How To Right-Size Your Use Of Managed IT Solutions

Posted on: 5 January 2022

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Managed IT solutions allow businesses to turn their attention to their primary purposes rather than fighting with computing resources. You might wonder, however, how much your organization should depend on third-party IT services. Look at your operation's needs in these three areas to determine the right size for your use of outside IT solutions.

Present In-House Capacity

First, to be clear, in-house capacity means qualified IT professionals. Even if someone in accounting, for instance, knows how to fix a computer, their job is in accounting. That's what they are being paid to do and likely what they would prefer to be doing.

If you have zero in-house capacity in terms of people with certifications and IT services experience, then the right size is 100% of your needs. Even if you have qualified in-house professionals, you may still want to delegate something like 25% of your needs to a third party. Doing so will allow your IT team to focus on their jobs, offloading boring tasks to the managed IT solutions firm. Your in-house people can tackle a job like rolling out new cabling and networking while the third-party folks address daily issues.

Long-Term Growth

Many large companies lean on managed IT services providers because they can't keep up with growth. If you're seeing 200% in a year, you probably don't want to bet on that rate being a straight upward line forever. That makes hiring difficult because you have to make assumptions about where growth will lead down the road. Otherwise, you may have to let people go when growth plateaus and your firm finds it hired 50% more IT people than it needed.

Fortunately, folks in the IT solutions game are comfortable dealing with these circumstances. You can enter into a contract that covers your firm's expected growth while including options for additional support if you exceed those levels.

Surges in IT Demand

Some businesses only need short-term support. If your IT team needs extra help setting up a new office at another site, you can import techs to lend a hand during the surge. Once the surge need dissipates, send the third-party professionals home.

Cost Controls

A major advantage of setting up an IT solutions contract is locking in your costs. If you're seeing up-and-down IT expenses over several quarters, your team members may be incurring costs by calling computer services firms for help. Rather than deal with a potential rapid rise in costs, you can spread out the expenses by agreeing to a contract. From there, you can treat IT services costs as a few line items rather than one overwhelming cost.

Contact a managed IT services company for more information.