Ten Things to Look for in a Managed Services ProviderManaged Services is a blend of technology, people and service plans that enable an outsourced IT firm to supply you with proactive, fast, intelligent IT services. Your Managed Services Provider will monitor your network, remotely support your servers and workstations, provide you with a dashboard view of your technology and, ultimately, keep the people using technology at your office performing at peak efficiency. What the right Managed Services Provider will save you in time, money and aggravation is worth far more than the cost of the services. So choose your IT services provider carefully. Here are ten things to look for when selecting a Managed Services Provider for your computer networking technology: 1. Proactive Off-Hours Maintenance of Servers and Desktops. Microsoft updates, service packs, and security patches are loaded after-hours. These updates are the problem-prevention part of why managed services works. If you load the fixes before you have the problems, you save incredible amounts of time and grief. 2. Daily Backup Verification and Periodic Testing. Making sure you have working backups is a chore. It seems that something is always not quite right, or some file has been skipped. Taking care of your backups is a regular daily function when you subscribe to a managed services program. If a file is skipped, it is the provider's responsibility to fix it. Backups are automatically checked and any problems addressed the same day. Periodic test restores are also executed to make sure data is retrievable. 3. Unlimited Support. Most managed services packages include “all you can eat” support provided by email, web, phone, and remote access. The provider may have a preferred method of contact, but in effect, all of your users can get support directly for any problems that might occur. This service is not to be confused with a training offering. It does not cover Word or Excel training, but does cover problems that cause issues with the daily work of your employees. Most providers use software that allows immediate remote access to the user’s desktop for fast resolution. Some offerings even have built-in software that runs in your toolbar and allows a service ticket to be submitted to the provider. 4. Third Party Vendor Assistance. Are you tired of calling four different vendors to get something done? Third party vendor assistance resolves this. If this is included in your managed services contract, the provider will manage your vendors for you. If there is a problem with your Internet connection, or your network copier, the managed services provider will contact the vendor and take care of the issue. This offering alone can save hours of time and grief for an administrative person at your company. Often there is a premium paid for this feature, but it can be a huge benefit! 5. Guaranteed Response Time. This is a must to any managed services offering. How fast will the provider respond during regular hours, after-hours, on weekends, and on holidays? These guarantees are referred to as Service Level Agreements (SLA), and it is important to make sure that the offering matches the needs of your company. Most managed services providers do not run a night and weekend shift. This often means that your calls will be handled by a call service and dispatched to a technical engineer on-call, who will get back in touch with you in a prescribed amount of time. 6. Network Documentation and Asset Tracking. Wouldn’t it be valuable to have a well documented-network? Has it been on your to-do list to track technology related assets within your company? A good managed services offering includes documenting your network. A network diagram can improve the troubleshooting process. Knowing what technology is where, its specifications, and its age can also provide great advantages to the planning and budgeting process. Often documentation won’t be part of the immediate offering, but will come 6 to 9 months into the managed services offering. 7. Annual Budget Meeting. Any good IT department would help you plan for the future. A good managed services provider does the same. Each year a planning meeting is initiated to plan for upgrades and changes as well as looking for technology that truly would benefit your organization. Because there is a close relationship with a managed services provider, they should be ready to advise you on how you can truly take advantage of technology in your organization. 8. Disaster Recovery Plan. This is another eternal to-do list item. A good managed services offering will help your organization develop a practical disaster recovery plan. 9. Onsite maintenance and support. Some plans offer onsite support. You pay one fee each month and it covers all remote and onsite support. Often you will be required to have all of your server equipment covered by onsite warranty from the manufacturer to qualify for this offering. It rarely if ever covers any new work. It just covers maintenance and fixes. 10. Monthly Report Cards. How do you know if your managed services provider is really earning it's keep? This comes through reporting. A good offering includes detailed monthly reports about service provided, maintenance completed, and the total health of your network. Some providers send reports more often, but if the interval is too frequent the reports just become another of those annoying emails filling our inbox. The Bottom Line
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