Small businesses that wish to remain competitive can no longer afford to be complacent about technology support.
So says Dawie Bloomberg, MD at Green Apple IT, who believes that small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) can no longer afford to be complacent about technology support with linking service level agreements (SLAs) to IT support becoming vital.
Bloomberg points out that linking SLAs to IT support is becoming vital, noting that SLAs are not beyond the reach of SMEs and can be tailored to meet business requirements and budgets
According to Bloomberg, SMEs rely on IT systems for communication, transacting and delivery of service.
He notes that while these systems may not be as complex as enterprise IT systems, they are every bit as mission critical. Network failure or losing access to e-mail can be debilitating, signalling loss of sales and a drop in service capability, he explains.
"With small business owners being more tech savvy and hands-on in terms of implementing IT systems and solutions than ever before, many try to do it all with less than satisfactory results," says Bloomberg.
The reality is that it takes technology management expertise and ongoing vigilance to ensure a stable, reliable technology environment and IT support SLAs can help mitigate the risk. A clear understanding of how to build support around critical applications and systems can deliver SLAs that are both effective and affordable, he says.
According to Bloomberg, the key objective in designing an effective IT support SLA is to build a support structure around the business critical applications and systems that drive core business processes and operations.
He says the first step is to assess the IT systems and solutions in place, identify critical applications and systems, determine risk to the business and shore up obvious weaknesses.
"This phase lays the foundation for ongoing support and often requires close collaboration between the business and the outsourced service provider," says Bloomberg.
Typical issues addressed in this phase may include ensuring there is no single point of failure, that backups are in place and are running properly, that resilience is built into IT systems to cope with potential failure, and that a disaster recovery plan is in place, he says.
"Once this foundation is laid, the next step is to define how critical systems will be supported. Particular focus should be given to system health checks, which encompass regular assessments of network, server and application performance. This facilitates proactive preventative maintenance and provides early warning of any irregularities or potential failure.
"It also helps ensure that the service provider remains aware of the status of the businesses IT systems and what issues the client is facing. This guarantees that if and when challenges arise they can be speedily and effectively addressed."
He says what will make all the difference is ensuring that the outsource service provider selected has the right skills and experience to support the business.
Bloomerg explains that questions to ask would be does the service provider have a good track record, do they have experience supporting SMEs, do its technicians have the necessary formal training, and does it have an established service management capability?
"The business approach and service philosophy of the service provider are also important factors to consider. The outsourced service provider appoint to take care of your critical business systems must have the capacity to deliver on the SLA, but also be committed to ensuring your business systems run smoothly and are continually optimised," says Bloomberg.
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