5 Things to look for in a Managed Service Provider (MSP)

A Managed Service Provider (MSP) is an IT firm that supports your businesses complete IT infrastructure. Through a mixture of technologies, people, and processes MSP’s keep your operations running 24x7x365 for a flat-rate monthly fee.  Your managed service provider will monitor your network, remotely support your servers and workstations, provided appropriate planning should a disaster occur, and ultimately, keep your employees operations running at peak performance.When the time is right for your business to bring on an MSP, there are several things to consider before signing a contract.

1.  Do they offer Disaster Recovery planning and periodic testing?- Disaster recovery should be an essential component of your overall IT strategy. While some MSP’s include Backup and Disaster Recovery (BDR) as part of their service offering, others offer BDR at an additional service fee or do not address BDR at all. It is important to choose a provider that not only offers Backup and Disaster Recovery, but also periodic testing of your BDR plan at least once a year or after significant changes have been made to your technology infrastructure. If you do not currently have one, a good MSP can help your organization develop a practical disaster recovery plan.
2. Do they provide third party Vendor Management?-Third party vendor management can be a huge benefit for businesses who have taken on the burden of dealing with vendors themselves. Should an application or support need extend beyond the MSP’s included service levels, a vendor must be contacted to provide support. A good MSP will take on the issue themselves by contacting the vender on behalf of the customer and see the issue through to resolution.  This is a very important part of an MSP’s service offering and alone, can save you hours of time and grief spent resolving issues yourself versus focusing on your day-to-day.
3. Do they offer a mix of remote and on-site support?-  Most good MSP’s will provide a combination of remote and onsite support in their service agreement. However, some do not unless required by a special project or for an additional fee. A combination of both is important because it allows your service provider to become familiar with the physical layout of your facility, the unique needs of your users, and of course, provide needed face-to-face time with you, the customer.
4. Guaranteed response time?-  This is a must for any managed service offering. How fast will your provider respond during office hours, after-hours, weekends and holidays? Most MSP’s do not include night and weekend responses in their offerings so make sure you choose one who does. These guaranteed response times are referred to as your Service Level Agreement (SLA), and it is important that the level of service you receive aligns with the needs of your company.
5. Do they provide monthly reporting?- How do you know if your MSP is really providing you a return on your investment? A good MSP offering includes detailed monthly reports about services provided, maintenance completed, and the overall health of your network. Most MSP’s provide this anyways, but it’s always good to bring up in case it is not addressed.   

If you are looking for a great deal of value at a fixed price, managed services is the way to go. MSP’s provide you with peace of mind in knowing your IT operations will be running smoothly at all times and that you are taking a proactive approach to your network. However, choosing the wrong MSP can also cost you valuable time, money and aggravation. So shop around, do your homework and choose your managed service provider wisely.

If you have any other questions about Managed Services or would like to learn about Convergent Technologies Groups' managed service offerings, please leave a comment below or contact CTG today!