With technology taking the business world by storm in recent years, not everyone has had the chance to steam ahead and become IT experts. With higher numbers of technology users, many organisations are now facing greater cyber risks, difficulty achieving compliance and more potential for issues to arise. Luckily, there are many IT support providers out there to help.
We know that hiring an IT support company is an investment, so it’s important to know what to look out for when choosing your provider.
Before you start your research, we will go through our top things to be looking out for in order to find the best IT support company for you and your business.
What is an IT support service?
An IT support company, or managed service provider, provides dedicated assistance to help clients resolve any technical problems, for example network failures, software glitches or computer issues. IT support services plan for your future technology needs, and manage, maintain and update software and hardware, keeping your systems up to date and safe from potential cyber security risks.
What to look for when choosing an IT support provider
1. Thorough onboarding experience
When starting out with a new IT support provider, having a thorough onboarding process will ensure it’s a smooth transition, and help them to immediately address your needs.
Make sure to check what their onboarding process entails, and their timeline for onboarding new clients. It can involve a lot of information and documentation, but it’s an important step to prevent anything being missed at the beginning.
At Timewade, our onboarding involves taking full ownership of the transition from the incumbent supplier. We liaise with the incumbent on your behalf, and document all systems and processes onsite, so you get to meet your support team in person.
Chances are, you’re moving providers for a reason! Our team knows this, and are prepared for a spike in previously unresolved tickets in the first month of joining us.
2. Dedicated account manager
IT support companies are likely to have a number of clients, each with different wants and needs. Making sure a provider can meet your needs without a ‘cut and paste’ approach is crucial. Your needs will vary depending on the type of organisation, size of your business, IT users, and business goals.
It’s a good idea to ask if they offer a dedicated account manager or consultant. If you will be regularly communicating with your IT support company, then it can be useful to have an individual you are able to build a relationship with, who will know your business and IT needs inside and out. At Timewade, our clients get a dedicated Business Technology Consultant to provide a consistent line of contact, meeting in person every quarter to build a deep understanding of our clients’ needs.
3. Availability and reliability
IT support companies will vary in the timely delivery of their services. It’s important to identify the level of demand you will need with your support in order to find an IT support company that will best fit your needs.
You also want to be confident that the support you’re getting is reliable, and you can count on them getting back to you in your time of need.
A few questions to think about:
- How quickly will you need a response?
- How fast do you need problems to be resolved?
- Will you need onsite, remote support or both?
At Timewade we have a NPS score of 86, and provide both onsite and remote support as standard. Our response times are the best in the business, helping clients to save both money and time.
4. Proactive support
We have touched upon the importance of reactive support, but does the IT support provider you are looking at have the people, processes and tools to proactively reduce the number of issues you face?
Do they have a set of standards that they hold themselves, and you, accountable for? Are they looking for risks to your business and providing a regular in depth view of your systems?
IT support companies need to do more than IT support. They should be working hard to stop you calling in the first place.
At Timewade we demonstrate how we drive down the number of reactive problems leading to better employee engagement, increased functionality, reduced risk, increased profitability and improved cyber security.
5. Onsite presence
Technology can be managed remotely, but we believe that combining technology with reliable, experienced people is what makes a managed service provider top tier. As well as having someone on the end of the phone in case of any issues, having in-person support will ensure you get the best possible customer service, with dedicated time to sit down and talk with your provider.
During your review, ensure that the managed service provider that you’re considering has an embedded process that ensures your team gets to meet their IT team in person.
At Timewade, each client has an onsite visit for a full day every other month, and every member of our Service Desk team will meet your team in person within 12 months of working together. You’ll also be invited to events so you can meet our finance, administration and procurement team in person.
This dedication to customer experience is part of being a true technology partner, rather than simply a supplier.
6. Ownership and supplier liaison
Taking responsibility and ownership of issues is crucial to providing the best customer experience to clients. Reaching out to your IT support desk, only to be placed on hold and passed around numerous team members or even referred to a third party, prevents issues being resolved as quickly and as efficiently as possible.
Will you be chasing suppliers or does the managed service provider have a mechanism to take this off of your hands?
At Timewade we own all technology problems from start to finish, no matter which provider they are with.
We ask customers to call us first when an issue crops up, regardless of who supplies the technology, and take ownership and contact the third party. This means we can ‘talk techie’ to the supplier, then get back to the customer with the solution in plain English.
Our clients regularly leave positive feedback on how our team take ownership of problems, saving time and ensuring the team member knows the issue inside and out.
7. Credibility
Having relevant, up to date, industry leading qualifications and certifications is vital for any managed service provider. Before you partner with a managed service provider, it’s crucial you carry out research to make sure their qualifications are valuable, such as being Microsoft and Cyber Essentials certified
Note how long the company has been in business, as working with a managed service provider who has been in service for many years will ensure they have a tried and tested process, and years of collective experience under their belt.
It’s also worth checking to ensure they look after their team. After all, if their team is happy they will provide a positive service for you, and are more likely to forge long term relationships with your team.
How Timewade are different
At Timewade, we believe it’s important to have a long term strategy which will ensure you get the very best out of technology to achieve your business goals. That’s why we offer a unique approach to technology, offering proactive planning as well as reactive support.
Our managed IT solutions ensure you meet your long-term goals, using our unique strategic methodology to spot any areas of concern, and take action long before potential issues arise. This also means we stay ahead of tech trends, so your organisation can reap the full benefits of your technology solutions.
Find out about our IT support and unique approach to technology strategy by contacting us today.
