From Support to Strategy - Dave Travers Shares his Perspective

Support to Strategy

We grabbed five minutes with Dave Travers to discuss his perspective on a modern MSP. Read on to find out more.

RJC - What’s the biggest shift you’ve seen in what clients expect from their MSP?

Dave - In recent years, I would say that there have been two dramatic shifts within the MSP sector, shifts which I am proud to say we have been ahead of the curve on.

Cyber Security, it’s no secret that as we transition our daily working activities to the cloud  we potentially open ourselves up to malicious actors, as we have seen recently, large enterprises such as the well known food wholesalers, and online tech distributors are all susceptible to threats, but the one that no one really talks about is the SMB/SME sector, often targeted the most as they lack the knowledge or the infrastructure to protect themselves against these online threats.

As an MSP and indeed a registered Cyber Essentials Plus certification body we believe it is our responsibility to ensure our clients, no matter their size, are aware of potential threats and ensure that we have the tools available to help protect them and mitigate these vulnerabilities, from simple changes like 2FA on cloud accounts through to deploying enhanced firewalls and EDR, XDR solutions.  

This leads me to the other shift, which is the change from a reactive partnership to a proactive and consultative approach, rather than waiting for an issue to arise, we instead seek out potential vulnerabilities and remove them from the equation. With solutions designed to monitor and maintain infrastructure we place ourselves in a position to ensure we are providing a secure and reliable service which leads to greater customer satisfaction.

RJC - How do you help clients see IT as an investment, not just a cost?

Dave - Outsourcing IT to an MSP such as ourselves allows a business to tap into years and years of industry experience and knowledge, otherwise unavailable to them, which doesn’t have to be expensive (from less than a takeaway coffee a day).

Best practice on device setup and security, market leading technology solutions, the ability to configure and manage infrastructure from a single pane of glass remotely and the high availability of technical assistance.

There is no longer a need to worry about the person who currently looks after your IT going on holiday, or the uncertainty of if a device or solution you are looking at is fit for purpose.

They key is by allowing an MSP to handle the day to day running of your business technology, you can focus on growing and nurturing your own business, whilst we keep everything running smoothly in the background.

RJC - What’s one thing that makes a great client relationship in our industry?

Dave - It all comes down to trust and transparency, our clients place an enormous amount of trust in us to protect them, look after their technology and deliver their requirements as needed and we will always provide the best information, advice and services that we have available.

Im proud to say that we have an amazing team at RJ Cortel with outstanding clients who we wouldn’t be here today without, It’s great to see clients still with us back from when we were established back in 2001.

RJC - What’s a common commercial mistake businesses make when choosing IT support?

Dave - Im sure this isn’t the only sector, however there’s always a race to the bottom, who can provide the service at the lowest price point.

Unfortunately this stifles innovation and leads to customer dissatisfaction when they opt for a provider who offers a service at an unbelievable price, which they inevitably fail to deliver.   

I believe the best way to compare IT Support is to work out your budget and what you can afford, what are the key areas you need assistance with or improvement on. Find an MSP which specialises in that area and see how their solutions are tailored towards your goals. If trial periods are available, grab them and test the company out!

RJC - If you could give one piece of advice to a business reviewing their IT budget, what would it be?

Dave - Right now, I would be looking at any Windows 10 devices you still have online and working. Windows 10 will be end of life on the 14th of October. This should be a priority to upgrade them if possible and replace if not. 

Once you have resolved that, I would see if you have budget to undertake Cyber Essentials and Cyber Essentials Plus, this can provide businesses with a competitive advantage and has recently become a requirement for businesses trading within the public sector, this will not only help you win more business, but ensure your following best practice too!