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How to Pick A Remote IT Support: 6 Things You Should Know

 

Over the past two years, we have lived through more changes and challenges than usual. Of course, this has impacted businesses all over the country, with more of them than before reaching for the cost-saving opportunities offered by outsourcing their IT support. 

However, the benefits of IT support outsourcing go far beyond cost savings. The great remote IT support providers offer their expertise at a fraction of a cost of an in-house IT staff while freeing you up to concentrate on your core business activities. The best of them will also play a key role in accelerating the digital transformation of your business, better preparing you for any curve balls that may come your way in the future.    

With hundreds of pages of search results for “remote IT support,” how do you find a provider you can trust? We have provided remote IT support services for two decades, and here are our six best tips on picking your outsourced IT support provider. 

 

How Experienced Are They?

The first question to ask the candidates is, how long have they been in the game, what credentials and accreditations they carry, and what examples of their work can they provide. Credible experience helps solve problems faster, anticipate risks and proactively mitigate them, and forecast your IT needs before they arise. Your IT support provider should be able to verify their experience and be able to verbalize their strategies and approach to difficult situations with examples. This leads us to the next point…

 

Can They Write Code, Not Just Plug—Unplug? 

“Have you tried switching it off and back on?” This question is a running gag describing the response of too many support representatives. Of course, a reboot may really be all you need to restart a frozen system or install a necessary software update that stalls your work. But if your IT needs and challenges go beyond the most basic tech and include cloud or in-house servers or custom applications, the ability of your IT support provider to fix bugs and tell those devices what to do becomes critical.  

 

How Responsive Are They?

When your whole network crashes at 6 PM on a Friday, you don’t want to sit on hold for hours listening to “Your call is very important to us.” You want your IT support provider to answer to pick up at night, on weekends, on holidays; in other words, 24/7/365. We will admit, this is a lot to ask of working humans and also a reason why not every IT support provider will offer you such a level of service. You may be confident that providers who commit to it are also proactive at prevention and mitigation of any risks and challenges (after all, it’s in their best interest), so you will likely have fewer of those.  

 

How Secure Are Their Networks?

Remote IT support provider will be accessing your networks remotely or, in case of an MSP, will host your entire network on its servers. Of course, you don’t want any cyberthreats creeping into your network from IT support. How do you secure your networks? and What do you do to protect our networks when you provide support? are two good questions to ask the candidates. 

 

Do They Comply With Regulations? 

The outsourced IT support firm will work closely with your company’s data which may include sensitive financial and/or customer data. With the number of cyberattacks growing exponentially, handling such data is regulated more and more strictly. Make sure to check that your remote IT support provider is accredited to handle diverse information management systems and networks. The right data security management for businesses should offer full redundancy and IT disaster recovery services.

 

Do They Share Your Values? 

Finally, when choosing your remote IT support, you want to ensure their ways of working and values match those of your business. Do you expect responses to emails within 24 hours? Do you practice proactive risk management and transparency in discussion, or formal reporting and management memos? Do you use knowledge and project management tools that your IT support provider should be onboarded on? Discussing these values up-front helps avoid mismatched expectations and miscommunication, and leads to a productive and efficient collaboration. 

 

So, are you ready to schedule your first remote IT support provider interview and find out how much you can save? Schedule your FREE 30-minute consultation with 3nom, the leading East Coast IT support provider today. 

 

 

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