Building a strong IT team can be a challenge for small businesses. With limited resources and increasing technological demands, many struggle to maintain their systems, ensure cybersecurity, and keep up with evolving tech trends. This is where co-managed IT services come into play. By partnering with an external IT provider, small businesses can gain access to a wealth of expertise and support while still retaining control over essential operations.

Co-managed IT services help bridge the gap between in-house teams and specialized external resources, leading to a more agile and efficient IT infrastructure. This partnership enhances system performance and security and provides businesses with the flexibility to scale their IT capabilities as needed. Consult with Managed IT Services New Jersey experts to enhance your IT team’s efficiency, security, and scalability with co-managed IT services.

In this blog, we will explore co-managed IT services and steps to build stronger IT teams that enhance business infrastructure and overall performance.

What Are Co-Managed IT Services?

Co-managed IT services involve a collaborative relationship between a small business’s in-house IT team and an outside IT service provider. This setup enables enterprises to utilize specialized knowledge and resources while controlling essential operations. It improves IT efficiency, boosts security, and facilitates better technology infrastructure management without requiring a completely outsourced IT department.

10 Steps to Building a Stronger Co-Managed IT Team

Creating a robust co-managed IT team is essential for small businesses that need the flexibility and expertise of an external provider while maintaining control over their internal operations. The collaboration between internal IT staff and external experts can lead to more effective management, better performance, and a more substantial IT infrastructure. Here are ten steps to build a stronger co-managed IT team:

• Define Roles and Responsibilities Clearly

A successful co-managed IT partnership begins with clarity. Internal and external teams must have a well-defined understanding of their respective roles and responsibilities. Without this, confusion can arise, leading to inefficiencies, delays, or even costly errors.

• Internal IT Team: Often focuses on day-to-day tasks, business-specific needs, and immediate troubleshooting.
• External IT Service Provider: Brings specialized expertise, handles complex tasks, and manages systems or security that require advanced skills.

Clearly defining each team’s scope of work helps avoid overlap, establishes accountability, and ensures smooth collaboration.

• Set Clear Goals and Objectives

Establishing shared goals is crucial for success in any partnership, and the co-managed IT model is no exception. Both teams should align on the outcomes they want to achieve and how to measure success. This will keep the teams on track, enhance communication, and prioritize tasks effectively.

• Examples of Goals: Improve system uptime, reduce response times, increase data security, and streamline tech support processes.
• KPIs: Set key performance indicators (KPIs) to track progress toward these goals, such as incident response times or system performance metrics.

With clearly set objectives, the teams will work toward a unified vision, ensuring both parties stay focused on what matters most to the business.

• Foster Open and Ongoing Communication

Communication is the foundation of any successful collaboration. A co-managed IT team can only thrive if internal and external teams share information openly and consistently. This fosters trust, helps quickly identify potential issues, and streamlines troubleshooting processes.

• Regular Meetings: Schedule weekly or bi-weekly meetings to discuss ongoing projects, system updates, or challenges.
• Collaboration Tools: Use platforms like Slack, Microsoft Teams, or project management tools (e.g., Trello, Jira) to facilitate real-time communication and document updates.

By prioritizing communication, both teams can stay in sync, tackle problems proactively, and easily keep projects on schedule.

• Implement Comprehensive Security Practices

Security is a critical aspect of any IT strategy, and with a co-managed team, both parties need to work together to ensure systems are secure. A joint effort in cybersecurity can help protect sensitive business data, prevent breaches, and maintain compliance with regulations. 

• Internal Team: Should monitor day-to-day security protocols and handle immediate threats
• External IT Provider: Often responsible for implementing advanced security measures, conducting audits, and maintaining up-to-date defense systems.

To strengthen defenses, internal and external teams should collaborate on data encryption, network monitoring, and regular security assessments.

• Develop and Maintain a Disaster Recovery Plan

Disaster recovery is one area where having a co-managed IT team can significantly benefit a business. Both teams should jointly develop a comprehensive disaster recovery (DR) plan to ensure minimal disruption in case of a cyberattack, system failure, or natural disaster.

• Internal Team: Should be familiar with day-to-day recovery procedures and act as the first line of defense.
• External IT Provider: Can provide expert advice on backup solutions, testing the DR plan, and ensuring all systems are recoverable in an emergency.

Make sure your disaster recovery plan is regularly reviewed and tested to ensure it can effectively minimize downtime and business impact during a crisis.

• Define Service Level Agreements (SLAs)

Service Level Agreements (SLAs) outline the expectations for both teams regarding response times, issue resolution, and system performance. Having clear SLAs ensures that both the internal and external IT teams are on the same page and provides a benchmark to measure performance.

• Response Times: Define how quickly the external IT provider should respond to issues, including urgent requests.
• Resolution Times: Set expectations for how quickly issues should be resolved based on severity.

SLAs help create a sense of accountability, ensuring both parties understand their roles and the timeline for delivering services.

• Integrate IT Tools and Platforms

Using integrated IT tools is essential to streamline communication, ensure consistent performance tracking, and avoid data silos. Whether it’s a shared ticketing system, network monitoring tools, or project management software, integration fosters a more cohesive working relationship between internal and external teams.

• Shared Access: Both teams should have access to the same set of tools to monitor system performance, track helpdesk tickets, and view updates.
• Cloud Collaboration: Utilize cloud-based solutions that can be accessed remotely, ensuring that both teams are always connected.

Integrated tools create a centralized hub for IT operations, enabling faster decision-making and smoother collaboration.

• Ensure Continuous Knowledge Sharing

One significant benefit of a co-managed IT arrangement is the opportunity for knowledge sharing between internal and external teams. By fostering an environment of continuous learning, both teams can enhance their skill sets, stay up-to-date with new technologies, and improve their ability to tackle challenges.

• Joint Training Sessions: Schedule regular workshops or training sessions where both teams can learn new skills, technologies, or best practices.
• Documentation: Maintain a shared knowledge base or Wiki where both teams can contribute insights, troubleshooting guides, and processes.

Continuous knowledge sharing strengthens the overall IT capability and ensures both teams can respond to issues quickly and effectively.

• Build a Collaborative IT Culture

To truly succeed in a co-managed IT setup, it’s essential to cultivate a collaborative culture where both teams work together as one unit rather than in silos. You can foster a positive, productive working relationship by encouraging mutual respect, trust, and open dialogue.

• Team-Building Activities: Whether virtual or in-person, team-building activities can help strengthen relationships and create a sense of camaraderie.
• Celebrate Successes: Acknowledge and celebrate milestones, such as a successful system upgrade or issue resolution. Recognizing achievements boosts morale and reinforces teamwork.

A collaborative culture will help both teams focus on the big picture and work together toward shared success.

• Conduct Regular Performance Reviews

Regular performance reviews are crucial to ensuring that the co-managed IT team remains effective. These reviews help assess whether the collaboration is achieving the desired outcomes, identify areas for improvement, and keep both teams aligned with business goals.

• Feedback Loops: Provide regular feedback to both internal and external teams to address any issues and improve processes.
• Continuous Improvement: Use reviews to identify areas for optimization, whether improving response times, enhancing security protocols, or adopting new tools.

Regular performance reviews are key to evolving the partnership and making data-driven improvements.

Final Thoughts

Co-managed IT services provide small businesses with a substantial opportunity to enhance their IT teams by merging the expertise of in-house staff with the specialized knowledge of external providers. This collaborative approach enables enterprises to improve security, optimize performance, and scale efficiently without the burden of managing every technical detail. Small businesses can develop a more agile and effective IT team that supports long-term growth and success by following the steps outlined in this guide, such as defining roles, setting clear goals, fostering communication, and prioritizing security.