Pat Sprehe and Steve Longenecker provide insights into how to evaluate a potential MSP provider, how to engage with vendors, best practices and checklists for your daily and monthly interactions, annual planning with your outsourced IT manager, and how to plan and practice for emergency communications with your provider if your accounts are hacked or you suspect an attack. We cover any outsourced IT function, including databases or security management as stand alone services, as well as managed services generally.
7. Digital Landscape Has Changed
Technology
• Security
•Utilities (email, file)
•Identity Proliferation
•Cloud Platforms
Business
• Savvy Users
• Cloud Strategy
• IT Operational effectiveness
•Effective Use of Technology
8. Strong IT operations management rooted in technology best
practices
Trusted partner that helps organizations transform to the new era of
technology
Trusted experts that provide thought leadership in the non-profit
arena
Business Need
10. History
• In 2007 ITIL formalized BRM processes as a best
practice in their v3 library (v4 released in Q1
2019)
• In 2013 the BRM Institute was established
providing industry standards and certifications
• In 2017 ISO 44001 established standards for
collaborative business relationship
management systems
15. Advanced ITM Deliverables
• Strategic IT Planning
• Technology Consulting
• In Depth IT Assessment
• IT Security Planning
• IT Policy Development
• Business Continuity Planning
18. The Playbook
“Just-right” Solutions Design and implement solutions
Move IT forward
IT guidance
Strategic Engagement
Making IT just work
Focus on IT operations management
Remove IT distractions
Focus on business then
technology
Understand the business need
Build Relationship Trusted and Strategic Partner
TRANSPARENT PROFESSIONAL RESPECTFUL
19. • Understanding the business
• Cleaning up platforms
• Patching
• Life Cycle Management
TRANSPARENT PROFESSIONAL RESPECTFUL
20. • Solutions Menu
• Service Catalog
• Executive Business Review
• Assessments/Recommendations
• Budgeting & Planning
TRANSPARENT PROFESSIONAL RESPECTFUL
From Matt
- Consider the audience
- Start w/ engaging questions
- Start w/ our core story, why should audience listen to us. We're a partner, not an adversary
- Stick to the high level, big picture
- Be entertaining
- Have some specific takeaways, specific call to action/next step.
Steve:
IT management is the discipline whereby all of the IT resources of a firm are managed in accordance with its needs and priorities.
- Wikipedia
ITM at an MSP adds expertise and service management.
Steve:
What is the business case for IT management?
Steve:
Big Picture-
Years ago IT was done by a tech in the server room, based on best practices. There’s been a bit of a revolution that’s sometimes talked about as the “consumerization of IT”. Now expectations are higher, success is measured differently. Need a more sophisticated approach, more involved approach.
As a result, there is a need to manage the intersection between technology and business and align tech to the needs of the business.
~
Take home message: in general - tech has changed. More sophisticated approach is necessary.
Steve:
Focusing down - Among our clients, we’re perceiving a need among our clients and so we are endeavoring to provide a team/service that meets these needs.
Speaker: Pat
Business relationship management is a formal approach to understanding, defining, and supporting inter-business activities related to business networking.
- Wikipedia
Attempts to align IT with the business needs of the organization.
Picture:
https://cdn.pixabay.com/photo/2015/11/03/08/58/meeting-1019875_960_720.jpg
Speaker: Pat
Short history of BRM.
ITIL is a popular framework for developing and delivering IT services for external IT service orgs or internal IT departments.
BRM is an increasingly important
Speaker: Pat
Purpose of BRM and is to help align technology to the business. ITMgr should see (1) immediate and future risks, (2) business needs, (3) emerging technology/trends, (4) best practices.
Example: 2FA
- Hits all the categories
- Reference "Nonprofit Cybersecurity Incident Report", attempts to track security attacks and trends
Example: Workstation lifecycles
- Replace computers every 3 – 4 years (1/3rd - 1/4th of computers every year)
Steve: ITM starts when the agreement starts with our Onboarding process.
Steve: This is how we look at the services we provide as an MSP.
In looking for an MSP, you want ITM, but you should be looking at the set of services they provide. ITM is a key component of these services. How well they do ITM influences how well your relationship will succeed.
Analogy: Using a navigation app like Google Maps or Waze
- ITM is the next turn or two you're going to take
- BITC is the overview of your entire trip
Speaker: Pat
Pat can talk about what this all means.
?? What are other deliverables?
- Assessment?
- Vendor management? As part of ITSM?
- Helps coordinate some project management
- Providing consulting/education
Reporting:
- Standard monthly report on tickets. Helps us track uptick/downtick in tickets, ticket trends (user issue, service issue), open issues.
- - Inventory- patching status, (custom report for Meltdown/Spectre)
- Customize reporting- hours to resolution per ticket
ITLM
- Replacing workstations, switches, firewalls, wireless access points, printers, etc.
- Giving some of that "next step" advice.
ITSM
- Helping the other teams (primarily the Service Desk) to provide their services. Providing context.
- Documentation. Documentation of the IT, documentation of the processes.
- Representing the client interests to the MSP.
Planning/Budgeting
- As requested (usually).
- For the next year.
Speaker: Pat
Pat can talk about what this all means.
?? What are other deliverables?
- Assessment?
- Vendor management? As part of ITSM?
- Helps coordinate some project management
- Providing consulting/education
Reporting:
- Standard monthly report on tickets. Helps us track uptick/downtick in tickets, ticket trends (user issue, service issue), open issues.
- - Inventory- patching status, (custom report for Meltdown/Spectre)
- Customize reporting- hours to resolution per ticket
ITLM
- Replacing workstations, switches, firewalls, wireless access points, printers, etc.
- Giving some of that "next step" advice.
ITSM
- Helping the other teams (primarily the Service Desk) to provide their services. Providing context.
- Documentation. Documentation of the IT, documentation of the processes.
- Representing the client interests to the MSP.
Planning/Budgeting
- As requested (usually).
- For the next year.
Steve
Speaker: Steve
- Professional- Engineer level experience.
- Respectful- no such thing as a stupid question.
Speaker: Pat
Add a dashed line to separate ITM and ITSP?
Speaking of transparent...
Talk about "making IT just work" here?
Talk about "moving IT forward" here?
Speaker: Pat
Speaker: Pat
Clean up and introduce BITC
Speaker: Steve
Characteristics of a great primary contact
Organizational culture
-- Understand your business needs
-- Understand your staff
-- Understand your priorities
Sway
-- Don't need to sign the checks, but need to be able to have requests honored
Steve
Discuss with peers = the roadmap should withstand scrutiny against industry best practices/trends.
understanding liability between the organization, the IT provider, and cloud service providers
Options for securing part-time technical support
Where can I find standard reports that the MSP should be providing?
How do very small orgs find consultants on a small budget? How do you manage IT and IT consultants with no IT staff?