For the business, there will always be a need to maintain operational excellence while controlling costs in an increasingly technical and complex business environment. Many businesses now opt for a ‘managed services IT support model’ using a trusted managed services provider (MSP).

Put simply a ‘managed service’ is defined as an area of your business where the delivery, quality and service levels are contracted to a third party and backed by guarantee and indemnity. It ensures a fixed cost no matter what issues occur. Lots of different companies offer managed services with large numbers of businesses using the model for their printers rather than purchasing printers and consumables directly. Managed service providers become the businesses IT department and provide IT managed services that range from network security to full technical support.

Managed service work will depend on the needs of the company, so before signing up to a provider it is useful to schedule a call and discuss the most appropriate solution for your organisation. This will ensure you are receiving the best value-for-money service that meets your needs. Once agreed, the managed service provider will issue a ‘Manage Service Agreement’ which will list all of the services to be carried out by the MSP for the customer. It will provide you, the customer, with an outline of each party's responsibilities, expectations and a service level agreement.

There are several ways businesses can avail of managed services for their IT operations depending on the business size, number of technical staff inhouse, available budget and need for cost saving. At Perita, we offer three tiered levels of MSP support:

Co-Managed

This tier will provide access to our wide range of IT resources and skilled team to complement your in-house services. Typically, our team will monitor your IT hardware, endpoint protection, patch management and data backup for a monthly fixed cost per device. As a business owner, you will have peace of mind that all of your essential IT hardware is protected and secure from cyber threats whilst running efficiently.

Full End-User support

This tier provides access to a full helpdesk team during business hours (Mon-Fri; 09:00-17:00) to assist with all of IT issues with the ability to log unlimited support queries. This solution is most suited to organisations who operate without an internal IT champion or team and can be highly effective for remote workers. As a business owner, you will pay a fixed fee for monthly support without the worry of surprise IT support costs appearing. Don’t worry if your business operates outside of ‘normal’ business hours, we can tailor our services to meet your needs.

Fully outsourced IT Manager

While our MSP services are typically utilised as part of a larger, strategic partnership they can be used for one-time projects or a specific service. These types of projects typically have a defined start and end date and will not require ongoing support provided by a typical MSP agreement. They can be completed ad-hoc or have a designated timeframe such as supporting preforming technical assessment, large scale technology builds or deployments, data migration or recovery or migrating on premise infrastructure to the cloud.

• Cost saving: only pay for the IT services you need when you need them.
• Time saving: identify IT problems sooner and help avoid prolonged periods of network downtime.
• Technical expertise: gain access to a tech team with in-depth knowledge of your network.
• Quick response: IT issues that arise become a priority to correct as soon as possible.
• Supplier management: MSPs communicate with software suppliers regarding issues your business has
• Compliance: stay up to date with government IT regulations.

There is not a typical ‘MSP’ cost as each business is different and the level of service required may be tailored to meet the business needs. The cost will very much depend on the MSP model and provider and can range from €20* for a ‘hardware health’ service for a desktop PC to €300* for a single server (*per device per month). At Perita, our managed services contracts start from €15 per device per month and are an effective way to manage your IT costs throughput the year.

Businesses should bear in mind that the average salary for an inhouse IT technician can range from €45,000 to €60,000 per annum depending on business location. For the business, this cost will be absorbed under operational costs, with software licencing and staff upskilling additional expenditure. Recruiting for IT professional can be difficult given the global skills shortage in the sector leaving many businesses paying more for IT personnel today than previously.

Protect your business against spiralling IT costs

Get started today by arranging your online meeting with one of our MSP experts **Link to Calendar**