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Your business runs on technology, and when that technology fails, everything grinds to a halt. That’s where managed services providers (MSPs) come in. These companies handle your IT infrastructure, security, and support so you can focus on what you do best—running your business.
But what happens when your MSP isn’t living up to their promises? What happens when they become more of a hindrance than a help? Choosing the right managed services provider can make or break your operational efficiency. The right MSP acts as an extension of your team, proactively managing your systems, preventing problems from occurring, and providing strategic guidance for your technology roadmap.
Recognizing the warning signs of an underperforming MSP isn’t always straightforward, especially when you’re buried in day-to-day business operations, but it’s an important part of ensuring your business continues to run smoothly. Make sure your teams always have the support they need to stay successful by watching for these signs it’s time to switch managed services providers.
A quality managed services provider monitors your systems around the clock, identifying potential issues before they impact your business operations. They use sophisticated monitoring tools to track system performance, identify unusual patterns, and address problems in their early stages. When your MSP takes this proactive approach, you rarely experience unexpected system failures or performance degradation because they catch and resolve issues before they escalate.
Unfortunately, many MSPs operate in purely reactive mode, only addressing problems after they’ve already caused disruption to your business. You’ll know your MSP lacks proactive monitoring if you’re consistently the first person to report system issues. Your employees shouldn’t be calling you to report that the email server is down or that critical applications are running slowly.
If you’re discovering problems before your MSP does, they’re not monitoring your systems effectively. This reactive approach costs your business money in lost productivity, leads to frustrated employees, and potentially causes customer dissatisfaction.
System downtime directly impacts your bottom line, and a competent MSP works tirelessly to prevent it. Your MSP should maintain your systems at optimal performance levels and have robust backup and disaster recovery procedures in place to minimize any disruption.
When downtime becomes a regular occurrence, your MSP isn’t fulfilling their primary responsibility. Frequent system crashes, application failures, or network outages indicate serious problems with how your MSP manages your infrastructure. While no system achieves perfect uptime, frequent disruptions suggest your MSP lacks the expertise, tools, or attention to detail necessary to maintain stable operations.
Effective communication forms the foundation of any successful MSP relationship. Your provider should keep you informed about system status, planned maintenance, security updates, and any issues that might impact your operations. They should explain technical concepts in terms you can understand and provide regular reports on system performance and security status. When problems do occur, they should communicate clearly about the issue, their plan to resolve it, and realistic timeframes for restoration.
Poor communication manifests in several ways that should raise immediate red flags. Your MSP might fail to notify you about planned maintenance, leaving you wondering why systems are unavailable. They might use excessive technical jargon when explaining issues, making it impossible for you to understand the scope or impact of problems. Even worse, they might simply go silent when problems occur, leaving you in the dark about what’s happening with your critical systems.
This lack of clear, consistent communication makes it impossible to make informed decisions about your business operations and technology investments.
When technological problems strike, fast solutions are the priority. Every minute your systems remain down costs your business money and productivity.
A reliable MSP understands this urgency and responds quickly to support requests. They should have clearly defined response time commitments based on issue priority levels, and they should consistently meet or exceed these commitments. Critical issues that impact business operations should receive immediate attention, while less urgent matters can wait for standard business hours.
Slow response times reveal an MSP that doesn’t prioritize your business needs. You might submit urgent support tickets only to wait hours or even days for initial contact. When they do respond, they might take days or weeks to resolve relatively simple issues.
Some MSPs consistently miss their stated response time commitments, making their service level agreements meaningless. Others might respond quickly with an initial acknowledgment but then provide no meaningful updates or progress toward resolution. This pattern of slow response leaves you constantly wondering about the status of critical issues and forces you to follow up repeatedly for basic information about your own systems.
Cybersecurity threats continue to evolve and intensify, making robust security measures absolutely essential for businesses of all sizes. Your MSP should implement comprehensive security protocols including firewalls, antivirus software, intrusion detection systems, and regular security updates. They should also provide employee security training, conduct regular security assessments, and maintain current knowledge of emerging threats. Most importantly, they should have detailed incident response plans ready to deploy if a security breach occurs.
An MSP with inadequate security measures puts your entire business at risk. Warning signs include failure to install critical security updates promptly, outdated antivirus software, or lack of proper firewall configuration. You might notice they’ve never conducted security assessments or provided security training for your team.
The most serious red flag occurs when security incidents happen repeatedly, suggesting your MSP’s security measures are fundamentally inadequate. Data breaches, malware infections, or unauthorized access attempts should be rare occurrences, not regular problems requiring constant attention.
Technology should support and enable your business growth, not hold it back. A valuable MSP serves as a strategic technology partner, helping you plan IT investments that align with your business objectives. They should understand your industry, anticipate your technology needs, and recommend solutions that improve efficiency and competitive advantage. This strategic guidance helps you avoid costly technology mistakes and ensures your IT infrastructure grows appropriately with your business.
MSPs that fail to provide strategic guidance treat you as just another service ticket rather than a business partner. When you inquire about new technology or system upgrades, they provide no meaningful input or recommendations. They might even discourage investments that would benefit your business, preferring to maintain the status quo because it requires less effort on their part. This lack of strategic thinking keeps your business technology stagnant and can put you at a competitive disadvantage as other companies leverage more advanced solutions.
Making the switch to a new managed services provider requires careful planning and evaluation, but staying with an underperforming MSP costs far more in the long run. If you find yourself running into these signs, it’s time to switch to a managed services provider who is dedicated to bringing your business to new heights. Partner with Continuant today and see how our UC managed services can improve collaboration, security, flexibility, and more for your business.