Having a managed service provider (MSP) take care of your company’s IT operations full time is the gold standard, especially for small- and medium-sized businesses. That’s only true if you’re getting the right level of service, though. Few things are worse than mediocre IT, however, and it’s important to find out if you’re getting the value you need for the annual or monthly fee you pay.
Leaders wear multiple hats, regardless of the organization's size. Sure. But we know, as small business leaders, we feel the pressure to try to do more with less. Over the last three decades, we've seen the role that technology plays in enabling us to be more effective as a company and for our clients. Technology, we find, is often needed and used, but not cared for or maintained as carefully as it should. Why? Because everything we do for our business requires time, money, skills, and resources to accomplish the caring and feeding each department needs to aid in the growth of the company.
These days, you don’t have to look too far on social media to find a #10YearChallenge. Some are simple: post a photo of yourself from 2009 and another from today to see how much you’ve changed. Others are using the hashtag for bigger and broader things to reflect on, such as climate change, sustainability, and global conflicts.
No one wakes up and seeks out mediocre IT service.
Every IT service provider has a story to tell you. Maybe they focus on their technical pedigree. Or, maybe they promise to provide better service than any competitor could.
Whether we realize it or not, companies across all industries are now operating in the on-demand economy.
For small- and medium-sized businesses, IT can seem like a foreign language.
Small business leaders don’t often want their business to stay small.
In the past, you never had to worry about software sprawl. You just adopted new office applications to meet business needs as they emerged. Updates were manageable and upgrades costs weren’t so disruptive because your software portfolio was limited.