New technology is necessary for organizations. It lets users be more effective, provides cost savings, and keeps the company ahead of their competitors by giving them the ability to provide better customer service. Experienced network administrators, however, know that the more capable technology gets the more difficult it is to keep it running. Managed network services can provide the necessary support.
Organizations expect to hire consultants to design, deploy, and train them on new systems. They are also used to buying yearly maintenance for manufacturer’s support on software or hardware. What is normally left to the Information Technology staff is the knowledge and capability to know how the system works together. What businesses are starting to figure out is that the ongoing support requires a higher level of knowledge and experience than internal Information Technology staff typically possess.
That is why there is such a large move toward hosted Information Technology services. The hosted application providers have a good point in their marketing that it requires advanced skills to operate advanced systems.
What is usually not mentioned is that having outsourced applications means that a company’s internal network has to be even more robust and secure while operating at a higher level than before. It demands a lot of skill and experience to be able to support today’s complex LAN’s and WAN’s, especially when they are running converged applications like voice and video over them, while keeping everything secure.
Because of these advanced operational requirements, many organizations are using a managed network service to help them in maintaining their advanced data networks in optimum working condition. It is tempting to hand over the responsibility for the entire network to a big service provider that will promise to take care of any issues. Unfortunately, since many of these organizations offer remote support only, when it comes time for design, deployment, or getting someone on site for local issue resolution, they are not able to handle it.
Most businesses would like to work with a local managed network service provider, for many of the same reasons that people use local businesses for other services they contract out. To get good quality managed services from local providers, it is best to determine what they specialize in, and ask them if they partner with other local providers for different aspects of support. Another possibility is to work with a local provider who resells and provides local on site services for a larger service provider.
Think of these local providers as an extension of the business’s Information Technology staff. Manufacturer support on products is still necessary. The manufacturer’s support typically includes product upgrades, phone and/or email technical support, and hardware replacement within either a 4 hour or next business day timeframe. This is a necessary part of maintaining system uptime.
When evaluating managed network services providers for additional support, check their references with care, ensure all costs, services, and expectations are agreed upon in writing up front. Moreover, make sure there is a clause to cancel the contract within a reasonable timeframe.
Look at this Cisco managed services description from a managed network services provider.
