Today’s technology needs are fast-paced and complex, no matter the size of the business. The right technology platform and staffing will keep any business competitive and relevant, but depending on the size of your business, managing daily technology requests can be an overwhelming task for your internal IT team. It is a 24/7 responsibility and sometimes, getting expert help can provide much-needed support for a worn-out IT department.
If your IT team hasn’t taken a day off, not to mention a full-on vacation, in a while, then consider them overworked. Hiring additional staff to lighten the load might not be affordable, but there is an option that could provide the extra support your team needs. Supplemental IT support from outside experts may be just what the doctor ordered. (Especially if your IT team can’t take a sick day.)
How Supplemental IT Support Can Benefit Your Business
The benefits of supplemental IT support can make a positive impact right away. Let’s take a look at some of the primary benefits.
1. Faster Project Completion
Every organization, no matter what its size, has experienced the need for technology upgrades and at times, full migrations, to keep its IT system current and fully functional. Those upgrades and migrations can become large and time-consuming projects that take dedicated time from a fully focused IT team. Trying to manage such a project, along with answering your team’s everyday IT questions and maintaining day-to-day operations can be almost impossible. Inevitably the larger project gets postponed as daily priorities take over. That’s where a supplemental IT expert can come in handy. They are accustomed to meeting critical deadlines, and they can complete IT service requests – especially those larger projects – quickly and accurately because they have the tools and resources to ensure that projects are finished on time. With the right partner, the increase in productivity will be well worth the cost. Conversely, a managed service provider (MSP) can handle the day-to-day workflows while your team tackles a larger project if that division of labor makes more sense for you.
2. Improved Work Balance
Speaking of increased productivity, even if you aren’t staring down a major project or migration, a supplemental IT support person or people can provide much-needed balance to an overworked team. Take, for example, a small- to mid-sized organization with a team of three or four IT specialists. The company is growing, which means its IT needs are growing as well, but it might not yet be financially ready to expand its IT department. Or perhaps they have too much work for the existing team, but not quite enough for another full-time employee. This could be a perfect opportunity to bring in outside support. The right MSP can provide exactly the support you need, when you need it, such as mobile device management, routine maintenance of your computer systems, expert protection from viruses, compliance audits when needed, and the ever-critical system back and disaster recovery. These services can be provided as needed by your MSP, without the organization having to invest the time and resources into hiring, training, benefits, and other related expenses of bringing on another employee.
3. Well-Deserved Time Away
As mentioned earlier, a day off or taking a vacation might seem impossible for your IT team in the current environment. Protecting that team from burnout is important to maintaining their productivity and retention. Let’s face it, keeping your employees happy means allowing them to take time away from work. Supplemental IT support can provide them the freedom to plan that vacation or take that day off for respite with the knowledge that things will continue to run smoothly while they are away. Someone else will be there to fix the issues and take the inevitable calls while they are getting some much-deserved time off.
Just as important is the ability to cover when an IT team member is out because of sickness or an unplanned situation. An outside expert can be the needed backup to keep everything running smoothly while your employee is away.
4. Improved Expertise
Your internal IT team most likely was hired because they had a particular set of skills that worked well for what you needed at the time. Over time, the job your IT team was hired to do evolves. Because technology is continually advancing, keeping up with changes in their field can sometimes feel like a full-time job for your IT team.
Bringing in outside help to tackle a particularly challenging task or to teach your internal team best practices on how to tackle it can relieve a tremendous amount of stress on your internal team. Whether it’s handling cybersecurity, coordinating a migration, or developing a long-term strategy, bringing in experts who are skilled in their specialties can allow your internal team to focus on what they do best – and what they were hired to do.
Adding outside expert help for your in-house IT staff can be a tremendous benefit to your organization. That additional assistance may enable you to expand your IT support hours, with the outside expert taking on the calls after hours. Or they can take on the larger projects to help your team stay on top of the day-to-day responsibilities. In some cases that outside expert can also provide additional education or training to your team. In any case, examining your organization’s IT needs, and how to best manage them while not overwhelming your staff, makes good business sense. If you have questions about what types of services an outside expert can provide, contact us. We are here to help you make the right decision for your organization’s IT needs.
