Five ways Managed IT will Help your Business

As a business owner you are constantly asking yourself if the potential benefits of a decision will outweigh the associated costs. What is an MSP and will using its benefits outweigh the costs? Below we show you 5 of the main reasons why your business can benefit more from managed IT services than the low functioning - high cost system you are currently using. So what is an MSP then? MSP stands for Managed Service Provider. An MSP provider is a company that provides a range of IT-related services away from the physical location of your business. These services may include network and server management, help desk support, data backup and recovery, and cybersecurity.

There’s a lot of compelling data and research about how Managed IT services can result in significant financial gain for your company. Along with our expertise we use statistics from the IDC (International Data Corporation), which provides market research insights into technology, telecommunications, and consumer technology markets. The IDC conducted a survey of companies and we’ll explore some of them in this article. Of the companies that participated, they on average experienced a 224% three-year return on their investment. So, onto reason number one to switch your IT strategy to using an MSP.

1.Increased User Productivity & Decreased Business Downtime

Managed IT and switching to an MSP has a major impact on user productivity in two simple ways: more efficient daily processes and eliminating downtime. In the IDC report, user productivity was found to have an annual benefit of $203,111 per 100 users. Not to mention, if you haven’t had your business software audited, you could be overpaying for excess users/services/etc than you actually use.

It's a known fact that downtime can cost a company a significant amount. In fact, the IDC report found that when companies eliminate or reduce the annual cost of lost productivity, they were able to save $56,100 per 100 users!

How does IT outsourcing reduce downtime? Through proactive planning and prevention. Proactive monitoring by Altaire IT & Digital, identifies and resolves potential IT issues before they occur which in turn can prevent many instances of downtime. Managed IT services can optimize hardware performance and safeguard a network from ransomware and malware attacks.

2. IT Staff Productivity and Access to A Wider Range of Expertise

Outsourcing IT can allow a company to reduce its expenses by taking advantage of lower labor costs because you truly manage all of your technology through your MSP, so your need for a large IT department with a limited pool of knowledge is over. Hiring a Managed Service Provider can not only decrease the size of your in house IT costs/team, but also provide your business access to a wider pool of expertise. Oftentimes businesses will retain some of their in-house IT staff and work with us - implementing managed IT, which often leads to the best of both worlds. In-house IT staff brings institutional knowledge to the table while managed IT allows your business to scale up/down during fluctuations or for special projects.

Many MSP’s, like us, have teams of skilled professionals with a wide range of expertise because we help every type of company that uses IT. This can be particularly useful for companies that do not have the resources to build and maintain their own in-house IT teams. This can also be beneficial for companies that need specialized IT services or support for new technologies but may not have the resources to pour into diversifying and further educating their in-house IT staff. This ultimately can lead to more efficient and effective use of technology and company time which equals higher measurable productivity.

Companies that used managed IT services, an MSP, are able to provide IT services much faster while at the same time reducing their overall IT operating costs.

Have remote employees as well? Altaire IT, a managed service provider, can help get all employees connected to the resources they actually use everyday to make their jobs easier and workflow more efficient. This will give your company an incredible amount of flexibility, rather than stressing over increasing overhead costs.

3. Business Productivity

How exactly can managed IT services help increase my business productivity? According to indeed.com, one can improve business productivity by:

1. Using new technology or techniques to improve operations

2. Review your current setup

3. Implement a continuous improvement mindset

Business owners may not have the time or knowledge to effectively implement strategies to improve their company’s bottom line. However, partnering with Altaire IT & Digital can provide the necessary support and expertise to successfully implement these strategies and achieve increased profits. This gives time and freedom back to the business owner and employees to focus on their core competencies and what tasks actually generate revenue.

4. Infrastructure Cost Reduction and Savings

Hiring an MSP can save you on infrastructure costs in areas that you didn’t even know you were paying for more than you needed. That’s why hiring an expert, like us, to do an audit of your day-to-day work flow and assess your daily business needs and where you could be more efficient. We implement simple, up-to-date, cost saving, systems that give you exactly what you need so you aren’t paying for excess. Managed IT has been found, in an IDC study, to reduce the cost of infrastructure annually by $146,801 per 100 users. This is a reflection of both a reduction in physical infrastructure that you need to support all your IT storage needs in house as well as a reduction in the cost of IT staffing and contracted hourly IT work. Outsourcing IT can reduce the need for a company to invest in expensive hardware and software, as these costs can easily be passed to the MSP to manage. Working with an MSP can help your business reduce the physical footprint of your office space, reduce IT training costs, reduce your business software costs and allow you more time up and running and less time down from tech failures.

5. Everything IT you need all in one place

Time is money, that’s another reason why working with an MSP is crucial for your business. Not only do you want to simplify and perfect your employees day-to-day workflow with simple, perfectly fitted software systems in place. You can simplify your tech department even further with purchasing your gadgets through us, we come and install and link to your current work flow – like it was always there. At no hassle to you. Let the tech professionals handle everything IT that your business needs, so you can focus on what matters most – your core business.