Switching IT providers
How do I know it's time to switch IT providers?
The short answer
It is time to look at a new IT provider when the same problems keep coming back, you only hear from them when something breaks, nobody can tell you where your security stands, and there is no written plan for next year. One bad week is normal. A pattern is a signal.
Do the same problems keep coming back?
A good provider fixes the cause, not just the symptom. If the printer, the VPN or the shared drive is a weekly ticket, nobody is looking at why.
Do you only hear from them when something breaks?
Managed IT is supposed to be proactive: monitoring, patching and planning happen before you call. If the relationship is entirely reactive, you are paying for break-fix with a monthly invoice attached.
Can they tell you where your security stands?
Ask a simple question: does every user have multi-factor authentication (MFA), and is every computer running endpoint detection and response (EDR)? If the answer takes a week, or comes back vague, that is the answer.
Is there a plan for next year?
Someone should be telling you what needs replacing, what it will cost and when, before it fails. Surprise expenses are usually a planning problem, not bad luck.
Have you outgrown them?
Plenty of businesses start with one IT person or a small shop that did a great job at 8 people and struggles at 30. That is nobody’s fault. It just means the job changed.
For the longer version, read 5 signs it’s time to switch IT providers.