Do Not Outsource Your Whole IT Staff - Just Get Help on the Tough Stuff With Managed Network Service

New technology is wonderful for companies. It allows users to be more effective, provides cost savings, and keeps the business ahead of their competitors by allowing them to provide better customer service. Experienced network administrators, however, know that the more advanced technology gets the harder it is to keep it working properly. Managed network services can provide the necessary support.

Companies expect to hire consultants to design, deploy, and train them on new technology. They are also used to buying yearly support contracts for manufacturer's support on software or hardware. What is usually left to the Information Technology staff is the knowledge and capability to know how the system works together. What organizations are starting to figure out is that the ongoing support requires a higher level of knowledge and experience than internal Information Technology staff usually possess.

That is why there is such a large move toward hosted Information Technology services. The hosted application providers have an excellent point in their marketing that it requires advanced skills to support advanced systems.

What is often not discussed is that having outsourced applications means that a company's internal network has to be even more reliable and secure while operating at a higher level than ever. It demands a lot of skill and experience to be able to support today's advanced LAN's and WAN's, especially when they are running converged applications like voice and video over them, while keeping everything secure.

Due to these advanced operational requirements, many organizations have started using a managed network service to assist them in maintaining their advanced data networks in the best working condition. It is tempting to hand off the responsibility for the whole network to a large organization 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 a person on site for local troubleshooting, they are not able to handle it.

Most companies would prefer 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 find out what they are really good at, and inquire if they partner with other local providers for different aspects of support. Another alternative is to contract 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 organization's Information Technology staff. Manufacturer support on products is still important. The manufacturer's support most often includes product upgrades, phone and/or email technical support, and product replacement within either a 4 hour or next business day timeframe. This is a necessary element of maintaining system uptime.

When engaging managed network services providers for additional support, check their references carefully, make sure all costs, services, and expectations are agreed upon in writing up front. Moreover, make sure there is an option to cancel the agreement within a reasonable timeframe.

For an example of a local company providing managed network services, look at this Cisco managed services description.