Now is the time to unlock the power of technology standards in your organization. Standards can be the key to increasing your perceived value with customers and fostering a more strategic business relationship.
First and foremost, what is the definition of an MSP Standard and why are they so powerful?
MSP standards are defined as a set of best practices and provide an objective view of a customer’s technology environment by aligning them against those standards. Standards are a powerful tool because they allow an MSP to set the bar on what and how technology should be used in a customer’s environment. Aligning a customer to those standards reduces reactive noise (tickets) and generates recommendations to advance the customer’s business goals.
Will your company’s standards look the same as others in the industry?
Standards come in many forms and are sourced from different providers, from statutory laws, private compliance, and industry best practices. It is common for standards and best practices to overlap in the industry, mainly due to compliance or government regulations enforcing the use of industry best practices. For instance, the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) provides numerous standards, frameworks, and best practices for organizations in every industry. And, since federal and state objectives for security have recently become more strict, NIST frameworks are most commonly the backbone of these rules and regulations.
How will these standards help you to scale your business and become more profitable?
Implementing and aligning your customers to a set of standards will generate numerous benefits to your MSP. For one, technical alignment drives down reactive noise by assessing problem areas, resolving those gaps through recommendations, and decreasing the number of support tickets. When a Technical Alignment Manager (TAM) performs their onsite technical assessment, they pass their findings to the virtual Chief Information Officer (vCIO), your customer’s strategic partner, to make those recommendations a reality. As part of the technical alignment process, the vCIO performs business impact and strategy with each client, addressing how standards alignment affects their business goals and assists with developing a short- and long-term strategy. A strategic roadmap helps your clients plan for future expenses and to visualize their business goals, increasing the intrinsic value provided by your services.
Will customers be affected by these standards? Will they be valuable to them?
When a customer is aligned to your set of standards, they gain the competitive advantage by using technology as a strategic asset. Developing a strategic roadmap and budget months—or years—in advance allows them to concentrate on their business goals rather than maintaining their technology. Customers who can focus on their business rather than day to day support tickets will see the value in the standards and alignment process.
How can you get started with creating and eventually maintaining your Standards Library?
Getting started with standards is easy! As a myITprocess subscriber, you will have access to the myITemplates repository, filled with over 3000 questions from popular frameworks like NIST Cybersecurity Framework and CIS Controls, as well as numerous federal and state compliance and industry best practices.
Plus, myITprocess comes preloaded with the default template containing 150 questions to get you started out of the box. Want to implement your own standards? You can easily move, add, and change sections, categories, and questions directly through the web interface or upload them in bulk using our easy export/import feature. Additionally, you can tag sections and categories for easy sorting and filtering to designate specific uses like onboarding or quarterly assessments.
