Types of MSP
In the world of IT Managed Service Provider (MSP) there are many categories of services provided. These services include website development, application development, server provisioning, database server provisioning, desktop management and so on. A Managed Service Provider is a small business unit providing such services to client companies and end users. The word ‘Managed Service’ itself indicates a team or a group of people who work on projects to provide these services. The word ‘Service’ in the context of this article implies the provisioning of resources for users. Resources are anything that can be used by a user.
There are many types of providers of these Managed Service Providers like network managed service providers, managed print providers, managed systems integrators, managed systems developers, managed systems technicians, managed service distributors and so on. Each of these categories of providers has its own strengths and weaknesses as well. A network managed service provider is responsible for the maintenance of the internal network of a company. The providers of this service may include network designers, programmers, technical experts and network support professionals. They have to work closely with the management in order to deliver continuous performance and quality.
On the other hand, a managed service provider in the context of the above mentioned context is the one who provides the services to the end-user companies in the form of software. There are many advantages of hiring a managed service provider. The major advantage is that there is only one administrator who has to monitor the whole system and take decisions on any given scenario. This leaves a lot of time available for the employees to focus on other productivity enhancing jobs. Another important advantage of hiring a managed service provider is that the company is saved from having to install various programs for the smooth functioning of the company. There are certain software programs that can run without installation, but most of these programs are complicated and need an installation in order to run properly.
With the help of a managed service provider, an MSP also gets the opportunity to concentrate on his or her core responsibilities and concentrate more on their clients. The managed service provider has the choice of selecting its clients very carefully. Clients can choose between
- telecoms operators
- retail giants
- software development companies
- media organizations
- engineering firms
- multinationals and so on.
A company can select its clients based on the size of its business and based on the kind of services it provides.
Apart from this, it has been observed that companies tend to save a lot of money if they avail the managed services. It is because they do not have to spend a lot of money on buying hardware and installing it. Apart from this, the company does not have to spend a lot of money on break-fixing and on paying the engineers and technicians for providing the managed services.
As a result, the cost of the project decreases and the time taken to get the job done decreases as well. One of the most important benefits offered by the managed service providers is the data security provided by them. This is because most of the companies who make use of cloud services do not have any data security requirements and hence they find the use of such managed services very beneficial.
Another great benefit provided by the managed service provider is that it provides uninterrupted internet connection. An MSP ensures that its customers always get reliable connection. This is because it always keeps an updated and an up-to-date list of all the clients who have accessed the internet using its cloud platform and it constantly keeps track of the bandwidth usage of each and every client. This ensures that the cloud platform remains fast and never gets overloaded and one is able to access the internet at a much higher speed than the normal rate.
Another great advantage provided by the in-house MSP is that the in-house team offers the chance to test the functionality of new features that an MSP might be introducing into its cloud platform. For example, if a new mobile app is going to be launched and if it requires logging in of the user from a different device to test its compatibility with the various mobiles – the in-house MSP will ensure that this task is completed without any problem. In fact, it takes care of all the tedious and time-consuming part of the testing process itself and the company does not need to spend more than what is necessary in the first place. Hence, the benefits that the users get from using an MSP far outweigh the disadvantages that are attached with it.
