A highly functional IT department is one that is free of the daily struggle to maintain a vast network of individually supported systems, which suffer from bugs, inopportune immediate patch needs and unexpected (and often incomprehensive) down time. By shaking off the shackles of reactive problem solving, your IT department can be free to contribute their expertise and innovation to:
- Building your business’s bottom line
- Increasing productivity and efficiency
- Planning for future technology implementations
So, how would this highly functional IT department operate within a small-to-midsized business? Well, here are a few exciting possibilities. (Hint: Managed IT Services are key to each of them.
1. Plan and Build Strategic Investments
Strategic IT investments, such as virtualized servers, cloud computing and collaborative networking tools, require time and focus to research, present for buy-in, develop implementation plans and training, and execute. However, if your business can push through these kinds of advances, the productivity gains and data security can propel your business forward while providing an efficient working environment for your staff.
Q: How can IT staff release themselves from the needs of daily reactive problem solving to focus on proactive technology plans that will contribute to business growth?
A: Managed IT Services.
2. Retain Specialized Experts
It’s a rare small-to-midsized business that has the resources to retain a comprehensive IT department, fully equipped with a diverse range of specialized expertise. More likely, you have one or several IT generalists on hand to address every possible issue that arises. Tackling a range of requests from: “Can you help me find that email from last year?” to “Why is our system SO SLOW every afternoon at 3?” often leads to a harried, frazzled IT staff who are spread too thin in an attempt to be all things to all staff.
However, if those skilled IT generalists have easy access to specialized experts to consult as needs arise, the pressure releases, morale lifts and issues become resolved more quickly and easily.
Q: How can your business retain specialized IT experts, in addition to your necessary generalist IT staff?
A: Managed IT Services.
3. Build New Projects on Tested Best Practices
Your company wants to transition IT operations to the cloud. The security and flexibility benefits are clear, but the implementation process seems complex and intense. You know that thousands of other companies have undergone the same implementation, and must have advice to offer from valuable lessons learned. But who has the time to research those kinds of resources? Isn’t there an easier way to incorporate best practices and lessons learned into a daunting new technology roll-out?
Q: How can small-to-midsize businesses access the wealth of experience and best practices from other companies that have undergone the same IT implementations?
A: Managed IT Services.
4. Gain Outside Perspective for New Ideas
One of your board members thinks your company needs to move to virtualized systems. She’s been pushing hard for this technology investment over the last three months, but the rest of the board members need more information before considering the request. You aren’t sure it’s even worth the time to investigate.
How can your business efficiently explore new IT innovations and ideas, evaluate their relevance to your business, and only pursue those technologies that offer significant benefits for your unique needs?
Q: Where can your business find an expert-sounding board for new IT ideas, and obtain an unbiased, outside perspective on their value and potential?
A: Managed IT Services.