You can’t get the results you want from IT unless you have the right approach to IT. 我们所说的接近是什么意思?

What you’re most likely experiencing right now is a dependence on a reactive approach to IT. 也就是说，除非有触发，否则IT不会采取行动. A trigger could be anything from a support request by an employee to a server crash. It could be a cyber-attack or the sudden realization that all of your software licenses have expired.

依赖响应式IT意味着您会遇到很多意外. 如果是你的生日，惊喜是好的, 但如果这意味着手术要中断好几个小时，那就不太好了, 几天甚至几周.

Even if your systems don’t go down, there are other signs that your approach to IT is failing you.

• 你按小时支付IT支持费用.
• 硬件故障很常见.
• 你觉得你的IT公司已经跟不上你了.
• 你从来没有时间提前计划.
• 您的IT系统不可预测.
• 你遭遇了网络攻击.

The bottom line is that a faulty approach to IT means that you end up spending energy and resources that don’t get you anywhere because IT没有为你的业务服务.

相关:我的IT公司人手不足吗?

So if your approach to IT没有为你的业务服务, what kind of approach are you looking for? 答案是既要主动，又要被动, and unless you’re an enterprise-level company you’re probably going to have to look to outsourcing to get it and that’s where 托管IT服务 come in.

Managed IT services is an approach to technology management that includes both proactive and reactive activities that are focused on creating reliable, 安全的技术，使业务运作和激发创新. 服务 are delivered for a flat monthly fee by an experienced team of technology professionals who bring you all the IT specialties needed to run your business, 包括专家IT指导，帮助您规划和预算未来.

Having shared goals with your managed service provider (MSP) is key to a successful relationship with the MSP that you choose, and it’s what separates true managed IT service companies from those that are just using the term to describe a hodge-podge of services and calling them “managed.”

你可以更好地理解这种差异，如果你考虑 MSP应该如何引导你的商业旅程. 这是它的样子:

If becoming proactive and strategic with IT is the solution to your IT (and business) woes, 您可能想知道是否可以从内部IT获得相同的结果. That’s a good question and we can ponder it by thinking about what you can get from each arrangement.

Some of the pluses of keeping your internal IT team are that these people are already knowledgeable about your business and have relationships with your employees. If everyone is in an office together, they can be just footsteps away when anyone needs help.

不利方面, 当你有一个内部的IT团队, 人员流动可能会使您陷入极度的IT支持赤字. Along with that, you also need to be an expert at recruiting, hiring and training IT talent.

另外, 小型IT团队的知识和带宽是有限的, and they may not have the leadership qualities or expertise needed to guide IT strategy.

If you can get past the notion that all of your IT staff need to be onsite all the time, then you can start to see how 托管IT服务 can give you many benefits that you can’t get with a small internal team like:

• 访问每个IT专业
• 工作角色与个性的一致性
• 加强网络风险管理
• 容量刚刚好
• 快速响应时间
• 知识冗余和文档
• 它指导

相关:内部IT与托管IT服务的利弊

While going all-in with 托管IT服务 will take IT management totally off your plate, sometimes it makes sense to augment your internal team with partial managed IT.

A co-managed arrangement can even be a good transition to fully managed IT, especially if you think you may have some turnover in the future with your internal team. 事实上, some companies look at managed IT as not only the solution to their IT problems, 但最好的办法是克服他们 IT人员配置挑战.

The direction that you go with outsourcing IT depends in large part on the capabilities of your internal team, 以及你希望他们承担多少IT负担. There are generally four arrangements for 托管IT服务 that you can consider.

Related: All-Inclusive or Partial 托管IT服务: Which Option is Best?

无论你选择什么安排, your shared goal with the managed IT provider should be to improve the IT function of your business. 此外, partnering with a managed IT service company should lead to better business outcomes including enhancing your competitive advantage.

把它想象成一辆赛车. 这辆车本身就是为高性能而设计的, 但真正的荣耀是车手用它来赢得比赛.

The way you build your technology to win the race is with IT strategy and the guidance of a virtual Chief Information Officer (vCIO). 当你在一家管理IT服务公司工作时, you should have access to a vCIO who will meet with you on a regular basis to learn about your business and connect your business goals and challenges with technology solutions.

当你有持续的 资讯科技策略指引 您可以:

• 对技术投资做出自信的决定.
• 创建高功能的IT系统，改进业务操作.
• 有效管理网络风险.
• 提高员工满意度和保留率.
• 改进你提供产品和服务的方式.

在选择托管it服务提供商时, you definitely want to include a discussion about business outcomes in your conversations. 事实上, 如果医生不谈治疗结果, 但我只想谈谈他们的酷技术, 这是一个危险信号.

这并不意味着你根本不会谈论技术, but the tech talk should be framed around outcomes like – managing cyber risk, 让你的员工, 更好地为顾客服务.

Ask questions that will help you build expectations for what it’s going to be like working together. 这些问题包括:

• 你们管理IT服务的方法是什么?
• 告诉我你的员工中有哪些不同的IT角色.
• 我们可以期待什么样的响应时间?
• 你的澳门赌场网址大全方法是什么?
• 我们未来的关系会是什么样子?

相关:如何评估管理IT服务公司

Learning about the company’s approach to IT and cybersecurity management are probably the most important areas that you want to dig into. Keep in mind that you’ll have a role to play even if you’re going the all-inclusive route.

You should be prepared to invest in IT improvements in order to create a solid technology foundation. That’s actually a goal that you and the 托管IT服务 provider will share. You should also be ready to commit to keeping your hardware and software updated. This not only contributes to smooth running technology but is an important cybersecurity tactic.

Having a monthly fee and making a commitment to invest in your technology may mean that you’ll have to allocate more resources to IT, 但这也可能意味着你花得更少了. 这绝对意味着你花钱更明智了.

IT improvements will be identified and planned through the IT strategy process. 你可能在想 对于固定费用的期望是什么.

A ballpark price range for 托管IT服务 is between $75 and $250 per user per month.

The wide range is due to whether or not you’re going the all-inclusive or co-managed route, 以及月费中包含和不包含的具体内容. Here are a few things to look for when you’re evaluating a managed IT service contract.

• 是否包括无限制的服务台支持? 升级支持怎么样??
• What kind of proactive IT management tasks will you be doing on a regular basis?
• 你能支持我们所有的业务应用程序和web应用程序吗?
• 数据备份是否包含在月费中?
• 基线澳门赌场网址大全是否足够??
• 是否包括vCIO的服务?

It’s just as important to understand what’s not included in your flat monthly fee. Don’t expect a managed IT service provider to pick up the tab for any network improvements or new hardware. 您还需要继续支付软件的成本, licensing and third-party fees for services like voice communications and internet.

There’s a lot that the provider has to do to get services up and running so you should also expect a separate onboarding fee.

hange is hard for some people and some level of disruption is inevitable when you’re 过渡到新的托管IT服务提供商. The overall experience that you have will depend on the company’s onboarding process.

The most important contributor to a smooth transition is open communication. The provider is going to ask for lots of information about your IT systems and users that they’ll be supporting. You’ll need a point of contact on your end to facilitate all of that information gathering.

If you’re already working with an IT support company and you’re still on friendly terms with them, 他们应该能够给你你需要的东西——如果它存在的话. It’s possible that your network doesn’t have all the formal documentation that’s needed to learn about your IT systems. 新的提供者会很乐意接受你能给他们的任何东西.

Keep in mind that during your transition is that there may be issues that need immediate attention and will incur costs. These could be things related to security like out-of-support hardware and software and other dangerous security vulnerabilities, or they could be measures that are needed to make your network supportable.

Make sure that you let employees know what’s happening and make sure they know how to contact support on day one of the new services.

如本文前面所述, being strategic with IT is the way to get the most value from your technology, 但这在实际中是什么样子的呢?

对很多公司来说, the first step is to apply IT best practices and set up an appropriate cybersecurity baseline. 通常, best practices were neglected because the previous IT team didn’t have time to get to them, 或者他们不知道该怎么做. At the same time, security lagged and didn’t keep up with new threats as they evolved.

So expect the first destination on your IT roadmap to be building a solid technology foundation. 当你的科技从嘈杂变成安静, you might be tempted to think that the need for 托管IT服务 is decreased but that couldn’t be further from the truth. It’s because of managed IT that you’re able to mature your network and getting everything running smoothly.

一旦你打下了基础，你就可以开始创新了. When you’ve previously never been in a position to successfully adopt new technology or utilize technology in ways that optimize business operations, you’ll find that this is when you can use technology as a competitive advantage.

这里是风向标, we partner with organizations in the New Orleans region to bring them all of the benefits and advantages that 托管IT服务 can offer. Our team is 100% US-based and most of us live and work in the New Orleans area.

我们想帮你探索什么是真实的 托管IT服务 能为您的生意做些什么. 保持联系，安排一次会议.

安排会议!