How an MSP can help your IT budget go further
Nearly every modern business has critical information technology (IT) needs. Most businesses will have two choices when it comes to IT support: an in-house IT person or team, or partner with a managed service provider (MSP).
For many small-to-medium sized businesses, having an in-house IT team can be costly. According to Glassdoor, the salary for a full-time information technology professional will typically range from $44k to $94k, depending on experience, qualifications, and location. For those with IT management experience, the range can expand even further on the higher end of the scale, with directors averaging $116k in major markets.
When you add medical, dental, retirement, paid time off, and other benefits, as well as computer equipment and software costs, the financial investment can be significant. The non-financial investment of onboarding, training, and supervision should be taken into account as well.
This makes it easy to see why so many companies have increasingly turned to managed service providers for their IT needs. According to Clutch.co, more than 52% of businesses outsourced at least one process in 2019. When it comes to security specifically, businesses spent $72 billion on outsourcing globally last year, according to Fortunly.
So, what makes partnering with an MSP such a boon to your IT budget?
The Breakdown
Partnering with a managed service provider can get you higher-quality services at a lower cost than you would pay for in-house support. When you outsource your IT needs to an MSP, you’ll only be paying for the expertise and services, and can cut out the other ancillary costs that can wreak havoc on your budget.
Specifically, when you hire an MSP, you’ll get:
- Access to industry-certified and experienced specialists at a set cost
- A flat monthly fee for services that can be easily anticipated and budgeted for
- 24/7 availability for organizational support
- Access to tools, techniques, and skills that you would otherwise have to invest in (both physical assets and team training)
- Electronic management systems for greater efficiency with monitoring, resolution, and reporting
In return, your business will see greater returns in regard to:
- Increased productivity for your internal staff
- Improved infrastructure reliability
- Better security and compliance
- Improved focus on maintenance
- Proactive security stance
- Fewer surprise expenses and better advance budgeting
It’s also critical to note that as your business grows, so will your IT demands. A significant benefit of utilizing an MSP is that you can scale much more gradually as your needs change and evolve than you could if you were handling everything in house.
For example, if your business increases and your in-house team begins to feel pressured and crunched for time to complete their duties, you’d likely have to either hire part-time or a full-time employee to ensure that everything gets done. Most companies in this situation opt to hire a full-time person to make sure their team has plenty of bandwidth, but many often wonder…is it really worth the investment I have to make?
Instead of having to add another full-time worker as your IT needs grow, you can instead scale your services incrementally over time with your MSP. Instead of overshooting your needs by hiring someone for 40 hours-per-week, why not buy 10 or 15 more hours (or whatever you truly need) from your MSP?
Having an overworked IT staff is never good, but it is equally problematic to have employees on the clock with little to do. By utilizing an MSP, you will have greater control over the time you’re purchasing to keep your operations running correctly.
Supplementing In-House IT Staff
One question that business owners often have is, “What if I have already have in-house IT staff?” Fortunately, partnering with an MSP is never an “either/or” proposition. In fact, there are specific benefits to having both, if you are in the position to do so.
Some of the potential drawbacks to hiring an MSP as your only IT solution include:
- Finding the right provider can be challenging
- The wide array of solutions can be confusing to those who aren’t particularly tech-savvy
- MSP’s will often offer some on-site time, but it might be relatively limited compared to full-time, in-house staff
If you currently have an IT professional or a team in place, you can enjoy the best of both worlds when it comes to technical support. Your in-house team can be your “boots on the ground,” ready to handle the essential in-person support services as they arise.
Your MSP can actually free up their time by handling the remote work that could include server maintenance, patch-management, monitoring, issue investigation, reporting, help desk services and more. This will make your in-house team immediately more efficient, and free them up to help with more of the day-to-day operations of your business.
Why Choose Sparrow Managed Services?
At Sparrow Managed Services, our goal is to get you the IT services you need at a price that fits your budget. We know that system administration, patch management, incident and problem management, and cyber security solutions aren’t just line-item expenses, they are crucial services that keep your operations running smoothly. That’s why we take your needs seriously and will be ready to step in to provide the highest-quality services around.
We are proud to serve clients in Austin and the surrounding areas. We have more than 15 years of experience in the IT field and have worked at some of the largest companies in our area, including Dell and Texas Disposal Services.
Selecting the right MSP to partner with can make all the difference in the world. Let us show you why so many other business owners in Austin have trusted us as their preferred provider for high quality IT services.
Contact us at 737-216-3552 or reach out to us online today to schedule a confidential consultation to discuss how we can help you.