Every organization needs some form of IT help. Whether this is a traditional “help desk” or a “service desk” (see below for the difference), you need skilled resources who can deal with your technology needs.
But how should you source this help?
Should you hire staff resources, outsource to a managed IT services provider, or combine both options?
Here’s everything you need to know.
IT help desk vs. service desk
The terms “IT help desk” and “IT service desk” are sometimes used interchangeably, but they’re actually not quite the same. A help desk responds to IT issues in a reactive manner. When something breaks, the help desk responds to fix it.
An IT service desk, on the other hand, takes a more proactive approach. While an IT service desk does cover break/fix scenarios, they also go beyond this, adopting a holistic approach known as ITSM (IT service management).
Smaller organizations can often get away with the IT help desk approach. However, midmarket companies typically have too much complexity in their IT environment. They benefit more from the proactive, comprehensive approach of an IT service desk.
But should you outsource this function? Or can you cover it with staff resources?
Let’s unpack that.
Why outsource your IT help desk or service desk?
Midmarket companies are increasingly outsourcing their IT support. This could be a fully managed scenario if the company has no IT staff or a co-managed relationship in which the provider works alongside their IT staff. In either scenario, outsourcing offers certain benefits that you can’t get without the assistance of a partner.
1. Broad perspective and strategic expertise
IT is far more than just the traditional help desk. You’ll never break out of that “react” mode without a strategic perspective. You’ll always be blindsided by new trends and required technology investments.
Without outsourcing, there’s also the danger of getting tunnel vision. If your organization has always done things a certain way, and that way isn’t optimal, you may never know how good things could be.
An outsourced provider solves these issues. Having worked with many clients in numerous industries, they’ve seen what works and what doesn’t. They can also help you stay ahead of your technology requirements, so you take a proactive, strategic approach—rather than scrambling to respond to break/fix situations.
2. Value for the money
Simply put, an outsourced IT service desk gives you more bang for your buck.
If you can only hire one or two staff resources, you can only cover so many of your needs. It’s far better to hire an entire 24/7/365 team for the same amount—and that’s what you get with an outsourced approach to IT.
3. Continuity of service and knowledge
Knowledge management is challenging when your team members churn frequently. If you don’t have strong documentation processes in place, or if people aren’t following those processes, you can get burned when key staff members leave.
An outsourced IT service desk solves this problem. Your provider takes full responsibility for the continuity of service and knowledge within the team that serves your organization.
4. No HR overhead
Every staff hire comes with a certain amount of HR overhead, both in the onboarding process and continually. This overhead is justified when a staff hire is the best choice for the organization. But in many cases, outsourcing allows a company to get the IT help desk support they need—without the hassle and operational cost of staff hiring.
Potential pitfalls of IT service desk outsourcing
Not all IT companies are created equal. Your experience may vary depending on the provider’s billing model, their expertise, and how much they value you (or don’t) as a customer.
Here are the main things to watch out for. (Hint: Corsica solves each of these problems—but we’ll get to that.)
- Unpredictable billing. Unfortunately, some IT help desk companies bill on a consumption-based model. If you need significant help one month, you’ll pay far more than you did the previous month. This makes it difficult to budget for your service desk needs.
- Inexperienced technicians. Some service desk providers try to squeeze more margin from their customers by spending less on salaries. You may end up working with technicians who don’t have the experience to deal with complex issues or challenging systems.
- Lack of prioritization. If you’re working with a major national IT service desk company, chances are, they have some pretty big customers. They may give those customers the bulk of their attention, leaving you behind. Yet every company deserves the full attention of their provider.
- Can’t help you with EDI or data integration. If you use EDI, you know how essential it is for transacting with your trading partners. A business will stop if your EDI system goes down. This technology is just as important as your employees’ computers—yet most IT service desk companies won’t touch EDI due to how specialized it is. This leaves you working with multiple partners and triaging problems between them.
- They outsource cybersecurity to a third party. IT and cybersecurity have converged into one discipline, yet not every service desk provider treats them that way. Some claim to offer cybersecurity services, but they actually outsource them to another provider who only handles alerts—not remediation. This arrangement typically leaves the client holding the bag.
Clearly, there’s plenty to watch out for as you evaluate help desk providers. But what positive traits should you look for?
5 signs of a great outsourced IT provider
Here’s everything you should demand in an IT service desk company. (Hint: We offer all this and more here at Corsica.)
- 100% predictable monthly billing. Your monthly help desk bill should be so predictable, that you can build your budget around it. That’s what we offer here at Corsica Technologies.
- Experienced technicians who really care. We don’t skimp in our hiring practices. We only hire experienced technicians with great empathy and people skills. Our team becomes part of your team—and you’ll depend on us every day.
- Focused on midmarket companies. We don’t have bigger fish to fry. Our service delivery infrastructure is optimized to work with midmarket companies, whether we’re managing everything ourselves or working alongside your team.
- Can handle EDI and data integration. This one is really special. We handle EDI and B2B data integration in addition to standard IT and cybersecurity responsibilities. If your organization depends on EDI, or if you need to launch EDI to work with an important trading partner, you can bundle those services with everything else we do.
- Wouldn’t dream of outsourcing cybersecurity. We believe that cybersecurity is at the core of everything we do. From IT to EDI to digital transformation, every system needs a strong security approach. This is why we don’t outsource our managed cybersecurity services—and never will.
Moving forward: Getting the help you need with an IT service desk provider
Don’t leave your essential systems or your business to chance. An IT service desk provider gives you all the value of a staff IT team—with the added bonus of strategic perspective, service continuity, and cost savings. If you’re looking to improve your users’ help desk experience, contact us today. Our service packages cover IT, cybersecurity, EDI, data integration, and digital transformation. Let’s take your next step together.
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