IT Services in Industry
IT services play an important role in the daily work of modern companies. Whatever they are, everything about IT is critical to the success of a company that relies on technology in some way. Typically, this IT encompasses a variety of topics and domains. Sometimes it’s handled internally, and sometimes it’s provided externally by a third-party service provider to help facilitate the smooth functioning of IT.
But what kind of IT services are there? Well, that’s a big question with a bigger answer. There is a wide variety of IT services for every need, and every business is different. Sacramento-based IT managed services companies offer different services than Seattle-based companies. In this article, we’ll break down 20 of the most common IT service instances, hopefully giving you an idea of which services exist, how they’re used, and how your company can best leverage them.
20 Common IT Services
Now that you have a general idea of IT services and their role in the industry, let’s break down some of the most common types of services. Some are more general, while others are specific to specific utilities.
Managed IT Services
As a broad, all-encompassing type of service, managed IT services are often part of an MSP (Managed Service Provider), which deals with single or multiple IT service needs. Most commonly, managed IT services deal with the remote server, desktop and device management. Other common uses involve remote network security.
The cloud is a versatile platform capable of supporting many virtual services such as operating systems and programs. Cloud backup is also part of the service model, allowing users and companies to store their important information on external cloud servers, avoiding hardware failure or other problems. Cloud backups are usually handled by service providers for a monthly/annual fee.
The Internet and broadband connections enable many ways to communicate, and VoIP is one of them. This IT service utilizes the corporate/personal Internet to replace traditional telephone lines, allowing the aforementioned users to make and receive calls with their ISP. Modern VoIP phones also offer various features such as voice calling and chat options. Typically, VoIP also requires a subscription service rather than a traditional phone service.
monitoring service
Similar to security services, and also found in MSPs, the monitoring app is exactly what its name says: keep an eye on servers, network traffic, communications, security, and/or whatever your business needs. This service is usually adopted by smaller companies that lack the resources of larger organizations, but still require strong IT support/functionality. Responsibilities include automatic software updates/antivirus, and monitoring hardware integrity with SMART programs.
Some providers offer data backup in the cloud, or other external data centers. Regardless of the method used, data backup involves preserving information in the event of unforeseen issues such as natural disasters, malicious intrusions, hardware failures, and more. Often, businesses refer to this as a “BDR strategy” (Backup Disaster Recovery). Some form of backup is mandatory for most organizations to prevent issues like downtime and loss of critical information.
firewall service
Firewalls are a common and integral part of any network security plan. Most companies handle or have firewalls for their own networks — but in some cases choose third parties to provide additional firewall options. Options vary by provider.
For example, some firewalls are mixed mode, allowing additional control and network monitoring options beyond the normal ruleset. Others may provide a single firewall solution for all internal/remote devices. The needs are different according to the requirements of each company.
Internet Security Services
This is a broad category covering any and all types of services under the cybersecurity umbrella. In IT, it is the act of protecting networks and data from malicious attacks by deploying various methods, including network monitoring, firewalls, antivirus, layered networking, and more. Usually managed through the vendor, but can also be handled on-site. Cybersecurity services are valuable because they draw from larger resources and more experienced staff.
The importance of cyber security cannot be overemphasized when it comes to IT service options.
Office 365/Email
Office 365 operates as Microsoft’s all-inclusive package, with programs like Word and Excel. It’s an excellent option for businesses that need a variety of software for file organization reasons, but are willing to pay a monthly fee. Also known as the SaaS (Software as a Service) model. Office 365 also operates as a cloud server and newer email management platform. Office 365 is suitable for companies that rely on email for communication and have organizational needs.
anti-virus protection
As a subset of cybersecurity, antivirus services are probably one of the most common types of IT services in the industry. Mandatory anti-malware protection comes in the form of software and/or monitoring. Due to the ever-changing threat of malware in modern society, it is imperative that any company that relies on IT install some form of anti-virus software or use such a service.
Business Intelligence
Big data plays a huge role in business success. The amount of information available to a particular company is enormous, and how this information is obtained depends on the tools used. Services encompassing business intelligence can analyze, extract, and transform this vast amount of information into meaningful reports. Everything from financial costs to the click-through rate of an article at a certain time of day falls under the umbrella of modern business intelligence.
remote support
As the name suggests, remote support allows IT specialists to provide support services from different locations, sometimes controlling a device over the Internet to assist in troubleshooting. Support is available for IT assistance, software repairs, or other needs. Useful when IT specialists are not on-site, generally handled by MSPs.
Microsoft Azure
This is Microsoft’s own cloud platform for public and private use (formerly known as Windows Azure). The Azure platform offers a robust set of options for development, IoT, analytics, security and more. It’s very popular because Azure is billed based on usage (pay as you go) rather than a flat rate, making it a great flexible option for businesses with limited financial capital.
Mobile and remote networks allow employees to work from mobile and/or remote devices, often away from a physical location. This dovetails with BYOD (bring your own device) policies. This is convenient because it offers workers a wide range of flexibility and also allows them to work on projects almost anywhere. Useful if the company premises are inaccessible for unforeseen reasons.
communication management
IT services that handle all communication services typically provide companies with a common communication solution platform. A unified communications platform is software that encompasses all types of messaging, from chat, email, voice, video calling, and even email.
Communication management also involves the planning of communication systems, such as etiquette and guidelines for sending/receiving emails. For example, a company may only allow commercially sensitive information to be kept on company email.
SaaS (Software as a Service)
A broad term that can refer to any and all software paid for through a monthly subscription service. In the IT field, the aforementioned software is provided by third parties via the Internet. Extremely basic examples include e-mail. Office 365, a service we listed earlier, falls into the SaaS category.
Unified Communications
Unified communications involve software and programming that brings together all means of communication in one space. As mentioned earlier, examples of this include unified communications software. This can be managed by the enterprise or service provided by the MSP.
data analysis
Incorporating services that analyze and digest data for use by companies, data analysis often involves concepts such as “big data” and IoT (Internet of Things). Involves experts and services to process information for companies to produce usable reports. These reports utilize whatever is good for the business.
Network IT Services encompass everything needed to successfully implement a corporate network. This involves the construction of the network infrastructure, the setup of equipment such as LAN routers and modems, the layout of the network (such as dividing a network into different layers), security, optimization, and many other factors. Typically, businesses will build on-site, however, if local IT specialists are insufficient (or unavailable), then third parties are used to properly implement the service.
IT development
IT development includes all resources used to develop and manage a platform or software. When using the Services, third parties may be enlisted to assist in completing projects or performing any of the various tasks required by the software. Some of these services include QA testing, business solutions, migration, application development and application maintenance.
Generally, remote assistance is for short-term projects when not handled by on-site staff. Sometimes these are called “shadow developers”.
Printing IT Services
Printing IT services include all services related to managing, recording and printing documents. Usually handled in-house, but in rare cases where additional assistance is required, a third party can manage the high volume of print requests, maintain backups of the files, and organize said files in a virtual spreadsheet.
Should I use IT services?
Now that you have a better understanding of the various IT services, you might wonder if any of them are right for your business. There is no definitive answer, as every organization has its own unique needs, and naturally, investing in third-party resources can seem like an uncertain investment.
However, not all companies have the same resources as larger enterprises, and it can be easy to feel left out when IT is critical to staying competitive. Therefore, when considering third-party solutions, carefully study the following points.
You deal with frequent malware intrusions, attacks and network outages.
Projects are often shelved, delayed or canceled due to insufficient expertise and resources.
Communication within the enterprise is chaotic and disorderly. Information was often lost, and setting up calls and meetings was a difficult, cumbersome process.
There are simpler programs for certain tasks in the enterprise, such as storing files.
In the event of a disaster, massive hardware failure, or malware intrusion, there is no way to fully recover and protect data.
Mobile and remote devices are not set up to work with the corporate network.
You need to quickly scale up resources to meet new hires, but lack the funds to invest in new hardware.
Your current customer support model lags and cannot effectively handle high-volume days/times.
If these situations apply to your business, it may be time to seek IT services through a management provider. More often than not, internal issues and instability lead to lost time and, ultimately, profit margins. Imagine, for example, a common communications platform that could help by centralizing how all employees communicate. Jerry in accounting doesn’t miss an email because he’s in a meeting, the software can figure out where he was and what he was doing. In this case, the fewer time employees spend with each other, the more time they have to focus on their tasks. This is just one of the dozens of examples that can provide solutions to headaches.
In conclusion
Adopting IT solutions to help address deficiencies within the business is a great way to renew efficiencies and streamline communications. Today, modern enterprises face greater demands to maintain data security, maintain high-quality customer support, and stay on the cutting edge of software and technology, all while balancing a delicate profit margin. For SMBs, this is easier said than done.
However, any one of the IT solutions we’ve listed can provide much-needed relief to struggling businesses. We hope our taxonomy has given you a general idea, and we encourage you to explore potential options if your business is struggling to find appropriate solutions to different IT problems. Additionally, the enterprise’s cost model is very flexible and designed with affordability in mind.
If you want to know more about different IT services and IT solutions, or wish to browse potential third-party solutions, you can visit us at Executech.
