FAQ

Managed services (MP) or managed IT Services is the outsourcing of certain IT processes and functions to managed services provider (MSP) in order to improve operations and reduce expenses. 

Managed Services Providers (MSPs) work on a fixed-fee basis become an extension of your business by providing information technology support services. 

Small and medium-size businesses (SMBs) are our most common clients, due to their limited in-house IT capabilities. Larger companies also use MSPs to fill in gaps due to hiring limitations or when facing budget constraints. Nearly 40% of SMBs in the US use managed services in some capacity. 

There are numerous offerings from managed IT service providers including networking and infrastructure, IT security management, Software-As-A-Service (SaaS), Platform-as-a-Service (PaaS), Device-as-a-Services (DaaS), Communication Services, Data Analytics, and Technical Support services to name a few. 

Yes. Ellsworth Technology Solutions offers a full range of managed IT services and support offering your business the exact level of Managed IT Services needed. 

We work with a wide range of clients, but the types of companies that get the most benefit from our IT services work in industries that are regulated by compliance authorities, such as, financial institutions, accounting firms, and healthcare providers such as dental or medical practices. 

The usual managed IT services firm will provide 24/7/365 network monitoring of your IT infrastructure and respond to server or network emergencies. Additionally, you can expect help desk support, in addition to, onsite and/or remote technical support. 

Ellsworth Technology Solutions offers services both ala cart as well as part of a bundle. We base your monthly price on services required, the number of devices your firm utilizes, and how many users need technical support. 

Yes, Ellsworth Technology Services provides its service offering under a service-level agreement (SLA), which spells out what metrics will be used to measure our services. 

Voice over Internet Protocol (VoIP) allows businesses to utilize their digital broadband internet connection in order to make voice calls. 

Voice over IP services offer numerous features and services that go above and beyond traditional phone service. Additionally, VOIP phone systems offer enormous potential cost savings and a higher degree of flexibility and scalability. 

For businesses that need high availability VOIP services with crystal clear voice quality, simply buying a USB device will not deliver the consistent results you are seeking. 

Cloud Computing is the moving away from servers housed on-site and instead utilizes remote servers through the internet that can be rapidly provisioned. More specifically, cloud computing allows you to move all your software, operating systems, applications, and server storage networks to secure, remote servers that allow for safe access anytime from any browser that has internet connectivity. 

Cloud computing services offer an abundance of benefits over bulky, expensive on-premises hardware. Not only does the cloud allow you to access your IT infrastructure at anytime from anywhere, but it can also have a measurable impact on your business by lowering your average operational costs, reducing IT Spending, and reduce overall IT maintenance cost. 

Device-as-a-Service (DaaS), not to be confused with Desktop-as-a-Service which uses the same acronym, is a relatively new, but cost-reducing measure to outsource device procurement and lifecycle management to a vendor. The vendor or IT solutions provider manages the procurement, configuration, deployment, maintenance, decommissioning, and recycling of all devices your company uses. DaaS solutions typically cover laptops, tablets, and mobile phones.

DaaS has had an excellent adoption rate among companies of all sizes. The primary benefit of DaaS is the ability to deploy devices as needed giving your organization ultimate flexibility. Additionally, your company won’t have to dedicate any of its internal staff to the management of company technology. 

Business continuity is essentially a plan on how your company can continue operations if a disaster strikes. This could be a natural disaster such as a fire or flood or another disaster caused by a malicious cyber-attack or corrupted files. Business continuity involves setting strategies and policies as a part of a continuity plan and continuously testing a validating the results.

Interruptions to your business affect not only all your employees but also has negative repercussions to your customers. The more revenue your firm earns per minute, the more you risk losing. 

Determining the magnitude and timescale of a disruption to your business can be accomplished by conducting a Business Impact Analysis (BIA). The BIA gives you the foundation to create a business continuity plan to address strategies and plans for recovering in the wake of disruptions to the business. 

Your basic business continuity plan will consist of the BIA, recovery strategies, plan development, and testing and exercises. 

Business continuity plans and disaster recovery are very similar but not the same thing. Business continuity is the process of ensuring the entire business is restored and back to 100% efficiency, while disaster recover tends to focus on getting all IT infrastructure and operations back up and running after a disaster or business interruption. 

Many business owners falsely believe that making a backup satisfies a business continuity plan. Backing up your data is a great first step towards business continuity but is by no means enough to protect your business from losing massive amounts of revenue in the event of a disaster or business interruption. Business continuity plans account for all the IT you need to get back to work including server software, applications, internet networks, and system level configurations and settings. Data is just one of the many factors that go into a business continuity plan. 

Like other managed IT services, managed security services (MSS) is the outsourcing of network security services to an experienced service provider in an effort to tap into industry expertise and reduce costs. Managed security typically involves business risk assessments, network perimeter management, security monitoring, penetration testing and vulnerability assessments, and compliance monitoring. 

Outsourcing your IT has enormous benefits in cost savings when compared to hiring and training an internal IT staff. Competent IT professionals are hard to come by as well and outsourcing to a reputable managed services companies gives your business access to IT talent with an array of different specialty areas almost immediately. 

A service-level agreement is a business contract that solidifies a commitment between a managed IT provider and a client. An SLA will outline the quality, availability, and responsibilities that your IT vendor will supply. 

Yes. Ellsworth Technology Solutions interfaces with vendors more than most managed IT companies. 

Yes. IT vendors must also be compliant with HIPPA rules and regulation. Ellsworth Technology Solution is 100% HIPPA compliant which makes us the natural Managed IT firm for the healthcare industry. 

Yes. Because a BAA must be in place with any vendor or contractor with access to ePHI, we will ensure a BAA is in place to acknowledge that we abide by HIPAA regulations.  [Link to template]

Compliance as a Service is offered by cloud providers to help companies stay in compliance with legal requirements such as COBRA and HIPAA. With CaaS, your cloud provider provides you with cloud storage, backup services, and other managed IT services that are built inside a private cloud and conform to all rules, requirements, and regulations for a certain compliance set.