In-House IT is a Thing of the Past
In the old days, most small to mid-sized businesses (SMBs) operated with a single person acting as their in-house IT department. They’d teach everyone how to use Excel, download new software to different computers and set up access for new employees. They did everything in-house to keep your office running and they did a pretty good job of it.
But in today’s modern business world, ‘can-do-everything’ IT guys are like unicorns. Sure, they might exist somewhere out there in the world but because there are so few professionals that are experts in every aspect of IT, they might as well be an urban legend.
That’s why in-house IT is a thing of the past – a relic from a bygone era. And there are several reasons why they’re no longer relevant.
In-House IT is Expensive
According to ZipRecruiter, the annual average salary is $45K for an IT technician, $54K for an IT specialist and $106K for an IT director. That means to carry a dedicated in-house IT team can run at least $200K each year. That’s a heavy hit to the payroll of an SMB. And this doesn’t even include their benefits, the cost of onboarding them or the cost of the space and equipment assigned to them. Plus, if any of them leave your company and you don’t already have a replacement, you’re looking at a lot of overtime or bringing in a contractor to fulfill their duties until you hire someone new.
You’re Probably Counting on a Single Person
Due to the crippling cost of bankrolling an entire IT team in-house, a lot of SMBs depend on a single person to handle all of their IT. That means that one person is responsible for everything – the physical installation of the network infrastructure, maintaining the functionality of the operational applications, cybersecurity, employee access, data backup & recovery and IT strategic planning. That’s a lot to put on a single person. But even if you have that rare unicorn that can handle all of that, what happens if they leave the company. Then there’s no one else that knows the ins and outs of your network.
Their Experience Level is Lower Than What You Need
As we’ve already discussed, the ‘can-do-everything’ IT guys are a thing of the past. There’s simply too much knowledge for one person to retain considering the various types of software, hardware, applications, programs and networks. So if your tech comes across an issue she’s not familiar with, you’re looking at significant downtime and loss of productivity. And it’s rare that SMBs can afford to support continual training for their IT team.
Availability isn’t Always an Option
Just like most other employees, the folks in the IT department are only working 40 hours a week, five days a week. That means there’s whole lot of time when no one’s available if an issue comes up. Another challenge with having an in-house IT team is that they get the same perks you do. So what do you do when someone is on vacation or one of them is out with COVID-19? Unless you’re willing to pay overtime to the other team members or hire a temporary contractor, you’re going to be short-staffed and losing productivity.
Managed IT is the Complete Solution
Hiring a managed IT service provider (MSP) is the solution to all of these problems:
- They’re a lot less expensive. Monthly subscription rates are typically less that what you pay for even the cheapest IT tech on the market.
- They provide you with a dedicated team. Consider what you can accomplish with an entire team of IT professionals focused on your individual needs.
- They’re experienced. Each MSP tech specializes in different concentrations in order to balance the work load and since they work with many different clients across multiple industries, they’re able to recognize and solve more complex and unusual problems.
- They’re always available. No matter the time of day or the day of the week, MSPs are available 24/7/365 with a team dedicated to help you with any issue you have.
