Break Fix vs Managed Services – What’s the Difference?

Interested to learn more about the difference between Break Fix vs Managed Services?Most companies are now entirely reliant on their IT infrastructure, and as they continue to grow, will face a decision about how to manage maintenance and any problems that arise. These can quickly overwhelm a business, and whilst larger companies can justify the substantial cost of their own in-house IT department, small to medium-sized businesses will often find outsourcing IT support and infrastructure most cost effective.This means engaging the services of a specialist IT support company who - broadly speaking, will either tackle problems as they arise - the break/fix approach; or provide around-the-clock managed services.

Break Fix vs Managed Services Explained

Break Fix Model

In the break fix model, a problem can’t be fixed until it arises, and when it does, suppliers usually charge by the hour for each support call they manage. The supplier will send a technician to your site, investigate the problem, provide fixes, and charge for the time required.The charges for the work might vary according to the different sorts of support required. For example, networking issues could require changes to the underlying networking software; the end-user’s configurations; their system or application software; or any of the different pieces of hardware involved, including cabling and routers. These each require different sorts of interventions, take more or less time to fix, and can often interfere with the normal operations of your business.Break Fix AdvantagesOne of the main advantages to the break fix model is that the break fix approach in the short term, can be a cheap option financially; If everything works and you never need support, then there’s no charge. If your company and IT infrastructure is only quite small and fairly simple, then break/fix may well be a cost-effective option over/time.

Managed Services Model

By contrast, a Managed Services Provider (MSP) takes a proactive approach to managing your IT needs and seeks to address issues before they become critical system failures.An MSP will use continual Remote Monitoring and Management (RMM) to identify the needs of all the specialized IT issues that arise in the modern workplace.Managed Services AdvantagesThe biggest advantages of managed services is the very different and proactive approach in which an MSP will address hardware maintenance, software updates, security, desktop support calls, networking and all the other specialized IT issues that arise.Their Remote Monitoring and Management systems underpin the approach by allowing issues to be identified early and tackled before they become a problem - usually outside of normal office hours so there is no interruption to your normal business processes.The approach is good for budgeting too, because with regular maintenance there are far fewer failures, IT expenditure can be fixed, and most importantly - critical failures are generally avoided so there is little or no impact on normal business operations.This is why the industry is moving away from the reactive break fix model and fully embracing the managed services model instead. A managed IT solutions provider takes care of all your IT problems, allowing you to focus on your business.

Interested to Learn More?

To learn more about Break Fix vs Managed Services or how soma can help your business manage its IT needs, call us today 1300 131 559 or get in touch with our team online.