowing that your system is in expert hands. While you and your team focus on other core tasks, our team of IT professionals fully devote themselves to the functionality and reliability of your IT operations, including making patches and upgrades along the way.

What Types of Managed IT Services Are Available?

Depending on the type of business and services you provide, your organization is going to have specific IT needs to help you flourish. There’s no one-size-fits-all service plan. Our team works alongside yours to develop a custom, strategic plan that’s designed to best fit the needs of your organization. Plus, it’s not permanent. We understand that your needs will likely change over time. That’s why we’ll continue to work with you and ensure your needs are continuously being addressed and taken care of.

Common IT services include:

• • Equipment monitoring & maintenance
  • Managing IT systems
  • Remote server monitoring
  • Network monitoring
  • Remote server management
  • General support services
  • Cybersecurity services
  • Help desk support
  • Cloud services

 

Traditionally, managed IT services are often guided by a “break/fix” model, meaning the MSP would take a reactive-only approach, and respond to specific problems with tailored solutions as they arose. The right managed service providers  now focus more on proactive solutions instead. Rather than coming up with solutions on the spot to address issues as they arise, we work to evaluate  your entire system and work alongside you to develop long-term strategies to anticipate and prevent problems from occurring. This often includes maintaining reliable backups, patching open vulnerabilities, and updating systems regularly.

Cloud-based managed IT services can include managing a range of operations and systems, such as software as a service or infrastructure as a service. Cloud-based services give your organization better access to storage, analytics, and data, as well as provide a wealth of flexibility for your team.

Using cloud-based managed IT services allows your business to quickly and easily scale up or down without having to manage a data center. It also can greatly reduce the costs your company spends on its IT management by taking away the expenses of physical IT infrastructure.

When Should a Business Consider Using Managed IT Services?

In today’s digital world, companies of all industries and sizes should consider using managed IT services to monitor and improve their technology infrastructure. Regardless of the size, all companies benefit from working with an MSP like ourselves because it allows your team to focus on their core competencies, strategize, plan for the future, and work within a defined budget.

Our efficient and reliable managed IT services help to boost the productivity of your team and allow for more accessible and engaging collaboration across your organization. As more and more systems continue to move online,  our IT experts can ensure that your essential systems are protected and that your data is secure.

Partnering with an MSP also means that your business will not only be able to adapt to new challenges but can be proactive about planning for the future. Our strategic and forward-thinking approach gives your business the opportunity to embrace the right technologies before your competitors–all while paying one consistent monthly fee.

Choosing a Managed IT Service Provider

Finding the right managed IT services provider to meet your business’s needs can seem overwhelming. Here are some steps you should take to  determine the best fit for your organization.

1. Evaluate your existing IT systems

Compile a report defining your current IT systems. Consider what needs improvement and what tasks you would prefer to outsource. Including information about your budget, current workforce, existing assets and infrastructure, and other resources can help in expediting this process.

2. Compile a short list

Do some research and create a list of MSPs you will contact. When reaching out, it’s important to highlight the pain points that you’re facing in order to ensure that your needs are accurately addressed.

 3. Choose a provider

While cost will inherently be a factor in most business decisions you make, there are a few other things that are important to consider when choosing the right IT provider.

• Are they able to scale up or down based on your needs?
• Do they value collaboration and teamwork?
• Are they growth-oriented?
• Is it a team full of people you’re going to love and trust? 

 

Find Managed IT Services in Charlotte NC

Your business’s IT systems and operations are essential to its growth. Don’t trust your information technology to just anyone. The experts at WorkSmart want to get to know you and your business so that we can manage your systems efficiently and create innovative solutions to support your organization in reaching its full potential.

If you are looking for managed IT services Charlotte NC, contact us today to learn more about how we can support your business.