IT issues can significantly affect your business and profitability, so the technical support you receive can impact whether your company succeeds. Regarding support options, the two most common are Break-Fix or Managed IT Services. The following will discuss aspects of both and which one you should choose.

Break-Fix Approach

Tech can be very costly, leading many business owners to go down a road that may even add more costs. They think that it is more advantageous to spend a lot of money up front on hardware and software and trust that their big investment will result in fewer issues and downtime. Should there be problems, the team will then handle them as they come up.

Some organizations will be lucky and not face major issues until they upgrade. However, for some, a perfect storm can come out of nowhere with many problems and be very expensive to fix.

The above is essentially the Break-Fix approach. A company spends substantially on CAPEX (capital expenditure) to maintain its IT infrastructure. Afterward, they do hardly any maintenance until there is a technical issue. It is not proactive but reactive. It is also not cost-effective.

Break-Fix Costs

The break-fix approach can be costly for several reasons. Corrupt software, data breaches, and downtime will affect your employees, customers, or clients. Aside from losing money, your company’s reputation can be damaged by lengthy service interruptions.

Tech issues must not be neglected and must be addressed as soon as possible. However, preventative measures are even better for ensuring business continuity. Unfortunately, break-fix does not include maintenance. If you have a tech problem on a national holiday, having it diagnosed and repaired immediately can result in a huge bill.

Part 2 will discuss Managed IT Services.

Alpha Business Support

Choosing an expert computer technology support provider is important for your business. Alpha has been a trusted partner of many companies in the Washington, D.C., Baltimore, and Annapolis areas since 1990 and offers:

• 24/7 Managed Services for Business Computing Systems

• Network and Mobile Computing Support

• Disaster Recovery Planning

• Software Development

For affordable client-focused network consulting services and solutions, please call Alpha today at (410) 295-9500.