Comments on: Managed Services Blend With Corporate IT Departments http://www.mspmentor.net/2009/08/10/managed-services-blend-with-corporate-it-departments/ Managed Services & Cloud Services Blog for VARs & MSPs Tue, 14 Feb 2012 23:41:40 +0000 hourly 1 http://wordpress.org/?v=3.3.1 By: Lane Smith http://www.mspmentor.net/2009/08/10/managed-services-blend-with-corporate-it-departments/comment-page-1/#comment-49605 Lane Smith Tue, 11 Aug 2009 21:43:52 +0000 http://www.mspmentor.net/?p=3488#comment-49605 Ahh ok, that makes a bit more since. I am very excited to see Autotask announce their Taskfire solution. This is something that we have been doing with our IT Service Management tool for many years, and has certainly won us a lot of business over the competition. If you are not doing this then you need to. Why would an IT department partner with an MSP that uses a completely different service management platform than them. Without this there is no one central view of IT issues which is one of the many value ads of partnering with an MSP. Ahh ok, that makes a bit more since. I am very excited to see Autotask announce their Taskfire solution. This is something that we have been doing with our IT Service Management tool for many years, and has certainly won us a lot of business over the competition. If you are not doing this then you need to. Why would an IT department partner with an MSP that uses a completely different service management platform than them. Without this there is no one central view of IT issues which is one of the many value ads of partnering with an MSP.

]]> By: Joe Panettieri http://www.mspmentor.net/2009/08/10/managed-services-blend-with-corporate-it-departments/comment-page-1/#comment-49604 Joe Panettieri Tue, 11 Aug 2009 19:48:43 +0000 http://www.mspmentor.net/?p=3488#comment-49604 Hey Lane: I realize quite a few MSPs work closely with corporate IT. But it looks like the next step, described by Waka Digital Media Corp., involves blending MSP tools with corporate IT tools so that everyone is working from the same playbook. Side note: I like your term "co-source IT partner" Hey Lane: I realize quite a few MSPs work closely with corporate IT. But it looks like the next step, described by Waka Digital Media Corp., involves blending MSP tools with corporate IT tools so that everyone is working from the same playbook.

Side note: I like your term “co-source IT partner”

]]> By: Lane Smith http://www.mspmentor.net/2009/08/10/managed-services-blend-with-corporate-it-departments/comment-page-1/#comment-49603 Lane Smith Tue, 11 Aug 2009 19:11:20 +0000 http://www.mspmentor.net/?p=3488#comment-49603 I am actually surprised to see that this article is news. I don't believe that an MSP should ever represent themselves as a 100% IT outsource solution. There are two main reasons for this. 1. If you do this you alienate any internal IT that your prospects might have and generally eliminate them as a prospect. 2. No one can every provide a truly 100% outsource IT solution. The reason for this is simple, the customer will always have to be a part of their IT solution whether it is just a strategic role or a hands on role (in the case where they have internal IT). We generally coach our partners to represent themselves as a strategic IT partner for their customers. While capable of providing the majority of their IT requirements to suggest any agreement requires a partnership and not an outsource. Interestingly the value proposition to a company with no internal IT and a company with an internal IT is very similar. No Internal IT - "Provide a stable and secure environment coupled with immediate support to increase your employee productivity and allow you to focus on your business". With an Internal IT - Same value to the owners, but to the IT people. "We handle all of the day-to-day so that you can increase your IT staff productivity and focus on your business (by focusing on strategic IT initiatives vs. putting out fires)." One term that I have used with a few partners that seems to fit this is, a "co-source IT partner". I am actually surprised to see that this article is news. I don’t believe that an MSP should ever represent themselves as a 100% IT outsource solution. There are two main reasons for this.

1. If you do this you alienate any internal IT that your prospects might have and generally eliminate them as a prospect.
2. No one can every provide a truly 100% outsource IT solution. The reason for this is simple, the customer will always have to be a part of their IT solution whether it is just a strategic role or a hands on role (in the case where they have internal IT).

We generally coach our partners to represent themselves as a strategic IT partner for their customers. While capable of providing the majority of their IT requirements to suggest any agreement requires a partnership and not an outsource.

Interestingly the value proposition to a company with no internal IT and a company with an internal IT is very similar.

No Internal IT – “Provide a stable and secure environment coupled with immediate support to increase your employee productivity and allow you to focus on your business”.

With an Internal IT – Same value to the owners, but to the IT people. “We handle all of the day-to-day so that you can increase your IT staff productivity and focus on your business (by focusing on strategic IT initiatives vs. putting out fires).”

One term that I have used with a few partners that seems to fit this is, a “co-source IT partner”.

]]> By: Paul Barnett http://www.mspmentor.net/2009/08/10/managed-services-blend-with-corporate-it-departments/comment-page-1/#comment-49600 Paul Barnett Tue, 11 Aug 2009 13:18:57 +0000 http://www.mspmentor.net/?p=3488#comment-49600 A smart play Jacob. Paul Barnett Virtual Administrator A smart play Jacob.

Paul Barnett
Virtual Administrator

]]> By: Peter Sandiford http://www.mspmentor.net/2009/08/10/managed-services-blend-with-corporate-it-departments/comment-page-1/#comment-49594 Peter Sandiford Mon, 10 Aug 2009 18:15:28 +0000 http://www.mspmentor.net/?p=3488#comment-49594 Collaboration between MSPs, end customers and other specialized services providers is one of the big trends in the evolution of the managed services business. Level Platforms addresses this in a number of ways. 1. Extensive point and click assignment of roles and permissions allowing complete allocation of tasks and views all consolidated on the dashboard of the administrator. 2. Complete synchronization of PSA (Autotask, Connectwise, Tiger Paw etc.) and corporate or NOC help desk systems so that alerts and cases can be handled by any service provider with updated cases and alerts all linked through our extensive two way API integrations. 3. Free extra Service Center licenses to all new MSPs encouraging them to deploy the Service Center to provide Managed Workplace to larger partners as their internal IT management system allowing the MSP to have access to the devices and applications they sell and support as well as generate revenues for licensing and supporting the system as well as great insight into new customer opportunities. Level Platforms Partners have been deploying this model for almost two years and welcome the added additional opportunity made possible as the PSA products join us in this exciting market opportunity. Peter Sandiford www.levelplatforms.com Collaboration between MSPs, end customers and other specialized services providers is one of the big trends in the evolution of the managed services business. Level Platforms addresses this in a number of ways.

1. Extensive point and click assignment of roles and permissions allowing complete allocation of tasks and views all consolidated on the dashboard of the administrator.

2. Complete synchronization of PSA (Autotask, Connectwise, Tiger Paw etc.) and corporate or NOC help desk systems so that alerts and cases can be handled by any service provider with updated cases and alerts all linked through our extensive two way API integrations.

3. Free extra Service Center licenses to all new MSPs encouraging them to deploy the Service Center to provide Managed Workplace to larger partners as their internal IT management system allowing the MSP to have access to the devices and applications they sell and support as well as generate revenues for licensing and supporting the system as well as great insight into new customer opportunities.

Level Platforms Partners have been deploying this model for almost two years and welcome the added additional opportunity made possible as the PSA products join us in this exciting market opportunity.

Peter Sandiford
http://www.levelplatforms.com

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