Managed Service Providers (MSPs) offer remote managed IT services for businesses. Rather than hiring an onsite IT tech, a business can choose to hire an MSP to manage their day-to-day IT operations and forego the expense of having an additional FTE. Relationships with MSPs are often uniquely customized to the customers’ needs. In this article, we provide an inside look into the relationship between an MSP (AngelCom) and one of their longtime customers, Palace Law.
About 27 years ago, Palace Law recognized that their personal injury law firm required specific technology solutions to ensure the security of their case information and to optimize the day-to-day tech needs of the business. At the time their needs fell into three main areas of concern: Security with daily maintenance of systems, remote help desk capabilities, and scalable solutions for their growing business.
Take a look at how AngelCom created a tailored IT solution to best fit the technology concerns of Palace Law.
Security and Daily Maintenance of Systems
One of Palace Law’s core values is to be a trustworthy partner to their clients, and a key element of that trust is to ensure client privilege and the protection of personal information. To ensure this, AngelCom created a solution to maintain the privacy of sensitive client information. As hacking attempts get more sophisticated every day, the security experts at AngelCom monitor this system around-the-clock to uncover any new weaknesses.
As with any security system, not all threats can be readily identified, and not every business has the same needs. This is why AngelCom’s sophisticated backup and recovery system is so valuable to businesses like Palace Law. Should something happen, the tailored recovery technology AngelCom customized for Palace Law assures efficient data recovery with the least amount of downtime.
Remote Help Desk
A help desk is a centralized point of contact within an MSP to aid and support its customers who are experiencing technical issues, questions, or problems with various IT issues. It is an important function for any MSP-customer relationship, and provides timely and effective solutions to these problems, helping users overcome obstacles and continue their work smoothly.
The user helpdesk has served a critical role for Palace Law as they don’t have to manage every IT inquiry. Instead, a user comes directly to AngelCom for assistance. AngelCom employs specialized software with a ticketing system allowing them to track AngelCom’s progress on their ticket. When talking directly to Patrick Palace, owner and attorney at Palace Law, he stated “I appreciate knowing our staff’s technical issues are resolved efficiently, minimizing their disruptions related to their technology and allowing them to be most productive during a work day. AngelCom’s remote help desk support has been a key component to our relationship and has saved us countless hours of downtime.”
A Scalable System
Another important part of AngelCom’s MSP program is their ability to scale services to meet the needs of the customer at that moment. As their client base continues to grow, scalability of services is a crucial element for Palace Law because it refers to the ability of the company to handle increased workload without sacrificing performance, efficiency, or quality. In essence, AngelCom’s scalable IT solutions can expand operations while maintaining or even improving overall effectiveness. For example, scalability in an MSP relationship can include simple tasks like situating new employees with hardware setup and access to the VPN, or more complex projects such as setting up a Voice Over Internet Protocol (VoIP) business plan to replace an outdated phone system.
Palace recalls the simplicity of IT setup when it came time to open a new office location. “Not only did AngelCom suggest which hardware to purchase, they helped us purchase that hardware through their vendor relationships. Our VoIP system and VPN were already in place as scalable systems, so it was up to the AngelCom techs to integrate the Oregon office into the technology system we employed in our Washington offices.”
AngelCom’s owner and President, Jeremy Brabham, explains why scalability is one of the most important services provided by an MSP. “This year alone, we’ve had a number of new customers contact us because their Windows server reached the end of its lifecycle, and not receiving security updates. Not only did it make their system vulnerable, but many experienced incompatibilities with new programs or devices. It’s really a nightmare if you’re not planning for that. Luckily, since we knew Palace Law’s servers were reaching the end of their lifecycle, we had a plan in place to upgrade them to Microsoft 365 for Business. Server decommissioning isn’t a big deal if you plan for it, which is our job.”
Is Hiring a Managed Service Provider Right for Me?
Hiring an IT Managed Service Provider (MSP) can be a strategic decision for your business. Every business has unique needs, there’s no one-size-fits-all solution. First, consider if outsourcing IT will allow you to focus on core activities and the growth of your business. If so, then hiring an MSP might be a good fit. Carefully evaluate your specific circumstances and IT needs to ensure you know what services you are specifically looking for. AngelCom offers free IT consultations and technical reviews of your current systems to help you make more informed decisions for your business.