When things in life are moving along smoothly, people tend to become complacent. Complacency occurs in organisations where different providers 'put their head in the sand' and you don't hear from them for a while, they think they're doing a good job and you're too busy to chase them up so they're satisifed.
This type of complacency may be alright for your office water cooler supplies, but for something as vital as your IT, complacency is not an option. The second your IT starts to slip, chances of your information and business being susceptible to infiltration increases, drastically.
If you’ve been with your IT provider for a while and you don’t hear from them that often, this could be a potentially worrying sign. Maybe it’s time for you to engage with them, see what they’re up-to and quiz them about what they are going to do for your business.
- What happens if my service goes down, what’s your plan to ensure my business is still up and running?
Knowing the contingency plan that your provider has for your business is of utmost importance, if your business goes down you’re losing money, simple as that.
- Are you a Quality Assured provider?
Quality Assurance ISO 9001 is a Quality Management System based on seven key principles:
- Customer focused
- Leadership
- Engagement of people
- Process approach
- Improvement
- Evidence based decision making
- Relationship Management
Only the most trusted and reputable providers are Certified by this particular type of QMS, to learn more about this click here. Ensuring that your provider is certified means that you can rest assured that they are being held to strict competency standards.
- Looking to the future, what suggestions do you have on ways that I can improve and streamline my business?
Your provider should be able to answer this question with little to no difficulties, they should have already offered suggestions on how the latest tech can help you grow and move forward with your business.
- Do you have any recommendations on how I can use my existing technology to reduce my overall business cost?
Like the previous question an insightful and informed IT Provider will be able to give you a clear answer to your question and guide you in the right direction with your technological decision making.
The one thing that you have to remember is that your IT provider is there for you, to provide you with guidance to steer your technology towards a better more efficient infrastructure.
If you’re not satisfied with your IT providers answers to these simple questions, you need to start quizzing other IT providers who can give you the answers that you require.