6 Reasons You Need A Statement of Work For Your Managed IT Projects
Modern Data Center | Workforce Enablement | Working with Kelser
A statement of work, or SOW as it’s commonly referred to in business, is a fundamental part of managed IT services that benefits both the client and managed IT service provider (MSP).
Drafting well-defined SOWs plays an essential part in helping to develop a strong and lasting client-MSP relationship.
That’s because an SOW takes the guesswork out of undertaking an IT project for your business when using managed IT because it provides transparency and accountability for both sides.
In this article, we’ll discuss what an SOW is and explore six reasons why it’s a critical part of managed IT services to help keep your projects on track and on budget.
What Is The Purpose Of A Statement of Work When Using An MSP?
An SOW is an official document that spells out in clear, uncomplicated language the specific project or IT services being delivered, the service level agreement (SLA) and timeline, the implementation of deliverables, and the cost.
Let’s take a closer look at the core functions of an SOW when working with Kelser:
1. Outlines the scope of the project and deliverables
As a small or medium-sized business, it's very important that before signing on with an MSP to do the work, you thoroughly understand the parameters of the project, why you need the work done, and what your objectives are for the completed project.
This will ensure that the project deliverables and outcomes match your expectations. It will also help keep you from overspending on unnecessary professional IT services that don't align with your business goals.
Without a detailed project plan with stated objectives, your project could easily go off the rails.
2. Plans for downtime
Many IT projects often involve some amount of downtime.
Unlike an unplanned work stoppage—as in the case of device failure, data loss, natural disaster, cyber incident, or other crisis—downtime involving an ongoing project can be planned ahead of time.
Related Article: The True Cost Of IT Downtime: What Your Business Stands To Lose
One of the worst things that could happen is realizing in the middle of a project that half of your employees will need to be disconnected from the network for four hours on a busy work day!
A straightforward SOW will spell out the impact of the projected downtime across your environment, including identifying the specific systems, applications, data, or networks within your organization that will be inaccessible and for how long.
Working with a Kelser service delivery manager or SDM (who acts as a project manager) will allow you to get ahead of a prolonged work stoppage.
Giving your team a heads-up about the planned downtime will give them enough advance warning to prepare, such as downloading any needed files to work offline.
This will help avoid unnecessary headaches, missed deadlines, or other issues.
3. Provides cost savings
No one wants to go into a project not knowing the cost up front.
Our SOWs will spell out exactly what our deliverables and goals with the job are and what it will take to get us there.
An SOW also helps the SDM ensure that the correct technicians and resources are allocated for the right tasks. Just like our customers, we don't want to needlessly overspend.
In addition, we can quote the hardware and licenses that are needed for the project and include it on the SOW so you’re aware of the associated costs up front.
We might even be able to save you money on the procurement side when buying new hardware by leveraging our relationship with external partners to secure a better price on the devices you need.
Related Article: Why Are More Small And Medium-Sized Businesses Using Managed IT?
4. Ensures reliable project management
Our SOWs are created by a team of in-house engineers, procurement specialists, and service delivery managers.
Working with Kelser, your assigned SDM will act as a project manager to oversee the SOW process from start to finish.
This oversight will include responsive communication and updates on the progress of all phases of the work, as well as notification of expected downtime, or in rare cases, delays.
With reliable project management, you can rest assured that you’ll get everything you signed up for that was clearly defined in our SOW.
5. Establishes SLA metrics to provide MSP accountability
Coming up with a specific target deadline and using a phased-in approach to divide the work into segments are key to getting a project done in a timely fashion.
As a small business ourselves, we understand how important it is for our customers to get a project completed on time and at the contracted service level.
Not only is project timeliness important for our clients for various reasons, but it’s also very important for us too. We could have several projects going on simultaneously, along with a slate of other projects waiting in the pipeline.
With service level agreements (SLAs) within your SOW, you’ll understand your service level, be able to evaluate the quality of service and deliverables, and have a projected timeline for when the work is expected to be finished.
Related Article: How Do Service Level Agreements (SLAs) Work In Managed IT Services?
An SOW ensures all stakeholders stay in the loop. It prevents things from falling through the cracks, and most importantly, ensures that your project continues moving forward toward a successful completion.
6. Defines customer responsibilities
When working with a client for a one-off project, equipment purchase, or other specialized services or work, we often rely on the customer for many projects we complete.
That’s why all of our SOW’s include a “Customer Deliverables” section. This section of the SOW clearly defines the customer’s responsibilities.
This helps ensure that both sides take ownership of the project and have an equal stake in the project and outcomes.
Related Article: 7 Key Reasons MSP Relationships Fail
The customer’s tasks could be something as simple as providing us with an employee’s user credentials, providing us with a key to access a building or on-premises data center, signing off on a change order, or giving final approval to green light the purchase of hardware or software.
Or, it can be something a bit more complex, like shutting down the office for a few hours to allow for an installation or other work to be done.
Regardless of whether the issue is large or small, an SOW is helped when the client provides timely responses and approvals to keep the project moving ahead, avoiding unnecessary delays or other concerns.
The Bottom Line With Using SOWs In Managed IT
After reading this article, you now understand the important role SOWs play in keeping everyone on the same page to ensure that projects stay on track.
Keep in mind that using a statement of work isn’t a universal practice among managed IT providers.
While we know that managed IT services isn’t right for every business, if you are evaluating MSPs, find out if they use SOWs.
If not, this could be a red flag to indicate poor project management and oversight, potentially leading to confusion over the project scope, unexpected downtime, costly mistakes, project delays, budget overruns, or unmet expectations.
After all, the customer and MSP are in this together. So, it makes sense that collaboration and communication are key to a successful project outcome.
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Whether you need help with a one-time, customized project or you're looking for proactive managed IT services near you and responsive technical support, we’re here to help.
