Glossary What is a Managed Service Provider (MSP)?
By / 2 Jan 2023 / Topics: Managed services
A Managed Service Provider (MSP) is a third-party company that remotely delivers a specified set of IT processes on behalf of its clients. These processes can include networking, security, applications, mobility and infrastructure.
An alternative to on-demand services, an MSP offers management, maintenance and support on a proactive and as-needed basis. These services are priced via a subscription model, which allows for more predictable IT spending.
A company can outsource some or all of its IT needs to an MSP. Many organizations choose to outsource the most time-consuming operations, as well as newer technologies for which in-house support is lacking, such as cloud computing.
MSPs help organizations free internal IT resources to focus on more demanding priorities and business-critical objectives. MSPs can also increase agility, allowing organizations to flex their IT services as needs change, since providers offer a vast portfolio of solutions that can support many technology goals.
An MSP can be cost-effective since there is a decreased need to have certain internal IT equipment and staff. Many small businesses turn to MSPs to fill gaps that internal teams don’t have the bandwidth to support.
