Checklist: Onboarding a Managed Service Provider for Your Tampa Business

Introduction

In today’s current threat landscape, businesses need more than an IT provider; they need a strong, proven IT and cybersecurity partner committed to their security and growth.

This is especially true for businesses in Tampa, Florida; when compared to other US states, Florida had the fourth-highest number of data breaches. The state is also considered the third-worst US state in terms of financial loss from cybercrime.

A Managed Service Provider (MSP) / Managed Security Service Provider (MSSP) can take the difficult work of managing IT and cybersecurity off of your team’s plate.

These dedicated partners understand the current threat landscape and often work with businesses similar to yours.

One local IT provider in Tampa is Miles IT, a company with over 25 years of experience helping businesses secure and modernize their IT infrastructure.

This checklist will help your Tampa business evaluate and onboard an MSP the right way. You’ll discover what to look out for and how you can start your partnership off securely and successfully.

In this article:

• Why properly onboarding your MSP matters
• The 5 phases of an MSP onboarding process
• A free MSP onboarding checklist

Why Properly Onboarding an MSP Matters for Tampa Businesses

For all businesses, it’s essential to onboard an MSP correctly and ensure they follow best practices for minimizing downtime, maintaining proper security protocols, and aligning with compliance standards.

These steps are crucial to keep your business operating smoothly, build trust with your MSP partner, and set a positive precedent for your future business relationship.

Costs of Disorganized Onboarding

Onboarding a new managed services provider for your business requires many steps; if they’re not done right, your business suffers the consequences.

Downtime

If new technology systems or deployments are rushed or not completed correctly, it can lead to system downtime and network interruptions.

When these outages last too long, it can affect employee productivity and customer operations.

Make sure that your MSP’s onboarding process involves workarounds to prevent extended downtime and keep your daily workflows running smoothly.

Data Breach/Security Issues

During onboarding, your MSP will transfer security responsibilities to their team. However, it’s important that security gaps aren’t left unattended during this migration process.

These gaps may include temporary firewall rules, one-time passwords, and incorrect access management protocols, which can have far-reaching effects.

Consider this: an EY report on government and public industry cyber trends in 2023 found that 75% of security weaknesses were caused by poor access management.

To combat these issues, ensure your MSP has robust documentation about each step they’re taking to strengthen your security.

Non-Compliance

When it comes to the handling of sensitive data like PHI, specific industries have very stringent standards.

Even though an MSP themselves may not fall within the purview of standards like HIPAA, they are considered a business associate if they work with a healthcare organization.

For instance, MSPs must follow the Security Rule and Breach Notification Rule as outlined by HIPAA if they work with healthcare clients.

If a healthcare client is onboarded without taking note of relevant HIPAA requirements, especially when it comes to data handling, it may result in fines or legal penalties.

Make sure that your MSP has a strong understanding of the applicable compliance regulations for your business, whether they be HIPAA, PCI, or another standard.

You can start by requesting references from other similar businesses who have worked with the MSP before to ensure they have relevant experience.

Benefits of a Streamlined MSP Onboarding Process

Taking an organized, methodical approach to MSP onboarding is essential to ensure a strong cybersecurity foundation, clear understanding of roles and responsibilities, and minimal downtime for your business.

Proper Security Protection

By following standardized onboarding procedures and taking a comprehensive approach to security, MSPs can resolve and prevent security gaps for your business.

This process includes proper verifications to ensure that all security settings, from network policies to access management, are properly set up and confirmed.

Plus, it creates a strong security basis so you can be sure you’re starting your partnership with a deeply secured IT environment.

Aligned Expectations

During an MSP onboarding process, you should finalize Service Level Agreements (SLAs) with your provider and ensure that their services line up with your expectations.

Taking time to clearly review documentation about their roles, services, and guarantees ensures that you’re on the same page from the start.

This approach sets the stage for a successful partnership by building mutual trust and understanding. This way, there are no surprises waiting down the line if an incident occurs.

Minimal Disruption

The best MSP onboarding process will reduce downtime for your systems and daily business operations except where absolutely necessary.

Project plans should include rollback procedures in case changes are required.

A “rollback” is essentially the reverse instructions—a clear, documented way to put everything back exactly how it was before the MSP made necessary changes.

Just like an MSP should prevent disruption to your business during their normal services, they should take steps to complete onboarding procedures in a reasonable timeframe that works well for your specific organization.

Advantages of Partnering with a Local MSP

Working with a local managed service provider results in a variety of benefits to help your business run more smoothly.

For instance, a local Tampa partner, like Miles IT, can provide faster onsite response capabilities when physical IT support is required.

This local expertise also translates to onboarding processes, allowing MSPs to effectively set up their clients for success both in person and remotely while adhering to the right requirements.

Understanding the Phases of MSP Onboarding Processes

The best MSP onboarding process should be thoroughly documented and communicated to ensure the client and the provider are on the same page. This often involves in-depth planning, technical work, training, and final reviews.

It’s crucial for your provider to take steps to minimize downtime for your business by following MSP onboarding best practices.

The best MSPs will be able to complete the transition quickly and efficiently, with the ability to accelerate implementation if necessary.

Later, we’ll share a sample MSP onboarding checklist that you can use when working with your new managed services provider.

Read on for an example of an MSP onboarding process and different steps you can expect to happen.

Sample Summary of MSP Onboarding:

Phase 1: Kickoff Meeting & Onboarding Planning

Introduce team members in a kickoff meeting and create a detailed transition plan.

Phase 2: Agent Deployment and Discovery/Information Gathering

Install agents across appropriate systems and gather information about the IT environment.

Phase 3: Technical Implementation & Testing

Deploy the technology stack and perform detailed testing and verification.

Phase 4: Client Training & Go-Live

Train employees on new IT policies and support processes and complete final launch steps.

Phase 5: Post-Onboarding Review & Continuous Improvement

Share a complete review of all systems and recommended next steps. Continue to review KPIs and satisfaction levels on an ongoing basis, including a formal meeting at the 3-6 month mark.

Phase 1 – Kickoff Meeting & Onboarding Planning

The first phase is centered around meeting your new team and planning the transition.

Kickoff Meeting

Most providers hold a kickoff meeting to introduce you to your new team and build familiarity. This is a great time to ask any lingering questions and seek additional clarification if needed.

Onboarding Planning

Next, it’s time to create a thorough project plan. Your MSP will create and share this proposal with you to clarify the timeline of certain implementations and outline the target completion date.

This plan includes timelines for tool deployment, information gathering, and analysis steps.

Phase 2 – Agent Deployment & Discovery/Information Gathering

In Phase 2, your MSP will deploy software agents and analyze your environment.

Agent Deployment

The MSP will deploy their RMM system and other agents to all of your business’s endpoints, including laptops, servers, and other devices.

Discovery & Information Gathering

The provider will also gather relevant information about your IT environment, like documenting various systems & applications and their usage.

Phase 3 – Technical Implementation & Testing

Phase 3 involves implementing the actual tech stack, performing security updates, and ensuring all systems function as planned.

Implement Technologies & Tools

The MSP will implement their technologies and install security tools in this step. They may also complete security updates if necessary.

Testing

At the end of Phase 3, your MSP will perform detailed testing to make sure every system and application works as intended.

Some companies will install tools on a smaller number of devices for a short period of time to ensure they integrate well with the user’s workflow and systems.

These users can let the MSP know if they experience issues before the tools are rolled out to everyone.

Phase 4 – Client Training & Go-Live

Next, the final transition takes place, with your users receiving training on working with the new MSP.

User Training

Your employees will learn how to reach out to the MSP to request support or report a suspicious incident. They’ll also gain understanding of any new or updated IT policies.

Final Launch

The formal transition from the old system to the new, MSP-run service will take place.

Phase 5 – Post-Onboarding Review & Continuous Improvement

The MSP onboarding process doesn’t end with the final launch. Ongoing review and continuous improvement is necessary to ensure your new managed services provider meets your business’s expectations.

Final Review

Your MSP will likely share a final review of all systems so you can gain utmost transparency.

90-180 Day Review

Your MSP may hold a formal review meeting within the first three to six months after launch, led by your primary point of contact.

In these meetings, the agenda may include relevant reports, outstanding technical issues, and a review of roles and responsibilities.

You may want to review key performance indicators (KPIs) like support ticket trends (including number of tickets and average response time), system performance, and employee satisfaction metrics.

It can also be helpful to share what aspects of the partnership are going well in addition to potential areas of improvement.

Continuous Monitoring

Consistent reports should be included to confirm your tech stack is functioning properly and your business is following best practices.

This way, your IT will continue to serve your business as your needs evolve and the landscape changes.

Documentation Maintenance

Any documentation should be accessible to both you and your MSP so they can be updated and revisited over time.

MSP Onboarding Checklist Summary

Keep this simple client onboarding checklist handy to ensure your MSP follows best practices during your transition.

• Onboarding Planning & Kickoff Completed
• Agent Deployment & Discovery/Information Gathering Finished
• Technical & Security Deployments Completed
• Testing & Verification Completed
• User Training & Final Launch Completed
• First 90-Day Review Scheduled
• Continuous Monitoring Enabled

The Miles IT Advantage

Miles IT is a local Tampa MSP with deep knowledge of the Florida business landscape and the ability to provide both remote and onsite support.

With our full suite of managed IT and security services, we’re ready to handle all of your IT needs, from 24/7 IT support and incident response to proactive monitoring and security.

Ready to successfully onboard your MSP and secure your Tampa business’s digital environment?

Schedule a security consultation now to discuss how you can streamline MSP onboarding and eliminate risks for your business.

Final Thought

By taking a thorough, detailed approach to MSP onboarding for your business, you’ll set the stage for a fruitful partnership that benefits your organization for years to come.

Taking a detail-oriented approach at the beginning ensures proper security, communication, and expectations from day 1.

If you’re looking for a knowledgeable, responsive partner with a proven track record of fast and effective onboarding procedures, reach out to Miles IT today.