Business leaders are constantly evaluating the effectiveness of their business. Whether you rely on an internal or external IT support team, it’s important to understand how well they meet your needs.
In this article, we’ll explore a 6-step process to evaluate the effectiveness of your IT team. At Kelser, we use this tool to evaluate our own effectiveness for our customers.
But, before you get concerned that this is a marketing tool, let me assure you that the only reason we publish articles like these is because we are committed to providing the honest information business leaders need to make the best IT decisions for their organizations.
While it’s true that we provide a comprehensive managed IT support services solution for many clients in Connecticut and beyond, the reality is that our solution isn’t a perfect fit for every organization. So rather than spend our time convincing you to work with us, we’d rather be a source for relevant, pertinent information.
In this article, we’ll use our firsthand experience to guide you through a 6-step process that will help you decide whether your current IT solution is effective or not.
After reading this article, you’ll have all of the information you need to decide whether your current IT support solution is right for you or whether you should explore other options.
What Should I Consider When Evaluating The Effectiveness Of My Current IT Service Provider?
We use a 6-step process to evaluate the effectiveness of our own IT solution. We’re sharing it here, so that you can use it to assess your provider.
1. Track Response Time
Does your IT provider meet its commitments for response time and resolution time? Track it over a quarter (or maybe they track it for you). If they aren’t meeting the commitments outlined in their service level agreement (SLA), they aren’t responsive.
While there may be an occasion in which the team may need more time to resolve an issue, there should be constant communication so that you know what to expect, what needs to be done, and when you can expect any service outlier to be resolved.
Related article: What Is An IT Service Level Agreement (SLA)? Why Is It Important?
2. Measure Solution Effectiveness
How many times does your provider solve a problem on the first try? While response and resolution time are important, speed is not the only factor.
You want the issue resolved on the first call or site visit as frequently as possible. What good is a temporary fix if it means more issues and downtime further down the road?
3. Evaluate Planning Skills
Does your IT team meet with you regularly to review your priorities, plan for technology improvements, and review budgets? Are they part of your strategic discussions so they can advise you on the best technology solutions to address your short- and long-term needs?
Are they proactive? Do they monitor and upgrade your systems to keep everything operating optimally and securely?
You need a team that is constantly looking out for your technology infrastructure and not just responding when things break.
4. Monitor Costs
If your IT budget is constantly overspent, that is a sign that your team isn’t effective.
When your IT infrastructure is managed proactively, you know how much your monthly spend will be, you have a predictable IT budget, and you avoid surprise downtime and unexpected equipment failures.
Costs are one of the best indicators of the effectiveness of your IT team.
5. Gauge Interest In Your Business
Is your IT support team just focused on technology? Or, do they show an interest in your entire business strategy? Are they actively involved in advising your leadership team about the best technology solutions to support your future goals and success?
Your IT infrastructure is the backbone of your organization. It’s imperative that your IT support team is engaged in your entire business strategy, so they can align your technology to help your business get to the next level.
Related article: Why Is It Important To Align IT And Business Strategy?
Now What?
In this article, we’ve explored the 6-step process we use to evaluate our effectiveness. This is a tool any organization can use to determine whether their IT team is meeting their needs.
It’s important to track response time, measure solution effectiveness, evaluate planning skills, monitor costs, and gauge interest in your business.
Whether you rely on an internal or external IT support team, it’s important that you can rely on them to be constantly exploring new technology solutions, evaluating emerging cybersecurity threats, staying ahead of maintenance and licensing requirements, and planning for future needs.
In today’s fast-paced business world, no organization can afford downtime because their equipment is no longer covered by warranty or because their bandwidth can’t keep up with the growth of their business or because of a cybersecurity incident.
Your IT support team needs to do more than react, they need to anticipate.
Here’s the thing: all IT infrastructures need the same care and maintenance, just on a different scale. While some large organizations have the financial resources to support a full complement of internal IT experts, many small and medium-sized businesses do not.
Leaders of small and medium-sized businesses most often look to external IT providers to support their internal staff or to handle all their technology needs.
Wondering whether external IT support might be right for you? Learn your options for external IT support.
Or read this article to explore what a combination of internal and external IT support might look like.
At Kelser, we know that cost is often a concern when considering external IT support. Learn 6 hidden external IT support costs to anticipate.
If, like most business leaders, you are wondering whether your organization is ready to thwart the latest cyber threats, click the button below for a checklist you can use to gauge your cyber readiness.
