When your accountant comes to you and suggests you spend money before the end of the year, do you know where that money should go? If you don’t, you might get to the middle of your fiscal year and then discover unexpected IT expenses that strain your budget. A strong MSP partner will have ongoing conversations with you to help prepare for these and other similar scenarios.
Partnerships, Mergers & Acquisitions
When partnership or merger opportunities (and even some large customer opportunities) appear, your new partners may want assurances about your IT environment. Industry regulations and cyber liability insurance requirements may force your new partner to require a variety of practices be in place before connecting to your firm. A strong MSP will perform many of these practices for you. Instead of scrambling to comply with the requirements last minute, your firm will have a head start toward your new partnership. Some deals may require an investment in technology like multi-factor authentication, but as in the growth scenario below, a strong MSP will have architected a network that will readily accept these added security measures.
Growth
A great and not so great thing about many modern technology products is that they can work in a wide variety of configurations. Small firms often employ a tiny IT firm or someone from the company who takes on IT as a secondary role. They don’t see the value in an IT firm that takes the time to assess needs and design a network system before putting it in place. Wireless networks and Windows Server networks built for 10 users often experience serious performance problems when the company grows beyond 50 users. A strong IT firm will plan and implement a network that will grow seamlessly as your firm grows, preserving the investments you made early on.
System Lifecycle
A critical part of IT is managing the useful life of IT products and systems. Manufacturers publish End-of-Life dates for systems to help firms plan for replacement. Systems that have passed their End-of-Life dates become a significant security risk because they are no longer being updated. As time passes beyond the End-of-Life date, using the system becomes more and more risky. A strong MSP will be working with you at the end of each year to plan system replacements for the new year. In some cases, like Windows 10 in 2025, the effort to replace systems can be substantial and may require new hardware. With the right MSP, you will plan your upgrades up to a year in advance, which makes budgeting and project planning much less stressful.
Software Subscriptions
Perpetual software licenses are becoming a thing of the past as many software providers shift to a subscription model. Because so much software is required to support a business, allowing subscriptions to lapse isn’t an option. Budgeting for renewals is a must. It’s also import to manage license counts and subscription types to ensure your firm isn’t paying for services it no longer needs. A good MSP will track these subscriptions for you and help you budget yearly for this expense.
Moving and Construction
As your business grows and changes, you’ll often need to open new space or relocate to a larger space. It is critical to engage your MSP early in the process. Some key benefits of engaging your MSP:
- Design a wireless network that will perform in the new space.
- Layout cable closets within required distance from end stations.
- Allocate appropriate space, electrical service, and security for network equipment.
- Allow time for Internet service to be connected.
- Allow time for phone numbers to be transferred.
- Allow time for equipment to be delivered and configured.
If you are tired of going it alone and ready to engage an MSP that can make IT more predictable, reach out to our sales team.