The benefits of Managed IT services over consultancy

When deciding how your company should approach IT support, it can be difficult to decide on what level of support you feel is the best fit. Leaving many business owners debating whether they need IT support services or more in-depth it consulting.

As a rule, service means the provision of something whereas consultancy allows more opportunity for the offering of a professional opinion.

IT Services

For businesses that don’t have the resources to manage their own IT services, this is the perfect solution. Researching iseries service providers can help businesses find the right one for them to help manage the technology side of their business, mitigating issues that may arise.

Managed IT services will be carried out either by an individual or company working in the IT sector and the different services provided can be very broad. Services include software development, the management of data recovery, cloud services, backups, security systems and much more.

Advantages of managed IT services include:

• Time-saving: Outsourcing management of services like security and cloud reduces the amount of time that in-house staff will have to spend on managing IT.

• Expertise: For smaller businesses, IT services can be an enormous help if in-house staff don’t have the knowledge to manage it themselves. Having experienced technical support available is also a bonus for when things go wrong.

• Predictable costs: Whilst managed IT services may not be the most flexible option, businesses can pay on a retainer basis and spread the cost over a matter of months.

• Maintenance and upgrades: business owners and managers don’t have to worry whether the software is up-to-date, as all this is taken care of by the provider.

IT Consultancy

An IT consultant works with clients and advises them on how to use IT in a way that will help them to address and reach their business goals and overcome specific problems. An IT consultant will be able to work with your business to determine your needs and offer insight without binding you to ongoing work. Consultants could offer counsel to their clients to choose the right technology-based products for their company. This could help the firm increase its business, and improve the IT structure.

This is beneficial for businesses that have a good in-house IT team that are well equipped and have prior knowledge of IT services and technology. However, consultancy isn’t the best option for businesses that have a weak in-house IT team.

In order to understand which is best for your business, you need to establish whether your team has the knowledge and time to be able to manage your IT. If you are just after support on how to boost your business and improve your IT systems, then you may want to stick to consultancy.

If you are after a more hands-on approach, then IT services will be the best option for. When choosing an IT company, be sure to choose one that offers the services and level of support that you need.