“If it ain’t broke, don’t fix it.”
We’ve all heard this saying countless times – and maybe it rings true in some cases. But, when it comes to managed service providers and their interaction with clients, this is a counterproductive approach.
Unfortunately, it’s how most MSPs operate. You wait for a ticket to come in, telling you something is broken, instead of preemptively updating, managing and maintaining your clients’ systems.
Ask yourself:
- Are you drowning under a pile tickets?
- Are your productivity levels low?
- Do you want to improve operations but can’t find the time to implement changes?
When you take a reactive approach to providing IT solutions, you fail to provide the level of service your clients deserve and you overwork your employees. The key to taking control of your business is moving to proactive network management.
The Perks Of Being Proactive
Transitioning to a proactive network management model comes with a number of benefits for both you and your clients.
- You save time.Fewer tickets mean greater productivity. Not only does being proactive lower the number of tickets you face, but it also decreases the amount of time you spend on each ticket. Right now, you may be spending too many hours answering how-to questions when you could be improving your business.
- You prevent headaches for clients.Your clients don’t want to face major technical problems. Network errors cut into their productivity, too. Proactive network management prevents them from being hindered by technology that’s obsolete or out of alignment with their systems.
- You’re freed up to optimize.If you weren’t busy drowning in tickets, you could optimize your company by honing your methods, focusing more on sales, getting creative with your solutions and more. Optimizing your business is only possible when you have the time and freedom to do it.
Proactivity Sounds Great, But Is It Doable?
Achieving a proactive method seems ideal, but it’s an unrealistic business goal, right?
Wrong.
Moving to proactive network management is completely possible. The secret to making it happen is defining and aligning your IT process. When you have this in order, you’re able to stop the pattern of never-ending tickets and keep your clients happy.
With the right IT process in place, you stand to cut your reactive time by 50-75%.
That’s time you want back in your day. So, how do you make it happen?
Aligning standards, or benchmarks to determine how successfully technology is working for your clients, should be your top priority. Standards are usually aligned when systems are first installed, but that changes quickly. Your clients’ technology is constantly in use, and their needs are always evolving. A program or system that was relevant to their needs today may be obsolete tomorrow.
Proactive network management means keeping these systems aligned with the standards you’ve set for your clients, despite the evolution of their environments. MSPs achieve this by proactively monitoring and updating systems before they crash. Create a comprehensive list of “yes/no” questions to ask your clients regularly. Based on these answers, you’ll be able to identify problems and find areas that need improvement.
This is a thorough, repeatable process that enables your employees to move quickly through issues, proactively upgrade technology and keep your tickets under control. When you master this, you’re on your way to becoming a World Class MSP.
Interested in learning how to transform the way you provide IT services? Download our free whitepaper, How To Become A Top-Performing MSP: Your Guide To Providing Profitable IT Solutions.
