Most businesses judge their IT provider on one thing: how quickly they fix something that's broken. That matters. But if fixing things is all you're getting, you're paying for a help desk, not managed IT.
A managed IT provider takes responsibility for your technology, not just your tickets. Here's what that should look like.
They stop most things breaking
The best support call is the one that never happens. A good provider monitors your computers, servers and network around the clock. Patches go on automatically. Disk space, failed backups and expiring certificates get picked up before anyone notices.
If your provider only hears about problems when you ring them, they're reacting, not managing.
They know your setup before you call
When something does go wrong, you shouldn't have to explain your network from scratch. Your provider should have your systems documented: what's installed, how it's configured, who has access to what and where the passwords live.
That documentation also protects you. If your provider disappeared tomorrow, someone else could pick up from where they left off.
They check the backups, not just schedule them
Almost every business has backups. Far fewer have backups that have been restored recently to prove they work. Ask your provider when they last did a test restore and what they restored.
They treat security as part of the job
Security isn't an add-on any more. Multi-factor authentication, endpoint protection, email filtering and staff training should be part of the standard setup, applied to every device and every account.
They help you plan
A good provider tells you what's coming before it arrives: the server that's out of warranty next year, the licences you're paying for but not using, the laptop fleet due for replacement. That turns IT spending from a series of surprises into a budget.
They report in plain English
You should get regular reporting that shows what's been done, what's at risk and what needs a decision. If you can't understand the report, it isn't doing its job.
Questions worth asking
If you're comparing providers, or wondering about your current one, these questions sort them quickly:
- What do you monitor? What happens when something trips an alert?
- When did you last test-restore one of our backups?
- Where is our documentation and can we have a copy?
- What security baseline do you apply to every client?
- How often will we sit down to plan?
We've been answering those questions for Gold Coast businesses since 2007. If you'd like to see how our managed IT handles them, let's talk.