M & A Rainmaker

365 In The Main Steam ( ITMS ) is a global awareness service for I.T. Managed Services Updates and Information.

Having established the Managed Network Services Division of Voyager Internet and Networks in the mid to late nineties I will be posting a series here about the very latest news and information on what is happening in the Managed Services industry.

Managed Services is a 365 days a year 24 hours a day business that has evolved from the provision and management of IP Networks to the cloud based services of today.

365 In the Main Stream ( ITMS ) is about products and services that are in the main stream of the IT Managed Services business.

Managed services is the practice of transferring day-to-day related management responsibility as a strategic method for improved effective and efficient operations inclusive of Production Support and lifecycle build/maintenance activities. The person or organization who owns or has direct oversight of the organization or system being managed is referred to as the offer-er, client, or customer. The person or organization that accepts and provides the managed service is regarded as the service provider.

Typically, the offer-er remains accountable for the functionality and performance of managed service and does not relinquish the overall management responsibility of the organization or system.

Common managed services

Common managed services include but are not limited to:

• Applications
• Databases
• Transportation
• Postage
  • Courier
  • Registered Post
• Water
• Power
• Information Services
  • Backup
  • Storage
  • Security
  • 24/7/365 Monitoring
  • Network Management
  • User Management
  • Systems Management
  • Software – Production Support and maintenance
• Business-to-Business Integration
  • Supply Chain Management
• Communication Services
  • Internet (provided by an Internet service provider)
  • Telephone (typically provided by a telephone company)
  • TelePresence (provided by a TelePresence Managed Service Provider)
  • Videoconferencing (provided by a Video Conference Managed Service Provider or by a Video Managed Service Provider)
• Media
• Supply Chain Management Services

Managed services provider

A managed services provider (MSP), is typically an information technology (IT) services provider, who manages and assumes responsibility for providing a defined set of services to their clients either proactively or as they (not the client) determine that the services are needed. Most MSPs bill an upfront setup or Transition and an ongoing flat or near-fixed monthly fee, which benefits their clients by providing them with predictable IT support costs.

In general

The business model behind managed services has been commonplace among enterprise level companies. The model has also been adapted to fit small to medium sized companies by the value-added reseller(VAR) community as they evolved to provide more consistent budgeting and higher levels of service to small businesses and mid-size enterprises.

See also

• Application service provider
• Customer service
• Enterprise architecture
• Service (economics)
• Service economy
• Services marketing
• Service design
• Service provider
• Service Science, Management and Engineering
• Service system
• Web service
• Technical support

see

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Managed_services

for more information and links.