Did you know a lot of businesses deal with cybersecurity issues? If you want to hire managed IT services, we can help.
In this guide, we’ll go over what to consider when choosing a managed IT company. Look for a business that has experience with your particular niche.
Want to learn more? Keep reading.
What About Disaster Recovery?
Many businesses become victims of cyber-attacks every year, and this number will continue to grow, unfortunately. As a business, you need to figure out your action plan after a disaster.
Your MSP should help you develop a contingency plan. This plan should include things like what you’ll do after a network crash and who’s in the chain of command.
It would help if you also had on and off-site data backup. Address this in your contingency plan.
A ransomware attack or network crash can cause minor damage. Your data should get backed up, so it doesn’t turn into a disaster.
Do You Have an IT Team?
The benefit of hiring an outside team is they will support your in-house staff.
Sometimes, your IT professionals might need some help, and working with an MSP will help them. You don’t need to replace your team, but bring in extra support sometimes.
When considering companies, ask them if they have experience supporting in-house IT staff.
Network Operations Center
A help desk is excellent for solving problems over the phone. Yet, you might need more assistance.
A Networks Operations Center will hire a team of IT professionals to help your business with in-person, email, or phone questions.
They will get segmented into different tiers. The higher level will respond to urgent problems.
A tiered center will make sure that any crisis problems get handled right away. You should make sure the help desk doesn’t get run by someone overseas. You might end up with language barriers.
Network Operations Centers will cost more. Yet, they can resolve problems fast and boost company productivity. This will limit any downtime potential.
Your office might only stay open between nine and five during the workweek. Yet, cyber security threats occur at all hours.
To protect your business from cyber threats, you’ll want to work with a managed services provider. They will support you throughout the week and at late hours, as well.
You Need a Fast Response
A lot of businesses might end up waiting hours to get a callback. You should ask the MSP provider lots of questions before you hire them.
You want to make sure the provider is a fast responder and will provide support right away.
Ask if remote support is a possibility. A technician at your site’s helpful. Yet, you might need some situations to get resolved remotely.
You can minimize potential downtime with remote support. Fix problems instead of waiting for the technician to arrive at the office.
Ask the business you’re considering if you could speak to previous clients. Read testimonials or reviews online. Check out these Testimonials for Be Structured.
What About Security Management?
MSP’s will install different software and hardware to your network and protect it. You should ask about the software and hardware the MSP plans to install.
Anti-virus software is an excellent option. Yet, you’ll also need ransomware protection, scheduled software installations, and email filtering. All these measures will protect your business.
Maintenance, Upgrades, and Preventive Measures
Software and hardware might be brand new, but they will become outdated if you aren’t careful.
You want a provider who remains vigilant. They should stay on top of updating your software whenever new versions arrive.
Your services contract should include hardware upgrades and automatic software updates, and your MSP should handle software upgrades for you.
This way, you don’t need to remind all your employees to update these things.
Updating your hardware and software aren’t the only things they will do. An MSP provider will look over your cyber security and search for flaws.
What About Infrastructure Visibility?
If you pay for managed services, you’ll have the chance to see what’s going on in your network, and you’ll also understand what changes get made.
Your MSP will set up reviews and explain changes. They should also explain any recent cyber threats that occurred.
If an MSP won’t let you access your changes, then this is a red flag. A managed IT services provider should remain transparent.
What About the Cost?
IT companies will have their way of billing clients. Contracts can be super expensive or all-inclusive.
An all-inclusive model is excellent because it simplifies budgeting. Bills will get set up at a steady rate. Otherwise, you could get a quote with hidden costs later appearing in your final bill.
Employee Cyber Security Training
When you work with an MSP, you will provide your team with the right software and hardware. Some companies offer courses on preventing a hacker from slipping into your network.
You can provide cyber security training for your employees. Include mock phishing tests.
Your employees will have to figure out which emails are fake. If they open a mock phishing test, they will need to retake the cybersecurity class.
What About Industry-Specific MSP Plans?
Various industries will have specific needs. An MSP should be able to provide the proper aid and tools to your company.
The healthcare industry will need to be HIPAA-compliant. A business that deals with credit cards will need an MSP that can comply with PCI DSS.
Think about the specific needs you have as a company before you pick someone.
Hire a Managed IT Company Today
We hope this guide on choosing an IT company was helpful. Take your time searching for a reputable managed IT company like Team International services.
They’ll teach your employees about cybersecurity and keep everything updated in your system.
Are you looking for more tips? Check out our resources today.
