Managed ICT: An Effective Solution
In small to medium business today there are never enough ways to cut costs and manage expenditure. Understandably, technology can be one of the hardest places to cut costs and refine processes particularly when your in-house skills lie in other areas. For some businesses, ICT is one of the most expensive components and many companies see the only way that they can manage this resource is by employment of a full-time in-house professional.
In many cases a full time employee is not necessary for effective management of the company's ICT if the main components are setup correctly to begin with. Many smaller companies nowadays are leaning towards a part time contract ICT manager with one or two tech savvy multi skilled employees in-house and an arsenal of emergency tech specialist contacts for things like services, cabling and complicated comms issues.
A contract ICT manager will
- Manage your technical infrastructure including networks, websites, etc
- Design systems including server software, hardware and other solutions
- Apply fixes and maintain your current architecture
- Support your software and hardware including printers and phones
- Provide desktop support to your staff as a second point of contact
Contract ICT managers continually collaborate with the in-house tech contacts to replicate information such as contact details, updated system information and any other info or documentation relating to the structure and maintenance of the system to ensure that all work is documented and available at all times.
Remote Management
The beauty of remote management is that your systems can be managed securely and accurately from anywhere in the world. Most ICT managers are in agreeance that remote management has taken system administration to another level. It enables managers to be more productive by allowing them a faster and simpler way to connect to clients systems, diagnose and solve problems on the spot without the need for time wasting and expensive callouts.
Possible Issues and Solutions
As with any solution there can be a number of possible issues that need to be addressed before a company decides to change their ICT structure and look at engaging in external ICT management. Below outlined are a few of the major concerns surrounding managed ICT with the associated solution.
| Possible Issue |
Solution |
| Emergency arises |
Generally a managed ICT solution provides a 24 hr support agreement. If the problem cannot be fixed from the emergency contact's remote location at the time of the call, a tech is sent in to help out. |
| Staff seeking ICT advice |
In cases of staff needing general day to day support with software or hardware during times when the contract ICT manager is not around, your company should have a tech-savvy multi skilled person around to help out. Generally this person is employed primarily in another position within the company (draftsman, accountant, etc) but also has a little tech knowledge up their sleeve to help out with a little assistance from the ICT manager. If a solution cannot be found with the resources at hand, the ICT manager can be called for assistance. On many occasions problems can be solved remotely without there being a need for ICT manager to set foot in the office. |
| Failing services (internet, phone) |
Many times when a service such as internet or phone fails, a support tech from the service provider is needed to be called. An updated list of emergency tech specialist contacts is important to be kept and made available to all staff however generally your ICT manager will handle these issues. |