Managed Services Q & A
*Where did the idea for the Managed Services offering originate and how long did it take to build it to its current state?
The Managed Services offering got its start at the end of 2013. However, the idea originated several years prior to that. Our clients had been asking for us to provide ongoing support after we completed projects for them. Our current client list is nine and growing, and we are now averaging 400 hours of support per month.
*Describe some of the different ways Managed Support is used by clients.
We want to be flexible with our clients. Some clients primarily use Managed Services to request work on support issues. Others want us to use the hours to work on enhancements to their systems. Still other clients want to use those hours for consulting services. Most use a combination of all these services.
Currently, we provide support for BizTalk, SharePoint, Mobile and Office 365 – Virtual Admin. We are interested in expanding these offerings to include other technologies such as .NET, database, business intelligence and more.
*In your opinion, what is the biggest single benefit to the Managed Services offering? What makes it unique from what other companies may offer?
The biggest benefit to our clients is the assurance that SPR Consulting is able to utilize the depth of its technology expertise to provide advisory and support services beyond projects with defined life cycles. We are interested in establishing ongoing and long term relationships with our clients. By maintaining these relationships, we can assist clients in making decisions regarding technology trends and best practices that fit their business needs. Our goal is to become a business partner to every client.
*What is a typical day like in your role?
A typical day involves monitoring client-entered tickets, keeping tabs on hours utilized and hours forecasted for each client, conducting weekly and monthly status meetings, coordinating and communicating with staff, client site visits and working on support and advisory tickets.
*What have been the biggest successes and biggest challenges related to Managed Services?
The biggest success has been witnessing the growth of our Managed Services offering. Clearly, we are meeting our clients’ expectations. The biggest challenge has been coordinating support and project work among our staff.
For our clients, we hope that the biggest success is their ability to rely on the depth of industry knowledge and experience that SPR Consulting provides. We are encouraged by the fact that many of our current clients have extended their engagements into 2015.
*How can clients find out more about Managed Services and determine whether this offering would be beneficial to them?
If you are a current client of SPR Consulting, you can ask your Business Development Manager for more information and/or an in-person presentation to see if this offering is right for you. Otherwise, you can contact me, Joe Sodora at joe.sodora@spr.com