What the COVID-19 crisis taught us about the cloud and business continuity

The COVID-19 pandemic has changed life as we know it, in many ways. While its impact on our day-to-day lives has been huge, the impact has been even more severe from a business perspective. The social distancing norms, staggered operating hours so as to limit crowds, the masks, shields, barriers, and what-not! From the business continuity perspective, companies have had to adapt themselves to the new normal very quickly.

During this global crisis, one technology that truly came to the rescue of business big and small was the cloud. The cloud made it possible for businesses to keep their operations running even with staff working remotely. With all critical data stored online, all that was needed was a compatible device with an internet connection and it was business as usual...well, almost.

Here are some core business challenges that were resolved due to the cloud.

• Access to core business data and software programs that were needed for smoothd day-to-day operations
• Data security concerns, though not entirely non-existent due to the use of personal devices, were largely taken care of, thanks to multiple layers of security offered by the cloud service providers
• There were no “hardware hassles”...companies that were already on the cloud didn’t have to worry about the logistics of providing office computers to their employees working from home. With all the data stored online, they could use their home computers or tablets to get the work done.

Earlier what was perceived as an advantage for employees (the permission to work from home) was now mandatory for survival of the business. Even businesses that allowed employees to operate from home before the pandemic had a tough time migrating their entire setup to the work-from-home model.

What’s your argument against an SLA with an MSP? Part-2

What’s your argument against an SLA with an MSP? (And why it doesn’t hold water) Part-2

In our last blog post, we discussed 3 reasons SMBs usually cite for not signing a service level agreement with an MSP. In this blog post, we suggest how an SLA with an MSP will add value to your business, irrespective of your business size, budget and the presence of an in-house IT team.

Reason#1: Our IT requirements are limited

IT is not a one-time thing where you can follow a set-it-and-forget-it approach. Want this to run smoothly? IT needs regular maintenance-- a service level agreement with an MSP is the answer. Regular data backups, timely security patch application, software updates, etc, are all important and won’t happen unless you have a dedicated resource working on them. Plus, there’s the issue of network latency. Services like periodic network monitoring offered by MSPs ensure that any latency issues are identified and taken care of before they result in a major system failure.

Reason#2: We are tight on budget

Agreed that SMBs may not have the kind of revenue inflow as expected in large organizations, but that’s no reason to skimp on your IT requirements. Skimping on IT needs and diverting the funds elsewhere may sound tempting, especially when your IT infrastructure is running great, but this can cost you a lot more in the event something goes wrong. Let’s take a look at a malware attack scenario, for example. If you don’t have an SLA in place, you are most likely to reach out to an IT expert or MSP on a transactional basis. It will not only result in a sky-high bill, but also, there’s no guarantee that you will be immediately attended to: customers with SLAs get preference over transactional ones in the event of an emergency. Plus, every minute your IT infrastructure is down, you are losing potential revenue--through online or even offline sales. In the event of a data leak or a compromise in customer/vendor data due to the malware attack, you are liable for penalties and may be even sued by your clients. So, saving a few bucks here and there by cutting back on IT expenses can prove much more expensive later.

Reason#3: We have our in-house IT person/team

So, you have in-house IT personnel? Great! But there are ways in which an SLA with a managed service provider can still add value to you. This kind of setup is called the co-managed IT model. By bringing an MSP onboard when you have an in-house IT team, you B

• Benefit from their expertise and enrich your in-house IT team’s knowledge
• Enjoy flexibility in terms of meeting your IT needs as you can scale your IT up or down based on your business needs
• Reduce payroll expenses incurred as result of hiring new IT staff in-house
• Help your in-house IT team focus on more important tasks by outsourcing the mundane IT processes to the MSP
• Get an extra hand to assist your in-house IT personnel in the event of a major IT issue
• Have 24/7 IT support, something that may not be viable with a small in-house IT team

Having a service level agreement with a managed service provider adds value to businesses under all circumstances, and should be considered an essential, not an option.

What’s your argument against an SLA with an MSP? Part-1

What’s your argument against an SLA with an MSP? (And why it doesn’t hold water) Part-1

Managed IT services are becoming more popular by the day. Businesses, big and small, are bringing managed service providers onboard to handle their IT requirements. The bigger IT players like IBM, Accenture, CISCO act as MSPs to larger organizations, while the typical managed service provider is often hired by SMBs. However, there’s a question that crops up time and again--Do SMBs really need an MSP? SMBs are sometimes in two minds when it comes to bringing an MSP on board and typically use one of the following justifications.

Our IT requirements are limited

A lot of businesses in the small to mid-size range believe that their IT needs don’t warrant a full-time service level agreement with an MSP. They believe the only times they need to invest in IT is at the start of their business or when rolling out new technology. As a result, they don’t see much value in signing a service level agreement with an MSP.

We are tight on budget

SMBs also tend to cut on the IT budget and invest those funds elsewhere--generally in areas where they see tangible results, such as hiring new customer-facing staff or a new advertising campaign. So, when SMBs find themselves a little tight on the budget, the IT department sees the cut.

We have our in-house IT person/team

Businesses with an in-house IT expert or even a small in-house IT team feel that is sufficient for handling any IT needs and an SLA is just an added expenditure.

So, did your reason make it to the list? Stay tuned for our next blog post, where we will discuss how an SLA with a managed service provider can add value to your business.

Equip your business with the IT foundation it needs to compete and win

In a recent industry survey, it was found that one of the biggest factors holding back small and mid-sized firms from achieving their business goals was IT. One may argue that smaller businesses lack the capital that the bigger players have to invest in their business, but even with all other aspects being more or less equal, the difference brought about by their lack of investment in IT was found to be a key differentiating factor--far more than other elements such as marketing, human resources and even industry expertise.

There’s no denying that IT plays an important role in keeping any business running. Ignoring your IT infrastructure can prove disastrous, but maintaining an in-house IT team to take care of it can be expensive--especially for SMBs. By outsourcing IT to a trusted MSP, businesses can benefit from significant cost savings that arise from not having to hire an entire IT team in-house.

The second instance where having an Service level agreement (SLA) with an MSP helps is where you don’t have an in-house IT team. Calling on an IT service provider when there is a crisis or a there is a one-off event may mean significant surcharges

When businesses have SLAs, the MSP will be regularly monitoring their IT infrastructure. A typical service agreement will cover regular backups, periodic network monitoring for latency issues, timely security updates and patch application, etc., This means the chances of severe IT issues will be drastically reduced. Most of the time, the problem can be identified much sooner before it becomes a full-blown issue. And, in the event of an IT emergency, a client having a service agreement will be prioritized by the MSP. One time emergency requests fall to the end of the line.

Irrespective of the size of business, MSPs can add tremendous value by bringing scalability, flexibility and innovation to the standard IT set-up and help build the IT foundation it needs to compete effectively and efficiently in the industry.