5 Common Managed IT Services Problems & How to Solve Them

If you’re a small- or medium-sized business looking for IT support, there’s a good chance you’ve heard or even considered a managed IT services provider (MSP).

The ongoing support solution offers some great benefits, such as constant availability and cost-effectiveness. 

And by taking the burden of IT management off your shoulders, managed IT services can give you back time to focus on the many other aspects of your business as well as offer insight on how to leverage technology for profitability.

As a technology services provider, The KR Group provides managed IT services for businesses between 25 and 100 users, which means we have answered a lot of questions about this type of IT support.

We frequently discuss benefits and cost, but we’ve found prospective customers are also curious about what problems they should anticipate.

Here are a few we bring up:

  1. Managed IT services engineers aren’t always on-site.
  2. Managed IT services are contracted, not employed.
  3. MSPs aren’t exclusive to your business.
  4. Aging infrastructure hinders your MSP.
  5. MSPs have niches they work within.

If you’ve read that list and are worried that managed IT services might not be right for you, don’t discard this option quite yet.

While you might have to bring up your concerns to your prospective MSP, if they’re worth your business, they’ll have a solution to any problem you present to them.

 

Managed IT Services Engineers Aren’t Always On-Site

If you’re switching from an internal IT department to managed IT services, you can expect some growing pains, especially if your IT team was frequently on-site.

Your managed services engineer will still stop by your office on a regular basis, but it won’t be every day since your MSP is working with numerous other businesses.

Most businesses adapt to the change and learn how to reach their MSP via email, phone, or ticketing system. 

Still, if you were accustomed to a frequent, face-to-face working approach from an IT director or engineer, you could have a slight learning curve to adjust to managed IT services. 

Solution: Learn how to work with an off-site IT team.

If this describes your business, you and your users will start using a formalized service request system. Whether it’s an application or sending an email, you’ll have to get a hold of your MSP without the convenience of having their office inside your building.

And it’s doable – we’ve seen businesses make the adjustment – but it takes a conscious effort on your part.

 

Managed IT Services Are Contracted, not Employed

You may also be concerned about how you’ll build a rapport with an IT engineer the same way as if they were solely employed by your company.

You know they won’t be in your office as often as your other employees and can make it difficult for you to learn about them, their families, and hobbies. You simply won’t get the same amount of face-to-face communication with a managed services engineer as an in-house one.

However, this doesn’t mean you can’t get to know the person who is working with your IT.

Solution: Find an MSP that offers a personalized contract.

Many MSPs take the time to assign an engineer to your business, so you can build a relationship with them as if they were an internal employee.

Sure, you and the engineer might have to put in a bit more effort to create the same kind of working relationship since you won’t see each other every day. Over time, you can become just as comfortable with your MSP’s team as you would if they were your employees.

 

Managed Service Providers Aren’t Exclusive to One Business

You want the best for your company, which means making sure you have IT service that meets that expectation.

If you’re anticipating frequent on-site visits, it’s because you want to ensure everything is being taken care of in a timely fashion.

And it’s likely the level of service you’ve required previously, either from an internal IT person or an outsourced engineer.

Most MSPs won’t be able to send an engineer to visit your every other day, and in some cases, once a week may even be stretching it. However, they do have a way to ease your anxiety about the functionality of your IT environment.

Solution: Work with your MSP to proactively address issues.

The goal of managed services is to enable your organization’s success through technology.

To do this, your MSP should not only support the IT you use but take proactive measures to continually decrease the number of tech problems you experience.

In other words, over time, you should notice you’re making fewer calls to your MSP for support, and your need for frequent support (on-site or remote) decreases as well.

 

Aging Infrastructure Hinders Managed Service Providers

If you haven’t updated your IT environment in a while and are looking to sign up for managed IT services, you’re bound to encounter problems.

Some MSPs won’t work with you unless you agree to update your IT environment to current standards. And those that do will have a difficult time working with solutions that are no longer eligible for support contracts or don’t integrate well with other solutions.

As the customer, there are a few symptoms you might notice of aging infrastructure:

  • Your MSP is frequently working on issues regarding outdated solutions.
  • Your engineer takes a long time to resolve issues with said solution.
  • You’ve been told that you really should think about updating the solution soon.

Outdated solutions aren’t just a headache for your engineer, they’re also often the source of recurring IT issues.

Solution: Listen to your MSP; update your IT environment.

By implementing current, support solutions, you address the root of your problems related to outdated applications.

Plus, eliminating outdated software helps your MSP reduce the number of IT problems you call on.

If you don’t plan to update your outdated IT infrastructure, your MSP will constantly be working around hurdles. Ultimately, managed IT services might not make the most sense for your business if this is the case.

 

Managed Service Providers Have Niches

Once you decide to move forward with finding an MSP for your business’s IT, you’ll have to find one that is a good fit for your organization.

Many MSPs serve a specific niche, whether it be industry-specific or size-based.

For example, The KR Group focuses on businesses with 25-100 users, with a minimum commitment of $2,500 per month.

While we don’t turn automatically away business from companies above or below that threshold, some MSPs are stricter about their target markets. During your search for a provider, it’s entirely possible you’ll find an MSP that you want to work with only to find out they won’t work with you.

Solution: Check with your MSP if you fit their customer profile.

And do this early on.

If the provider you had in mind can’t address your needs, ask what services they could offer or if they could recommend another provider.

 

Good Managed Service Providers Solve These Problems

Managed services may not be problem-free, but they are a good solution for businesses looking to outsource their IT services. 

If you’re worried about on-site availability, level of support, updating aging infrastructure, finding the right MSP, or the dozens of other concerns you might have, make sure you find a technology services provider that addresses your concerns.

Because good MSPs will meet the challenges you present to them with solutions.

Or if you aren’t sure managed services are the right choice for you, download this free IT Solutions Quick Guide to help you determine which type of technical support will work best for your organization.

Leave a Comment

WE'RE SERIOUS ABOUT YOUR EDUCATION!

Want the articles from our Learning Center delivered to your inbox? Stay up to date with the latest on cybersecurity, collaboration, data center, managed services, and more.

Scroll to Top