For small businesses, managing IT can be seen as a burden. It’s vital to the operation of a modern organisation, but it requires its own complex set of expertise.
Given how important it is to have access to reliable and up-to-date technology, though, IT services are not to be overlooked. Without it, businesses can find themselves facing costly downtimes: the average Australian small business loses $2000 per hour when impacted by IT outages.
The average cost of data breaches for Australian businesses has grown 32% in Australia to reach $4.03 million in 2023, demonstrating the need for businesses to bolster their IT and cybersecurity capabilities. Tasks such as network monitoring and data management are crucial to the everyday operation and long-term security of a business, and can benefit from the expertise of IT professionals.
That’s where entrusting IT services to a Managed Service Provider (MSP) can make a major difference. With their ability to provide efficient and reliable services, MSPs give businesses the ability to grow and continue focusing on what they do best.
What is a Managed Service Provider?
An MSP is a specialised company that delivers outsourced services across IT, cybersecurity and internet connectivity. They offer technical support to businesses, offering a proactive approach to managing and maintaining businesses’ technology infrastructure.
Whether through monitoring cybersecurity and network traffic, ensuring data backups and integrity, facilitating system updates or providing counsel on technical issues, MSPs take the burden of IT management away from businesses. This enables them to specialise in IT expertise, meaning businesses can receive specialist support while focusing on their core activities.
How does a Managed Service Provider work?
MSPs assume the responsibility of overseeing and maintaining a business’s IT infrastructure and services, and managing ongoing technical needs. By leveraging advanced monitoring tools, MSPs can detect and address any potential issues remotely before they escalate, minimising downtime and enhancing the overall reliability of the IT infrastructure.
As with most third-party companies engaged as contractors, they operate on a subscription basis, meaning businesses can pay for and adjust the services they need over time. This allows for the IT services provided to be both reliable and scalable alongside the growth of the business. Companies are able to then budget effectively for their IT needs. Outsourcing IT services enables them to make use of economies of scale by removing the inefficiencies that come with operating an in-house IT department.
What are the benefits of a Managed Service Provider?
Partnering with an MSP offers significant advantages, particularly for small businesses:
1. Greater Efficiency
Partnering with an MSP enhances your business’s overall efficiency by saving costs and giving access to advanced technologies without the need for large investments. As a larger organisation, an MSP is able to invest in emerging technologies that assist with IT management and cybersecurity in a way that smaller businesses are unable to.
By amassing greater specialised expertise, the support they provide lets small businesses focus on their core operations, while ensuring their IT infrastructure and cybersecurity frameworks operate seamlessly.
2. More Advanced Cybersecurity Protection
MSPs offer more sophisticated cybersecurity measures than small businesses are able to implement themselves. This includes network monitoring to detect any issues ahead of time and protect against the threat of downtime.
3. Data Backups and Recovery
Regular data backups are essential to prevent the loss of vital information, but carrying them out securely can be difficult for small businesses, not to mention time consuming.
By implementing and carrying out data storage policies, MSPs are able to safeguard critical business data, protect it from unauthorised access and minimise the risk of data loss.
4. Access to Better Technology
With the help of an MSP, small businesses can benefit from having a larger, specialised partner in the IT space by gaining access to emerging technology that would otherwise be too costly to invest in.
FTG, for instance, offers clients access to cloud computing solutions that have the ability to increase business productivity across a vast array of processes, including collaborative tools, artificial intelligence and machine learning programs.
Reliable Technical Support
A major benefit from an employee’s perspective, MSPs can handle the implementation and regular upkeep of IT systems. They ensure software is up to date and advise on new technology solutions that can benefit the business as it grows.
Additionally, by having experts on call to provide technical support, MSPs make the company’s interaction with technology seamless and stress-free.
FTG’s managed services, from a range of IT capabilities such as data recovery, infrastructure management and 24/7 IT support, as well as telecom, security, print and cloud services, are hassle-free and dynamic.
To hear how they can equip your business with the support to take on today’s evolving business challenges, book a free assessment online or call 131 384.