Managed services is a sector that’s growing rapidly – according to a MarketsAndMarkets metric, managed services will grow from a global value of USD 223bn in 2020 to USD 329bn to 2025. This is clearly outsize growth, which indicates the growing popularity of outsourcing IT – for businesses large and small.

But why is managed IT embraced by so many companies around the world – and at such a scale? In this article we will look at some of the various benefits of managed IT services, showing why, when seeking IT support London companies often choose managed services.

We also cover some of the things you should watch out for when hiring managed IT services and point to a possible compromise that may fit companies that have unique IT requirements: augmenting in-house IT with managed services.

Why managed IT support delivers benefits

The benefits of using managed IT compared to provisioning technology in-house reach across a range of areas. Cost is often mentioned first, but your managed IT partner also brings better expertise to the table – and that expertise can bring big benefits to the bottom line. Let’s take a look.

Managed services reduce costs

When looking for IT support London companies often decide to opt for managed IT simply because of the clear cost advantages of using managed services. Managed IT service providers simply operate at a level of efficiency that internal teams struggle to match. This brings costs savings in three key areas:

• Lower infrastructure costs. It is common for managed IT providers to now offer infrastructure as a service (IaaS) which means that your company no longer needs to host expensive physical equipment on its on premises.

  And even if you are still using on-premises equipment, managed IT providers can help you make use of your equipment more efficiently, including by performing pro-active maintenance that voids problems.

• Staffing costs. Again, managed IT service providers simply have access to more efficiency thanks to the scale at which managed IT operates. As a result, the cost per labour-hour is lower.

  In contrast, in-house teams often require a larger than necessary number of team members to cover all the required skills. When considering IT support London companies can also find that outsourced providers can position staff where salaries are lower.

• Physical space. Managed IT can help your company save money in two areas. First, by moving physical infrastructure offsite you simply do not require the floorspace for storing and running equipment and likewise for any backup and maintenance tools.

  Next, managed IT means that you employ fewer people. For some companies that can imply a substantial reduction in headcount – and hence a large reduction in expensive physical footprint.

Cost is without a doubt one of the biggest reasons why managed IT is a good choice for many businesses, but it does not come down to cost alone.

Bringing more skills to the table

We pointed out above that it can be expensive to hire a large enough number of IT workers in your office to make sure every skill is covered. Realistically, internal teams will almost always have skills gaps. Here is why it helps if you hire managed IT to plug that gap:

• Faster problem resolution. An external provider can more rapidly fix problems simply because they have likely come across it before. With hundreds of clients a managed IT provider can troubleshoot more effectively by relying on past experience.

  Internal teams can struggle to equally rapidly solve problems simply because they do not have the case experience to match managed services expertise.

• Wider services scope. Your internal team may not be able to perform some required functions – and it may leave your business without key functionality or lagging its competitors.

  A managed services provider in contrast will deliver a comprehensive solution – and there will not be a need to hire additional help on an ad-hoc basis. In other words, a managed services partner can be a one-stop shop.

• Value-added services. Finally, this is perhaps one of the key ways in which managed services deliver benefits. Your technology partner can act as a business consultant: helping you manage spend decisions and optimizing resources.

  What’s more, your managed services partner can also help you to take advantage of the latest developments in technology – going as far as becoming a digital transformation partner.

Clearly, managed services expertise can deliver above and beyond the expertise that companies can realistically expect to acquire internally. Yes, it is true that internal teams are in closer proximity to a business – but a good managed services partner will build a close relationship with your business, and in turn become as familiar with your unique needs and requirements as your internal staff.

Augmenting your in-house team

In some cases companies are unable to fully outsource IT. It may be due to substantial prior investment in internal teams, unique technology requirements – or a compliance or regulatory barrier.

Companies that have unique IT requirements should not see in-house vs. managed as an either/or question. Instead, why not harness the advantages of managed IT by combining it with your in-house team? An augmented arrangement can bring the benefits of both worlds.

That said, purely on a cost, expertise and efficiency basis fully managed IT services remains the better choice and that’s why for IT support London companies turn to managed providers such as HTL to deliver value-driven, reliable technology solutions.