What Questions Should I Ask the Best Managed IT Services Company?

The Internet is one of the most useful tools that businesses can take advantage of. It’s even possible to run an entire company from a smartphone under the right circumstances.

It’s not always possible, though, for a business to properly manage its IT on their own. Fortunately, managed IT services can eliminate this responsibility and free up more time and resources for other tasks.

But, there are questions you’ll need to ask your potential managed IT services company to determine if they’re right for you.

Not sure where to start? Don’t worry, we’ve got you covered.

Let’s take a look at everything you need to know.

How Do You Incorporate Automation?

This is one of the most important questions you should ask your managed services provider, and the answer will often be a dealbreaker.

Utilizing automation is essential in order to provide top-tier managed IT service, and a company that doesn’t use it extensively likely won’t be able to offer the level of quality you’re looking for.

In general, the more a company uses automation, the better. Repetitive, menial tasks that can be handled by AI should never be left up to a human to complete. This will free up valuable resources when it comes to handling larger issues.

Common tasks that managed IT service providers should automate include patching, verification, and security-related measures.

What Responsibilities Do You Outsource?

A managed IT provider can look amazing on paper but be subpar in practice. Many companies advertise their abundant list of services that provide to their clients but fail to mention that many (or even most) of them are outsourced.

While there’s nothing inherently wrong with outsourcing as a practice, you may run into difficulty in the future if you need to contact a human employee.

For example, a large-scale cyberattack that affects your business may require you to coordinate with your managed IT provider in order to mitigate the damage. Handling it may also be best done by an employee at the IT firm you hire.

As long as the company’s core employees are present at the facility, you shouldn’t encounter any issues.

What Am I Required to Pay Extra For?

As previously mentioned, some IT providers aren’t entirely transparent when it comes to the reality of working with them. Some even have fine print that details certain charges that clients incur when using specific services.

If your provider gives you a quote for a fixed price, you’ll need to ask them for a list of every service/piece of equipment that the price includes. Additionally, you need to inquire about what each type of service covers.

Otherwise, you may find yourself in a situation where you’re paying extra money essential support during emergencies. Similarly, you may have to spend more cash for ongoing services that you may have expected were included in the price.

How Are You Keeping Up With The Latest Cybersecurity Threats?

It’s no secret that cybercriminals are more prevalent than ever. Many have even taken advantage of the COVID-19 outbreak and used this time of tumultuousness to prey upon unsuspecting victims.

Regardless of what type of crime hackers are committing, the industry is rapidly growing. It’s even predicted to be worth over $150 million by 2024.

This means that cybercriminals will be developing new ways to target their victims and new tools to target the with. Any reliable IT service provider should be fully aware of the latest trends and vigilant in defending against new threats.

Even if you take the necessary precautions (updating your software, backing up your sensitive data, etc.) you could still experience downtime from a cyber attack, which can cost your business thousands of dollars.

An experienced provider will be able to minimize these losses and prevent the same scenario from occurring in the future.

What Is Your Expected Response Time For Emergencies?

Emergencies happen, and you’ll most likely encounter one at some point during your company’s lifespan. This could include the aforementioned cyberattack, server complications, or similar conflicts.

So, your IT firm should be highly proactive when it comes to responding to emergencies.

Smaller businesses, in particular, are notably susceptible to IT-based emergencies since they often don’t have the funds to cover extensive inactivity. In fact, small companies may even go out of business if their loss in productivity is high enough.

While it’s not realistic to expect an instant response from your IT service provider, they should be doing all the can to resolve the issue as soon as they’re made aware of it.

Do You Actively Monitor Your Clients’ Networks?

As previously mentioned, extensive downtime is can be lethal to a business’s livelihood. Fortunately, though, active monitoring can drastically reduce the inconvenience and damages that are incurred.

This will allow many issues to be resolved immediately and even more to be prevented from occurring at all. This will leave you with plenty of peace of mind and allow you to focus entirely on your company’s other projects without worry.

Be sure to ask your potential provider how their monitoring process works, too.

Hiring a Managed IT Company Can Seem Difficult

Utilizing the right questions as listed above will help to get the most out of the IT Services Provider you work with.

Velecor provides the service you need and more through our Total Care service offering. This service offering provides everything needed to protect your digital assets all for one low monthly fixed price. Want to learn more about how we can help? Feel free to get in touch with us today to see what we can do.