IT has evolved quite a bit over the last few decades. Has your IT support team done the same? Here are five signs to look for in your IT provider to see if it’s time to move into the 21st century. You’re paying good money for your IT support. Why not get good service in return?
You Call for Help and They Say, “We Don’t Support That. Call the Vendor.”
Those seven little words instantly break two cardinal IT rules:
1. Never tell the client “We can’t” or “We don’t.”
2. Never leave vendor management to the client.
First – if your IT provider doesn’t (or won’t) support your applications, it’s time to either upgrade your software or find an IT provider who will. Second – you’re paying them, and you have to call the vendor? In what world does that make sense?! Vendor management should always be handled by your IT provider. Period.
They Don’t Support Your Technology.
Imagine giving your IT support a quick call to ask how to do something, and they start giving you directions that don’t correlate to your system. You try to deduce the confusion when they finally ask, “What version of Windows are you using?”
“Windows 10,” you reply.
“Oh, we don’t support Windows 10 yet.”
Seriously. How are they going to help you if your computer system is more advanced than theirs?! A great IT support partner will be well-versed in all the newest hardware and software and should be able to navigate you through anything – or, better yet – do it themselves. Which leads us to the next telltale sign.
You Ask IT Support to Remote Into Your Workstation, and They Can’t.
One of the most effective aspects of a modern IT company is the ability to remotely control a client’s workstations and servers. Those without remote capabilities must travel onsite to fix each problem. Suddenly, your little problem has become a very big problem – while you wait for them to show up, fix the problem, and let you finally get back to work.
Your System Goes Down Over the Weekend, and They’re Unreachable until Monday.
If something bad happens to your system, it may mean your business effectively halts. If it happens over the weekend, can you really afford to wait until Monday for it to be addressed? Should you have to? Of course not. You should have an IT provider who is available 24 hours a day, 365 days a year, for you and your business.
Something Bad Happens, and They Learn About It from You.
A proactive IT partner remotely keeps close tabs on your system using their network monitoring services. They should know about any problems you might face well before you do. In fact, it should be them informing you about it, not the other way around.