Thinking Of Switching Winston-Salem IT Companies?
Is your current IT service provider practicing what they preach in terms of cybersecurity? Do they fully cater to your unique needs? If they aren’t, it might be time to switch. You shouldn’t put up with an IT service provider that doesn’t suit your business.
You may need to hold that thought a little and allow Parkway Tech to give you some perspective.
A day cannot pass before we receive queries on switching IT companies from prospects:
- Isn’t a transition process long and drawn-out? How hard is it?
- Which risks will I face when transitioning, and how can I bypass them?
- What’s the probability of a successful worry-free switch?
- How do I safely change service providers?
Primarily, most of the questions revolve around these four pillars. And so, they are going to form the basis of our engagement today.
It may surprise you, but a majority of transitions are always trouble-free. The probability of having a successful or messy switch is wholly dependent on your new IT company.
Why Do You Need To Be Careful When Seeking A Replacement Of Your IT Supplier?
At the very least, you must have learned from your mistakes when selecting your current service provider. You should exercise due diligence to avoid ending up with another incompetent support company — and repeat the same vicious circle of unsatisfactory services.
The service provider will guide most of the processes during the transition. So, is it critical that they have expertise and experience in handling switches? Yes.
Without the requisite expertise, your vulnerability to accompanying threats increases twofold.
Which Risks Are You Facing As You Switch IT Companies?
- You may experience unplanned network downtime: Without proper planning, you will likely experience inadvertent protracted network downtime. In most cases, you will be switching because your users are already complaining about your networks’ functionality. In such circumstances, the last thing they want to hear is your systems being down — the reason notwithstanding. Given the complexity and magnitude of transitions, only an experienced IT company can save you from unplanned downtime.
- You also risk losing your data during the transition: This could be from accidental deletions or misconfigurations. Data loss and downtime go hand-in-hand. You might have to waste another three days or a whole week doing nothing constructive but trying to retrace your files.
- Also, be on the lookout for crude service providers: If possible, always ensure that you are in good terms with your former IT company throughout the transition process. They still have unabated access to your systems. If they feel aggrieved, you can never tell what harm they would do to your files. Not once or twice have organizations been held to ransom by previous service providers in the middle of transitions.
Once you have identified these threats and planned for their mitigation, all you need is an experienced IT company to guide you through the transition process.
How Do You Evade These Risks And Secure A Successful Transition?
At any stage of the switch, your primary concerns should be your files’ safety and sustaining uptime in your sites.
Before The Transition: You must have gathered by now that the switching of IT companies is only as successful as the planning phase.
- Before anything else, you must first find a dependable IT company to replace your current supplier. Do not make the common mistake of canceling your contract before a replacement is in place. However much you feel aggrieved by the service provider, it’s not worth risking your networks’ security by leaving them unmanaged.
- Ensure you have full administrative access to all of your files and every part of your network. Remember the threat of a crude service provider? Having admin logins to your systems gives you the discretion to lock them out whenever they attempt any malice. Besides, you are in a vantage position to monitor your network as you transition.
- You should also back up all your files. In case of any deletions or displacement, you can continue with normal operations using the duplicate files. This also comes in handy in case your former supplier decides to withhold your data. Have at least a couple of offline copies for your most essential files.
- Your new IT support firm should review your network’s security, infrastructure, management, and performance. Any identified backdoors or weak-points must be rectified immediately.
During The Transition: Always keep other employees and departments in the loop. Don’t leave them questioning what is happening, or how the change will affect their operations. Tell them upfront that you intend to switch and seek their opinions on the new IT company. Also, make it clear to them how you would like them to assist in the process.
- With all precautions in place, notify your current service provider that you intend to switch. Some SLAs demand that you make the notifications in advance.
- If the break fee is not clearly stipulated in the break clause, discuss and agree with the current IT company upfront.
- Proceed with the transition as planned.
After The Transition: You have managed to transition successfully — congratulations. Now, all you have to do is to change your logins. Anything is possible; your former support company might still access and interfere with your files using old logins.
Are You Experiencing Any Of The Following IT Issues?
- The same network problems year in year out.
- Support tickets are taking too long to be resolved.
- You no longer trust your IT company to support your network competently.
- A service provided that is detached from your business?
- Continuous unexplained hikes in your service bills.
These are signs that you are working with the wrong IT company. Let Parkway Tech help you transition and pick up the slack.
Our team will:
- Deploy a transition agent to survey your network and fetch all the relevant information needed for the switch.
- Corporate with your former supplier to guarantee a smooth transition.
- Replace any necessary hardware that was supplied by your previous service provider.
- Involve you and your staff in every stage and decision regarding the switch.
If you are thinking of switching IT companies but aren’t sure where to start, contact us now.
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