A: There are typically 2 ways of SMEs subscribing to IT Support; Time and Materials and a monthly retainer/contract. The former is self-explanatory; is ad hoc and in most case unplanned for and the latter gives you improved predictability of cost and you would also expect a responsive service.

Traditional IT companies operate on a reactive basis for a fixed monthly fee. You only call them when you have to and in some months you may use them more than others. Response times are on a best endeavours basis because the amount of technical resource readily available is very limited. No routine maintenance on the network is performed which is often the root cause of the problems.

Businesses are moving away from this way of being supported as it does not improve their ability to manage their IT effectively. The reason IT companies still operate this model is that they don't want to have to commit to a certain amount of regular tasks because of the overhead to manage this process – despite an improved IT network resulting in less calls!

Pro-active IT companies will perform a series of scheduled monthly tasks in order to maintain the IT network. Tasks include ensuring your data is backed up each night; all the latest updates have been applied i.e. anti-virus and Microsoft etc.

It's like having your car serviced regularly to avoid any time consuming breakdowns for you to complete your journey.

In addition to this the network will also be monitored and managed to minimise the impact of any loss of services. The rationale behind this is for the IT Company to reduce the number of support calls through pro-actively managing your IT. This results in them becoming more effective with the end users having a more robust and efficient network supporting their core activities.

Additional services should include a Service Level Agreement and reports detailing the work, including pro-active tasks, giving you a much better insight into your IT and allowing you to plan much further ahead than you have been use to in the past.

Which business would not want a pro-active approach if there is no cost difference?