Optimizing Service Delivery
MSP business infrastructure can be complex. Additionally, this infrastructure can also choke your service delivery.
It is beneficial and wise for you to outsource your Network Operations Center (NOC) and your help desk. These things make outsourcing your NOC a wise idea:
- Short history of service provision
- Times of high growth
- Offerings that are non-core
Service Provision
If your MSP has been providing service delivery only for a short time, outsourcing your NOC could provide you the support you need to find a more sustainable, profitable level of operations. If you are offering a managed service to clients, it is likely you will need an NOC.
It is not going to be inexpensive for you to design an NOC within your company. Do a cost-benefit analysis. If the cost of the NOC outweighs its benefit, outsourcing is a clear choice.
Times of High Growth
You are going to see a vital company growth spurt that may “cramp” your common resources. You will likely need 24/7 coverage as soon as possible. If you institute an outsourced NOC solution, you are likely to require service delivery capabilities 24/7. This ability helps you continue your company expansion.
Non-Core Offerings
It is entirely possible that your MSP will not provide services that require any internal NOC. But then you will be puttering along and run into clients who need such a solution.
Questions arise such as, should you lose the client, or establish an outsourced NOC? One way, you do not make any money. The other solution is you increase your profits. Establishing an outsourced NOC solution in this situation makes sense.
When Do Help Desks Fit In?
Your MSP business is going to need a form of a help desk. If you are only dealing with a handful of clients at a fixed-rate, and you are proactively monitoring the networks of those individuals, then you can likely handle all issues internally.
Interestingly, are the reasons to outsource your NOC the same as applying a help desk to your company’s agenda? If you are a new MSP, you likely will not be able to handle the needs of one client as sufficiently as possible, without outsourcing your help desk. It takes time to reach that sustainable level you are seeking.
If you are an MSP who is experiencing periods of high growth, you want to ensure that new and existing clients have the ability to attain support promptly when clients’ needs arise. Outsourcing your help desk makes a lot of sense.
Only one of the three NOC-outsource qualifications your help desk is less likely to share non-core offerings. However, an analogy might be a remote problem resolution via your help desk. Did you know that a remote help desk can solve up to 70 percent of your tier-one issues? If you can outsource your help desk, then you are saving on two fronts. These savings can substantially cut down your MSP’s workload, allowing you to induct more clients and expand your operations.
Infrastructural Cushions
Outsourcing saves money, pure and straightforward, provided your outsourcing conducts efficiently. Think of using an outsourced NOC and help desk as supporting yourself against the day when you no longer need the outside assistance.
The goal should be continued growth and profitability. If you are getting at least 70 percent of your problems fixed remotely through an outsourced help desk, you are going to save time and resources. Outsourcing leads to increased growth, and an NOC of the outsourced variety may help that expansion continue at an even swifter pace.
It is integral to your MSP business to optimize wherever possible. You are going to have a lot of unexpected costs, and you are always going to be, as the saying goes, “behind the eight-ball” to some degree. Until you hit your optimum sustainable level of operations, you will be playing catch-up. Using outsourced solutions can help give you leverage against the competition and direct your sustainable operating level.
Conclusion
The results you are expecting may not happen overnight. The final consideration with any business is a keen plan. You must skillfully plan for your company’s future years.
