Today, every company that is not in the business of Technology, is looking to outsource the day-to-day management of complex technology services, so they can focus on their core business. This has led to a sudden and widespread growth of the technology outsourcing market, expected to reach $397.6 billion by 2025, resulting in a number of benefits across better efficiency, scalability, and availability of systems along with reduced costs. Although most organizations want to engage with a single Technology Services Provider, it’s important to weigh the risks and benefits of having just one provider manage the IT foundation of your business end-to-end.
The Risks of Engaging with a Single Technology Provider
Forming a strategic partnership with a trusted provider to exploit the benefits of outsourcing can be a great way to drive better growth and revenue. But there are some risks involved:
Poor Selection of Partner: If, despite a decent assessment of tech partners in the market, you end up choosing one that does not offer the services you need or does not deliver on the promises of your SLAs, it can have a big impact on the overall efficiency of your business. The inability to recommend or implement technologies that connect different systems, processes, employees, vendors, and customers can weaken the very foundation of your tech ecosystem.
Limited Focus: Not all partners have expertise or skill set in modern technologies. Limited focus on a handful of technologies or a complete inexperience of supporting technology in your unique domain means your one-stop partner will only be able to handle a small part of your business – and not in a holistic manner.
Short-term Oversight: Another problem of selecting a single provider who is only concerned about the short-term efficiency or cost benefits of technology implementation and not the long-term management and optimization can also lead to overshooting budgets, plummeting revenue, and poor employee morale.
Lock-in: For organizations that get into a long-term contract with a single provider also face the challenge of lock-in. Since they must abide by the terms of the contract, they cannot end their existing contract or bring in another partner – without incurring huge losses or tarnishing their business reputation.
The Benefits of Engaging with a Single Tech Partner
If you want to get the best returns from your technology outsourcing investment, it is important to carry out a thorough and detailed assessment of providers in the market, evaluate their capabilities, and confirm if they have the tools, capabilities, and experience in efficiently managing complex IT systems in your industry. Instead of choosing a standard Cloud MSP, it makes more business sense to engage with an MSP 2.0 who offers not just the best technology services but also helps in building a robust technology roadmap, constantly uncovers growth and cost saving opportunities, and focuses on continuous improvement. When you do so, you can achieve a number of benefits, including:
A one-stop Shop: Engaging with the right MSP can substantially streamline daily communication. Instead of wondering which provider to call or getting caught up in the blame game of different providers, you can quickly and easily get your issues resolved. Since you only have one provider to turn to, you can save a considerable amount of time reaching out to different vendors or partners, and just share all your problems or concerns with a single person/team – while also receiving immediate support for the same.
End-to-end technology management: A single provider can view your entire organization in a comprehensive manner and provide end-to-end support. Instead of looking at one department or one location in a silo, the right partner can offer the best guidance in what technologies you should invest in how you should operate your systems – in association with your already existing tools and systems.
Long-term Innovation: When you engage with an MSP 2.0, what you get is not just access to the latest tools and resources; you also get someone on board who constantly drives efforts towards long-term innovation. With technology evolving every day, the right partner can accelerate your organization’s digital trajectory, helping you constantly innovate and drive your strategy towards measurable benefits.
Better Employee Experience: Working with a single provider also makes it easy for employees to focus on their jobs – and not worry about the underlying technologies that power the tools and apps they use. Since they have access to the best tools and resources and can leverage the benefits of unified technology systems, they can utilize the full capabilities of advanced technology to improve their productivity and efficiency and better meet their business goals and objectives.
Optimized Costs: A single provider can also help in optimizing costs in the long run. Since most modern MSPs offer a plethora of capabilities as a service, it can result in dramatically low operational bills. Not only can you eliminate your CapEx, you can also spread your OpEx over a period of time, while making it far more predictable and manageable. At the same time, a qualified MSP can also offer a good mix of technology services as well as discounts on bundles, with the ability to add or remove services as needed – further streamlining your budget.
In today’s era of change, keeping up with rapid advances in technology is not everyone’s cup of tea – especially with almost every organization today relying on a strong foundation of IT to successfully run their business. For such organizations, ensuring they have the right technology systems in place to drive their business to success requires engaging with a qualified and competent MSP who knows the tech landscape, keeps pace with evolving trends and regulations, and works towards continuous optimization. The right MSP not only helps you scale technology to meet business needs, it also helps attract and retain top tech talent, effectively manage costs and risks, and protect the enterprise against the expanding threat landscape.
Engage with an MSP today to get the competitive advantage you need to succeed!