In today’s technological climate, businesses that cling to the old way of handling data are putting themselves at risk, and those that know how to find effective managed services are ahead of the curve. This concept is most prevalent in the IT industry, where expert departments handle most everything that requires some technical savvy, from networking to hosting to troubleshooting. These departments can act like a functioning wing of the business, and can eliminate the need for an onsite IT crew. This can save thousands of dollars in the long run, making it an attractive option for those businesses looking to take that next step.
Before any company decides to acquire managed services, they should have a network consulting session with the IT group. During this consultation, the experts can figure out what the weak spots are in the infrastructure and figure out solutions to get around them. Security holes and networking inefficiencies can be eliminated this way, and the best equipment and settings will be set up to drive the business toward growth.
Common managed services are data storage, backup, and recovery in the event of a disaster. It’s not uncommon for equipment failure or server problems to eliminate swaths of data, some of which may be essential to the daily functioning of the company. Because the IT provider keeps all of the data in their offices, this means that one of the most important parts of the operation is secured off site. Should catastrophic equipment or server failure result in the loss of data, these professionals can spin up the servers and restore everything that was lost. This provides a safety net in the event of severe storms or break-ins resulting in the physical destruction of data storage.
This isn’t the only reason why data backup and storage is preferable off site. Companies that offer managed services will typically be able to afford much more sophisticated server banks than a small or medium sized operation could handle. This means faster data transfer and greater server stability, both essential elements in maintaining productivity.
These experts are often more accessible than standard IT departments, and most are on call 24 hours a day, seven days a week. They can monitor the backend of the company, ensuring that they catch any problems in the network well before anyone notices them. Providers of managed services can also set up and provide a business with a virtual e-mail server. In addition, they can monitor user activity on their end, making sure that no one is accessing the network improperly.
Most professionals can access any device connected to the network remotely, and because they are intimately familiar with the technical infrastructure and the network’s settings, they can filter out the small issues that ding productivity every day. They often also have security experts that can do anything from loading up devices with effective anti-malwares to partitioning and defending sensitive data like credit card information or personal customer data.
Finally, these service providers can scale with a company, which makes them perfect for small and medium sized operations that are looking to grow in the near future.