How Managed IT Services are Different than Break/Fix Services
Businessman standing by on a rooftop overlooking the city
Suppose you are the owner of a start-up company or the CEO of a well-established organization. In that case, one thing is a common denominator – a successful IT infrastructure is a must for your business to thrive. Choosing the wrong service that doesn’t meet your business needs can cause unnecessary frustration.
What is Manage IT service and Break/Fix service?
Using the Managed IT service allows you to outsource the network and data communication operation’s maintenance responsibilities, needs anticipation, and various processes and functions that will improve your company’s operations. This service takes over the daily operations of the specialized applications, which in turn allows:
- your in house IT team to move their attention to strategic IT programs,
- your staff to focus on your company’s core goals and targets,
- your company’s end-user with better capabilities.
Break/Fix IT service is a more pay-as-you-use-them service. Only when your business needs Break/Fix IT service will the IT service assist, and only then will they bill you for services rendered. The Break/Fix IT service approach is more reactive to maintaining the IT infrastructure of your company.
Costs
A Break/Fix service you only pay when you need them. Hourly rates are between $75 to $150.
In the Manage IT service, you pay a monthly or annual fee. Monthly rates are between $99 for the package to $250 per user.
Although it looks right off the bat that Break/FIx service is the cost-efficient option, it is not the case. It’s impossible to budget for a Break/Fix service because predicting when, how long and how many times a month you will call the service out to your company. Whereas using the Manage IT service, budgeting is a breeze.
You know you will get what you pay for because a service level agreement (SLA) comes standard when you sign a contract with the Manage IT service. On the flip side of the coin, because there is no contract in place with a Break/Fix service, you cannot guarantee when the technicians will arrive at your company.
Proactive or Reactive?
With a Managed IT service, they offer a more holistic service; they don’t rely on your in-house IT team to advise them about the problem. Instead, they use a more proactive approach as they already anticipate the needs and do fixes beforehand. Even if your company acquires various Managed IT services all across the country, like managed IT services in Florida, New York, or even Mississippi.
Break/Fix service is, in nature, a fee-for-service reactive approach. To only pay the minimum hourly rate needed for this service, you will use your in-house IT team to figure out the problem before even calling the outsource technicians. Pulling resources from other projects and causing those projects to fall behind, customers become irritated by the IT problem. With them, your employees are also becoming frustrated.
Evolve or Die
Technology is rapidly evolving. In the past, you might have gotten an upgrade on an application once a year. Now some applications require upgrades every month through in the mix, the change in your target market generation shifts where an irritated client will post a negative review or comment on social media quicker than you can apologize. This all creates a perfect storm. For your company to evolve with the storm and thrive, which outsource IT service will better equip you?
