It can be hard to know if you have the right people working on IT for your company because IT problems look like… well... IT problems. You might have issues that aren’t getting solved; disappointing results from technology investments; or complaints from employees that their technology tools are slowing them down.
When you’re struggling with IT, the root of your problems might stem from the way that IT is managed. You may not have all of the necessary IT roles, or the right people in each role.
Too Big or Too Small
It’s very common for companies to outgrow their internal IT department, or the capabilities of their outsourced IT company. When there are only a few people to cover all the bases, gaps inevitably occur.
As Information Technology evolves, it’s getting more complex and the people managing IT need to keep up with the changes. It’s just not possible for a few people to have all the expertise needed to keep up. That goes for small companies, too, because they often have needs that are just as sophisticated as the IT needs of large enterprises.
Sometimes people swing to the other end of the pendulum when they outgrow their current IT situation, but it's important to note that going to a very large IT support company still may not get you the results you want. There's no shortage of stories about disappointing experiences with some of the large, nationwide IT companies -- stories of cookie cutter service and extremely slow response times, resulting in more unmet expectations.
What good is working with a huge company if your issues aren’t a priority to them and you don’t have access to the expertise that will result in real change?
It's important to find a company that's large enough to meet your needs, but small enough to provide the personalized customer service you expect.
Related: Learn how to fill in the gaps in your IT capability. Get the Guide to Managed IT Services.
Covering All of the Bases
Let’s go into a little more detail about how gaps occur in IT support. A comprehensive IT department has all of the roles that are needed to proactively manage and secure your IT systems, respond to issues and user questions as they come up, and plan for the future.
A sign that you don’t have all the IT bases covered is when IT is mainly reactive. Little or no effort goes into preventing problems from happening in the first place. In the worst cases, people get so frustrated with dealing with IT problems that they create their own workarounds or just live with their problems because they don’t have any confidence that IT can come up with a solution.
While adopting a proactive approach is needed to guide a comprehensive IT department, you have to have the right people in the right roles, which leads us into our next point.
The Right People in the Right Role
When you think about the personality of an IT professional, what comes to mind? Chances are good that your description is too narrow. The truth is that there are numerous personality types working in the IT world, and different personality types are attracted to different IT functions.
For example, people who like to work the support desk enjoy working with and helping people. Network operations people like to get into the weeds with hardware and software. Technology advisors are big picture people and enjoy finding technology solutions for business problems.
When your IT department is small, people tend to gravitate towards those activities that they like the best. That means that some very important tasks could never be making it to the front burner. Worse yet, the priorities of the IT department may not be in line with the business priorities and the initiatives that will have the most impact on company success.
How Do You Find the Right IT Crew?
When you’re evaluating your IT support options, it can be difficult to predict which one is going to be the best fit. You can make a well-informed decision, however, if you know how to guide the conversation. We have a several resources on our website that will help you with this. One is a Guide to Managed Services, and the other is a webinar, “Is Your Information Technology an Anchor or Propeller?"
Need IT help for your Southern California business right now? Give us a call at 800-481-4369.
