The growth stage of any business requires new technologies and processes for its development.

An in-house IT department, especially in a small business, may not always be adequately equipped to manage the increasing pressure on their IT functions.

Managed services providers (MSPs) can remedy this issue by providing greater support.

Signs You Need an MSP to Support Business Growth

You know you need an MSP when you are unable to keep up with your company’s changing IT landscape. Here are a few signs to watch out for.

1. You are Experiencing Constant Downtime

One of the initial indications that your business is falling behind is your systems experiencing continuous downtime. The leading causes of downtime are network outages, cyber-attacks, human errors, server failures, power outages, and natural disasters. Downtime not only causes data loss, but also leads to decreased business productivity. It even affects the revenue and reputation of a business.

Businesses can drastically reduce downtime by partnering with a reliable MSP and leveraging the following managed IT services.

● Proactive Monitoring and Management

MSPs actively monitor your business network and minimize any potential operational downtime. They also offer a proactive approach to threat detection and prevention. Their round the clock services, such as 24-hour help desk and availability of on-site technicians, assist in identifying potential business interruptions before they lead to downtime.

● State-of-the-Art Equipment

To minimize downtime and mitigate cyber-attacks, MSPs provide businesses with next-generation firewalls, email security solutions, advanced threat protection, and intrusion prevention systems.

● Redundant Backups

Data backup is an important service provided by MSPs. They offer redundant backups to manage unforeseen crisis effectively. In other words, MSPs back-up and maintain multiple copies of business-critical data in different locations. If the original data is lost during a catastrophic event, MSPs can easily restore it, and reduce downtime.

2. Your Costs Are Going through the Roof

Depending on your in-house team alone for IT support can prove to be costly. Expenses related to setting up an office, buying equipment, and facilitating employee education and training will increase your business expenditure exorbitantly.

An MSP removes these unnecessary overheads entirely as their IT specialists are already experienced in dealing with all sorts of IT issues. They can analyze, protect, and support your business infrastructure from a remote location through Remote Monitoring and Management (RMM) software.

They also work with a range of reliable IT vendors and make sure that you get the best deals on hardware, software, and technology services, thereby helping you control your IT expenses.

Also, MSPs charge a flat monthly fee for their services. The fee covers unlimited IT management and support based on your server’s needs, network requirements, and number of users. Simply put, with an MSP, you need not worry about unexpected bills for IT support.

3. Your In-House Team Is Understaffed

As your business grows, it can become difficult to balance hiring budgets between various departments, leaving your in-house IT team understaffed. As a result, your existing IT staff will have to divide their attention between several routine tasks rather than focus on strategic ones. An MSP can easily solve this issue.

MSPs offer a dedicated team of experts at a lower cost as compared to hiring and training new employees. Further, MSPs can provide 24/7 technical support to your business and solve IT issues outside of your operational hours.

4. You Lack Advanced Technology and Better Cloud Solutions

Your business might outgrow its systems, databases, and hardware and software as it evolves. Upgrading to new technology and migrating to the cloud can prove to be extremely costly.

MSPs make sure that your business’s existing systems and technologies are regularly updated to meet its growing needs. They can also enable large-scale digital transformation of your business through the following advanced services.

● Virtualization

MSPs can virtualize your business’s data and enable instant off-site back up and disaster recovery. Whether you want to create a dedicated onsite server room or move your business to the cloud, you can do it through virtualization. MSPs also divide your dedicated server into smaller virtual servers to maximize your resources during routine maintenance.

In short, virtualization increases your business’s IT productivity, agility, and responsiveness. through cloud computing. Cloud migration services lend your business more power by preventing data loss and ensuring redundancy.

● Offsite Cloud Management

You can host your business data in the cloud and eliminate the need for costly storage hardware. You can also access your cloud data on-demand from anywhere you are. You can take the help of MSPs to develop a plan and securely migrate your business to the cloud.

5. Your Security System Is Weak and Vulnerable

As your business expands, it can become difficult to protect company assets such as patents, trademarks, and intellectual property. Countering advanced cybersecurity threats and implementing data recovery methods can be overwhelming too.

MSPs ensure that your business is up-to-date with the latest security countermeasures. They can protect your business system through the following ways. 

● Implementing Multi-Factor Authentication

Multi-factor authentication requires two or more credentials to authenticate an individual’s identity before allowing access. These credentials take the form of passwords, hardware tokens, numerical codes, biometrics, time, and location.

● Designing Marketable Secure Track

MSPs provide businesses with a well-conceived security stack. It encompasses a multi-layer security strategy such as web filtering, sandboxing, and endpoint protection.

● Staying Informed about New Security Compliances and Regulations

MSPs can ensure your business adheres to the latest security compliances and regulations such as GDPR, PCI DSS, and HIPAA.

You can take the help of a local IT service provider to stay compliant with state-specific laws. For instance, businesses in Lafayette can hire IT services in Lafayette and keep themselves updated with the latest compliance and regulations.

Wrap Up

An MSP can help you scale your business operations seamlessly. From reducing downtime and cutting costs to strengthening the security infrastructure and offering impeccable cloud solutions, MSPs can help you run your business smoothly. MSPs can also shoulder the compliance burden. All you need to do is identify the early signs of inefficiencies in your business and partner with a reliable MSP before it is too late.