Outsourced IT support services or in-house? What SMEs need to consider

For your SME, there comes a point where the common questions around keeping things in-house, or outsourcing IT support services with a managed service provider (MSP), are asked.

“How can our teams save time?”

“Where can we manage our resources better?”

“How can we cut costs?”

“We’re growing, so we need to scale our IT services – but how?”

“Do we keep things in-house, or are we ready to outsource some aspects?”

Picking the right choice is vital for successful scaling and the business’s bottom line.  But as is often the case with your investments in your business, there isn’t a one size fits all approach.

The long and short of it is, there are pros and cons to both. And we’re here to shine some light on these for you.

In-house or outsourcing IT services: what’s best for you?

Let’s get familiar with what in-house and outsourced IT services are.

An in-house IT service does what it says on the tin. You’ll have an IT team, employed by your business, working onsite or remotely, there to manage systems and tackle any challenges.

Outsourced IT support services differ. IT functions are run by a third party, either wholly or specifically tailored to support areas of in-house service.

It’s common for SMEs to have a good balance; a strong in-house IT service, but also specific components like cyber security, hosting, and server solutions provided through outsourced IT services.

When thinking what model would work best for you, you’ll need to consider things like current infrastructure, costs and resource management, expertise, compliance and legislation, and scalability. Let’s look in more depth at what the pros and cons of each are.

Managing IT services in-house – pros and cons

There are plenty of strong reasons why you might want to keep core components of your IT function in-house, such as:

Response time

Availability and support on site, where staff can tend to an issue immediately. Quick response times limit downtime with problems resolved quickly.

Infrastructure knowledge

Your team are solutions architects, with a deep understanding of existing infrastructure. By outsourcing, you may feel as though you are handing the keys over to a team without as much knowledge about your systems.

Autonomy

You have control over your staff, and complete autonomy of your IT operations, should you wish to make any changes to structure.

But an in-house IT service comes with negatives that you need to think about, too:

Cost

There are high costs with in-house employment that add up: onboarding, additional office space, and having an entire in-house team including their salaries, benefits, sick leave and annual leave. There are training costs to keep pace with the latest technology, and the time and cost of replacing skilled staff should they leave. Sometimes in-house simply can’t compete with the cheaper cost of outsourcing IT services.

Resource

A purely in-house team can be stretched. With limited staff trying to focus on all IT functions, sometimes the attention to detail can be lost, or strategically important work can be delayed. It can feel like spinning plates, especially for SMEs.

Scalability

For SMEs that are trying to scale, you can feel limited in what can be achieved. There may be a lack of resources to support scaling up, or the team may lack the required knowledge to map and carry out scalability. Many cloud-based SaaS technologies for businesses are built with flexibility in mind, but still require a level of expertise to ensure you can get that value.

Outsourced IT support services – pros and cons

There are a few standout benefits of managed IT services for SMEs. These include:

Cost efficiency

Paying a monthly fee for key components can help you save money in the long run. No additional expenses like salary bonuses, office space and hardware, or company benefits.

Expertise

When you’re taking the next steps, there are quite a few things to worry about. That’s where the experts can help take stress away. A good managed services provider, or MSP, does more than just fix problems. Outsourcing IT services gives your teams the flexibility to focus on successful implementation.

Outsourcing IT help desk services

Having outsourced support of this nature can take the pressure off your in-house team, freeing up resources to carry out other tasks at hand.

Outsourced IT support services do come with potential compromises that you’ll need to consider.

Lack of availability on-site

Unless you’re signed up for onsite support, in certain situations, that office convenience can be lost, as you can’t simply spin your chair around to ask about something that needs to be attended to. That’s where a combination of in-house and managed services as a bolt on to your team is important – or an MSP that prides itself on speedy, personalised support.

Longer response times

You’ll need to factor in that some outsourced tickets will take longer to resolve than reaching out to an in-house team in person – though that’s assuming, of course, that your in-house team has the capacity and capability to resolve them. Again, this is where your choice of MSP will be critical.

While outsourced IT support services do pose questions, talking through these with a potential partner can go a long way to ensuring you get a service tailored to your expectations.

What outsourced IT services can an MSP provide?

Additional external resources could really go a long way to taking away the growing strain on your already stretched team, and the daunting components of scaling up really aren’t going away. The right MSP can help you discover what is required, while designing a support service that meets your specific needs.

Let’s look at what a partnership with Thinc could support you with.

Managing infrastructure

Many MSPs will provide access to high-performance hosting of your critical services, in a stable environment, managed by experts. Our managed IT services customers benefit from long-term cost savings, and long-term security. Everything is in its right place, with complete transparency around costs.

Sustainability

As more SMEs grapple with maintaining peak efficiency, we pride ourselves on environmental initiatives as part of our service.

Our managed cloud offerings include public cloud through Azure, which Microsoft has committed to basing 100% on renewable energy by 2025. We also offer our own privately hosted Thinc Cloud, for which we have a series of environmental accreditations, such as ISO 14001 for Environmental Management and ISO 15001 for Energy Management.

Data backup

We provide speedy backups in the cloud, with ultimate security to put your mind at ease. You’ll have complete confidence and peace of mind while growing your business, knowing that your data is secure.

Global managed services

If you have ambitions to grow globally, we can help with that too. We have the expertise to take the complexity out of international operations with our consultative approach.

Cyber security

We know the cyber security risks for SMEs. We have the best software, working to the industry standard, with cyber essentials certification. According to the UK government, 70% of medium-sized businesses experienced some form of cyber-attack in the last 12 months. With the number of threats out there, we can take away this additional worry while you focus on scaling.

We can then benchmark these processes against certifications, such as Cyber Essentials.

Why choose Thinc for your outsourced IT services?

We can support with a variety of managed services, helping you to scale correctly and maximise efficiency, with a consultative approach. We work to your needs and style of working. Want to speak to someone over the phone? We’ve got a direct helpline number, so your challenges can be addressed in seconds. Prefer operating through a ticketing system? We have one of those, too.

Whatever best works for you, we support you in the way you want to be supported.

“It can be a challenge for SMEs to scale up their IT. With Thinc, scalability is made easier, and the pressure is taken off your teams.”

Steve Hannon, Business Advisory Consultant, Thinc

We’re a company based on long-term relationships, offering a friendly and collaborative service, and can even provide training to your users on your chosen business solutions. Our people are your people, and paired with decades of experience, it’s all part of what you get by working with us.

For more advice on whether in-house or outsourced IT support services would work better for you, book a conversation with one of our managed services consultants today.