All-Inclusive IT Support & Fully Managed IT Services

The Australian government is committed to becoming a leading digital economy and society by 2030. Over the past two decades, it has ramped up internet reliability and coverage, registered at least 1.2 million additional websites under the .au domain and even supported more businesses in increasing their web or digital presence. (1)

This significant investment in technology will undoubtedly change business doctrine in the next few years, but it requires a robust support system to maintain its growth. Businesses that already employ an extensive infrastructure or plan to have one should seek the help of all-inclusive information technology (IT) support from managed service providers (MSPs) to keep it in working order.

All-inclusive IT support isn’t a single service but rather a package. Most MSPs include the following individual services in their service packages.

The more businesses invest and rely on technology for their processes, the more they can’t afford to have it fail at a crucial time. One study by Gartner estimates the average cost of IT downtime at USD$5,600 (AUD$7,725) per minute. Most businesses experience 1 hour of IT downtime, costing them more than USD$300,000 (AUD$413,704), excluding indirect costs. (2)

Mitigating such issues involves MSPs closely monitoring how a client uses its IT infrastructure. The monitoring software they employ gathers data from three typical sources: network sensors, analytics and user interface insights. There are dozens of types of IT monitoring, each focusing on a specific aspect of a business’s IT infrastructure. Here are examples: (3)

• Overall system monitoring
• Application programming interface
• Business activity
• Web performance
• Application performance monitoring
• App testing for real-world usage
• Cybersecurity monitoring (3)

Each type also focuses on specific metrics. For example, web performance monitoring concerns itself with the webpage’s loading speed and the frequency of transmission errors. As businesses are aware of how slow-loading websites can discourage customers, these data can be helpful.

While businesses are quick to adopt new technology, they tend to adopt solutions that barely fit their needs. This happens quite often in cloud migration. One study in 2019 revealed that 74% of large companies worldwide move their workloads to the cloud, only to return them on premises after failing to produce any noticeable gains. For these companies, the experience has created a stigma on cloud technology and its promise of greater return on investment. (4)

In another study, 84% of enterprises that had to move back on premises said they’re less likely to consider moving to the cloud again, even if they’re given a chance. The rising costs of ensuring the infrastructure’s cloud readiness often can’t justify it enough. (4)

Knowing the suitability of a business solution warrants an extensive review of the infrastructure. Most businesses neither have the time nor resources to do such a task, so they usually leave it to MSPs. Consultations cover a broad array of aspects, including the following:

• Collaboration with business management
• Data-driven decision-making
• Current and future assessment
• Planning a long-term roadmap
• Proper migration (especially to the cloud)
• Procuring the necessary equipment

Even when formal consultations aren’t possible, MSPs provide technical support to an extent. They maintain a 24/7 help desk when problems arise, ensuring issues are addressed even when MSPs are closed for the evening or holidays. After all, problems don’t rest or take a vacation.

The need for improved internal communication and collaboration grew during the first year of the COVID-19 pandemic. Lockdowns and other quarantine measures forced businesses to shift to remote work set-ups, either temporarily or permanently. Even as COVID becomes more manageable, two thirds of Australians are still working from home (compared to 42% pre-COVID). (5)

With team members far apart, only unified communication and collaboration (UC&C) tools are powerful enough to enable their on-premise processes in remote set-ups. For instance, business communication platforms are enjoying growth in this pandemic-stricken economy because of features that include more than just their chatboxes.

UC&C software is an integrated solution that includes office suites, web-based tools and cloud-based storage. MSPs understand the significance of having such solutions, thus offering to set up and manage a business’s UC&C system. By putting everything an office needs in one program, UC&C software can help get work done faster.

While they’re the most common, these individual services aren’t the only ones MSPs provide in their all-inclusive packages. Some provide additional features specific to the industry, but the ones discussed here apply universally. If the country is serious about attaining its digital goal by 2030, it’s best to have this support system in place.

References

1. “TECHNOLOGY IS CHANGING HOW WE DO BUSINESS”, Source: https://digitaleconomy.pmc.gov.au/strategy/australia/changing-how-we-do-business
2. “The Cost of IT Downtime”, Source: https://www.the20.com/blog/the-cost-of-it-downtime/
3. “Introduction to IT Monitoring”, Source: https://www.bmc.com/blogs/it-monitoring/
4. “Why cloud migration failures happen and how to prevent them”, Source: https://searchcio.techtarget.com/feature/Cloud-migration-failures-and-how-to-prevent-them
5. “Two thirds of Australians are working from home.”, Source: https://aifs.gov.au/media-releases/two-thirds-australians-are-working-home