 Eight
qualities to look for in choosing a top-notch IT infrastructure
service provider.
- Flexibility
- Redundancy
- Speed
- Certification
- Proper Installation, Testing, and Upgrades
- Full Documentation
- Disaster Preparation
- Immediate, Expert Problem Resolution
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- Flexibility
– Look for a service provider who can adapt to changing
business conditions. The only constant in business today is
change. Rapid change. Would you be able to expand the number
of workstation or servers, if needed?
- Redundancy – Does
your IT infrastructure have a backup plan? How much does it
cost per hour in lost productivity when your network goes
down and your staff is idle? Redundancy is a critical factor
in avoiding downtime.
- Speed – Speed equal
productivity. If your customer service team has to apologize
to callers while waiting for customer data to be retrieved
across congested lines, you’re losing money and irritating
customers. Slow email, slow Web surfing – it all adds
up to low productivity. Make sure that the service provider
is patient and careful you network design. You need to get
the maximum throughput and enable maximum productivity
- Certification – Just as
you look for candidates with the right certifications in accounting
and network management, for example, make sure your IT infrastructure
service providers are also certified.
- Proper Installation, Testing, and Upgrades – No matter how carefully you’ve
planned, no matter how robust the specification, an IT infrastructure
is only as good as the quality of the installation, testing
and MACs (move, adds, and changes).
- Full Documentation –
To avoid problems in future, make sure both you and your service
provider maintain a comprehensive set of up-to-date documentation.
Documentation can be used to speed troubleshooting, assist
in upgrade planning and implementation, and facilitate asset
management both in preparation for, and in the event of, a
disaster.
- Disaster Preparation –
You can not predict when or how disaster may strike. So look
for a service provider to work with to create a disaster response
and recovery plan. Gauge your risks and the coast of downtime.
Understand the step it must take to get you business back
up and running.
- Immediate, Expert Problem Resolution – Make sure your service provider offers 24x7
response time. For most companies, downtime equals financial
loss, so knowing where to turn in times of urgent need is
critical. Ensure your service provider will respond immediately,
any time, any day, with a team that knows you network and
can track down problems quickly.
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