How to Onboard the Best Co-Managed IT Services Provider

Finding the Secret Ingredient for Your Co-Managed IT Success Recipe

Crafting a successful IT technology strategy is like preparing an exquisite dish – it requires the right blend of ingredients presented thoughtfully. An adept IT services partner provides the missing element, so your IT environment works in all areas harmoniously.

This guide in addition to Your Guide to Finding the Right Co-Managed IT Partner shares tips for identifying co-managed IT service providers that complement or augment your current IT team. We will explore discerning questions to reveal how an IT services partner could work for you.

In this guide, we’ll be covering the secret sauce to optimize IT performance:

1. The best Questions to ask a potential Co-Managed IT Services Provider
2. The Co-Managed IT Worksheet to help define duties clearly so roles blend seamlessly
3. How To Ensure A Successful Transition To Co-Managed IT Partnership
4. Additional considerations and best practices

10 Revealing Questions to Ask Potential Partners

Ask thoughtful questions to distinguish capabilities:

1. Why should we partner together?
2. Why shouldn’t we start a co-managed IT services partnership?
3. How does your team stay on the cutting edge of new technologies and skill requirements?
4. What type of companies have you successfully collaborated with long-term? How were duties divided and blended?
5. Can you share specific examples of full partnerships you’ve co-developed?
6. What types of reporting and visibility into our environment will you provide?
7. What type of tools/software do you like to implement and how will you integrate them into our workflows seamlessly?
8. In your experience, what factors cause collaboration to curdle into conflict? How do you foster alignment?
9. If selected, how will you onboard and integrate with our staff? How will we communicate and cooperate day-to-day?
10. If we need adjustments later, how will you collaborate to improve?

Defining Duties to Avoid Confusion: The Co-Managed Worksheet

Review this worksheet to map out who will own each task from end user help desk support to procurement. Mark which stays in-house or conversely which gets assigned to your IT services partner.  Eliminate overlapping efforts that muddle flavors. Define monitoring responsibilities and hand-off points for seamless execution.

Our Secret Sauce is Co-Managed IT Expertise

We help leading companies across industries find the perfect blend to delight patrons. Our secret? Uniting your team’s skills with our mastery of emerging technologies and our over 22 years of refined methods.

Here are signs of an ideal co-managed IT services match:

• Shared values on quality, communication, transparency, accountability
• Willingness to cross-train staff
• Gradual onboarding with adjustments based on experience
• Access to tools and techniques
• Clarity on expectations, roles, and metrics for responsibility

Understand Their IT Management Philosophy

Explore their approach to critical aspects like cybersecurity, redundancy, recovery, and technology management. Do they take risks or avoid them? What tradeoffs do they make in balancing cost, performance, and reliability?

Ask for 2-3 examples of actual clients they transitioned to a co-managed IT services model. The specifics will reveal priorities and values in action.

Here are some qualities to look for:

• Clear delineation of duties based on each team’s strengths
• Measurable metrics showing security and reliability improvements
• Seamless blending of tools, systems, and procedures
• Jointly developed cybersecurity roadmap and tech upgrade paths
• Cross-pollination between teams

Evaluate Cultural Fit

Beyond technical expertise, your teams must collaborate smoothly when challenges arise. Here is what to look for:

• Shared communication styles and transparency expectations
• Willingness to inspect their operations firsthand
• Comfort admitting knowledge gaps and collaborating to fill them
• Empathetic conflict resolution focused on mutual success

Prioritize Gradual Onboarding

Rushed transitions breed confusion and friction. Ensure adequate ramp up time for handing off tasks, cross-training, and building reciprocal trust in capabilities.

Building an exceptional dish takes the perfect recipe especially when it comes to preparation and technique. If your business is located in the greater areas of Austin, Dallas, Houston, San Antonio, or Cental Texas contact us now! Let’s discuss blending your skills with our expertise to whip up major IT wins. Together, we will create something truly special so let’s get cooking!