Why Do You Need Managed IT Services?

Information technology management has become an integral part of strategic management. However, the main role of an IT manager is to have an overview of the IT image of the entire company, where it is going, and to understand at what point specialists in different fields need to be involved. So it is always possible to learn technologies and solutions, but communication skills and commitment are something that can be developed somewhat, but they are generally no longer flexible.

Why Need?

IT has reached the table of top managers in almost all sectors, which was not the case before. The share of IT in business has grown steadily over time. If computers once figuratively replaced mere printing machines, nowadays virtually all business processes, their management, and administration are related to information technology solutions.

Because the range of IT services required is so wide today, the role of IT manager is certainly less technical and more strategic than it was years ago. Today, IT management no longer means managing computer workstations and data storage space but understanding different areas of the company, such as efficient design of production, and financial or customer management systems.

In addition to the management and administration of IT infrastructure services, IT management in many companies also includes software development. 

There are many different business needs, and although there are very capable people, it is becoming increasingly difficult to manage all areas that require IT operations on their own. When we talk about the role of an IT manager, it doesn't have to be just one person.

The importance of information technology solutions in business has grown in all major cities in the USA. For example in Texas including Dallas, Allen, Plano, Richardson, Frisco, McKinney, Fort Worth, Arlington, and Garland. This is accompanied by a logically increased need for various IT solutions and processes. It is gratifying that this has been accompanied by an increase in customer awareness.

Today, customers are increasingly able to take an interest in themselves and ask about different services and solutions, which is very positive. Thanks to the ability to better understand, more external partners such as managed IT services providers are sought and their suggestions are listened to.

The development of IT outsourcing of such services has gained momentum here recently. In the past, people wanted to do a lot for themselves, but they are gradually realizing that it is no longer sensible to their business for better development.

I would approach this from the point of view of standardization. In general, the less time you spend eliminating differences, the more optimal the entire administration. Good practice states that for centrally managed IT services and environments, user profiles should be as standard and centrally coordinated as possible.

As a simple example, if you have a hardware park of 10/25 different computers, it means that all of your staff need special attention and time to manage them smoothly without interruption. 

However, if the computers are similar, the central software package also makes it easier to keep up with changes and manage updates. This keeps the entire software profile more consistent. This in turn makes it easier to provide support, detect anomalies, and service outages.

Today, managed IT services vendors are setting up a computer and they perform the necessary installations usually remotely. It is convenient for the user and secure for the company. Remember that the average user is generally unable to make major changes to maintain a standardized profile.

Indeed, in the past, internal policies were often organized in such a way that remote administration was not allowed. That's why the IT company had to visit on-site to provide support for their customers. It was about trust and security, ie who needs and can see what information at what time. For example, questions about whether an IT support provider can see payroll documents, company financial reports, or other confidential information in the course of their work without giving notice.

Today, managed IT services, IT technical support, remote monitoring services, cloud solutions, and security services have been greatly improved. It is no longer necessary to take a screenshot of the user for all activities. For example, software installations and updates. Almost all services can be provided to the customer remotely.

Users' own awareness of how to use remote support in the most sensible way has also increased. As a rule, when requesting assistance from IT support, the user ensures that there are no open documents on the computer that the remote support professional should not see. On the other hand, a professional IT specialist can also inform the user in advance that when taking a picture, there will be no information on the screen that should not be shared.

Although there are and will remain jobs where remote management is not allowed or possible, it can be on-site service. The main reasons for this are, of course, cost savings and efficiency. You save both time and money by not having to wait for a specialist to come to you and incur the associated costs.

The modern administration service is designed in cooperation with customers. It offers a flexible approach to the needs and wishes of the customer in particular. It is important to agree with the client on rules, and procedures, as well as tools and methods suitable for remote management. Customers generally enjoy remote management and its benefits.. 

What and how much is wise to buy is extremely individual. This should be determined in cooperation between the customer and the chosen IT partner. Efforts should be made to assess whether it is prudent to manage all systems with one's own resources or to focus on one's core business and involve external assistance.

When outsourcing IT management and administration, trust in the service provider is extremely important, as the service provider gets very close to the company's bloodstream. 

Private companies choose managed IT service providers based on trust. There is no way to get your hands on the wires of your office to someone you have not trusted.

One of the key issues is standardization and the use of flexible solutions. It is generally more financially sensible to adapt your processes to more standard services and products, rather than doing something completely different. Whether it's upgrading a software product to suit your needs or redesigning standard services, such as extended business hours, and more.

If you create a standard solution for your product or service by bending it according to your own processes, and not based on the solution implemented by the manufacturer, it will be significantly more expensive to keep up with all changes and innovations, as they also need to be adapted to your needs.

On the other hand, excessive standardization can in some ways hamper innovation. In such situations, the optimal balance must always be sought. 

What are the key trends in IT management and infrastructure services that your customers need to consider today?

Certainly, one of the trends is the decentralization and combination of services, or service Integration and management, which means that you buy different services from different IT service providers and packages for your needs. This gives your customer flexibility because you only use the services you really need.

There are probably not many IT service vendors who would provide the customer with, for example, hardware supplies, communication solutions, customer management accounting software management, etc. For this, cloud services are definitely one of the trends affecting infrastructure services. 

The cloud solution is convenient and fashionable, but it does not mean that everyone should move to the cloud. We are seeing more and more hybrid solutions in the USA, where some solutions are bought from the cloud and some is stored locally for security reasons.

Here, the solution can also be to store things in different clouds according to need. It doesn't have to be limited to one cloud provider. We also combine different services from both public cloud service providers and private clouds to find the optimal solution for each customer.

All sorts of security issues have become particularly relevant. It can be data leaks, malware attacks or phishing scams about end users, where increasingly specialized expertise is being used to set up security solutions.

In all of this, it is important to know what service is really needed and where it is most rational to get it. This is where IT management comes into play as a service. Managed IT services provider has diverse experience, and able to recommend better solutions for your IT infrastructure. If necessary, they will involve other specialized parties.

An external IT provider or IT outsourcing company does not always have to assemble and offer only their own services, it is free to mediate or help to procure the services of competitors, again with a view to finding the most suitable solution for their customer. Because this IT services provider has the proper knowledge of what, how, and where to buy.

The range of IT services is so wide, you have to choose the focus for yourself and find a balance on how much to go into. Today, there are insane areas in IT that need to be addressed.

For example, some companies are always fascinated by the development of IT services - how to improve some operations and processes, how to produce services more efficiently. Because, this requires knowledge of tools and resources, which in turn requires continuous learning.

For your company, you don't have to do everything yourself, you can buy things and services from managed IT services providers.

If we talk about the IT support service, this thing has turned upside down: the most important part has become a person's communication skills and personality traits. It is always possible to learn technologies and solutions, but communication skills and commitment are something that can be developed to some extent, but they are generally no longer flexible. Working as an IT specialist requires a lot of communication with customers and their teams.

IT management, which is the realization of essentially different forms of cooperation and assembling the best solution for the client from different components, has always been and continues to be a very interesting challenge for many companies.