How to Hire the Right IT Professional for Your Business

As your business grows You will require an IT professional to manage and oversee your technology. It is crucial to make efficient use of your time and protect company data. This is why it is important to hire the right IT professionals to ensure that everything runs smoothly.

An IT professional is more than just able to fix a problem. They also monitor your technology in order to prevent future problems. It can be difficult to attract and retain the best IT team.

You can help yourself by learning what to look for. Continue reading to learn how to hire IT professional in Charleston SC to your company (and to ensure that you hire the right ones).

Four Questions to Consider when Hiring IT Professional Support for Your Business

1. When is the best time to hire an IT professional?
2. What are your IT needs right now?
3. What should you look out for when looking for IT professionals?
4. What type of service provider should you choose? Should you hire staff in-house or a managed provider?

1. What are the Best Times to Hire an IT Professional?

When is it the right time for IT professionals to be hired? Some people prefer to wait until they reach certain milestones like when their company has reached a certain number.

But that is not the only indicator of need. If the patchwork solution that you are using is not sufficient to meet your daily needs, it’s time to hire IT services Charleston SC.

Skilled IT professionals are in high demand, so it’s best to act quickly. But, this doesn’t mean you should hire the first person you meet.

How to Find Candidates

Networking is the one way for you to find out who’s available and willing to do the job. To gauge the state of the job market, talk to people from your industry and attend conferences. Make an offer if you find someone you like who has all the skills that you are looking for.

It is time-consuming to research and create a hiring strategy. You might consider hiring a professional recruitment agency to assist you. They can help you locate the right resources and contacts. It is a costly investment, but the savings you make by allowing them to sort through the applications will pay off. Their expertise allows you to focus on your core business: running your company.

2. What are my current IT needs?

Consider your needs when hiring IT professionals or teams. You will get the right people if you know what you are looking for.

Here are some things to consider

When determining your IT needs, consider:

• Your systems’ complexity and the skills required to manage them
• Expanding your business means hiring new employees or opening new locations.
• You have projects in the works and you are looking to increase redundancy for critical applications and servers.

You should look for IT support professionals who are experienced in the areas that you require assistance. An IT professional with expertise in DNS-based security solutions is required if you are looking to improve network security. You can also look for hosted email solutions by hiring someone who has experience with solutions such as Microsoft’s Hosted Exchange.

You must look beyond the immediate needs and consider what support you will need in the future. It will save you a lot of trouble down the line by planning for the future.

3. What should I look for when looking for IT help?

Graduates can gain a solid foundation in the IT industry by earning a Bachelor’s degree in Computer Science or Management Information Systems. There are also excellent two-year technical college diplomas which provide an IT education.

These degrees and diplomas might not be necessary for IT professionals. These certificate or degree programs are not a waste of time. However, IT professionals who have experience are more in demand these days.

Doug Garrard is the Senior Field Services Manager for Eastern Canada Critical Power and Cooling at Schneider Electric. He has extensive experience in hiring IT professionals. “When it comes down to education vs. IT experience, I tend towards the experience side.”

Garrard believes education is an asset but real-world experience is far more valuable. “I need people who think quickly, can act quickly and are able to adapt to changing circumstances. This comes from experience.”

You want the best experience possible

How can you tell if someone has the experience that you need? You might consider adding a second part to your application that applies the skills you are looking for, even though they may appear impressive on paper.

You could ask a candidate to set up a computer, configure and install software, establish IT security protocols and install a router. You should look beyond the ones who do the job and consider the ones who return with suggestions or questions.

Soft skills are equally important as technical knowledge. Without communication skills, technical skills are useless. You want someone outgoing, confident, problem-solver, and eager to take the reins of a new project.

Ask questions

Practical tests are not always able to give you the right information in certain areas. It is important to ask specific questions when you are trying to determine if someone is the right match. Ask these questions:

• How do you handle internal tech support requests?
• How flexible are you? What hours are you available to answer the phone?
• How would you handle data recovery and backup?
• How can you keep up with industry standards?
• How can you increase and maintain the security of our technology?

Ask lots of questions to ensure you have covered all bases.

4. Do I hire in-house staff or a managed service provider?

This is a fascinating question that sparks much discussion. There are certainly arguments for both sides. You will be impacted by the cost and quality of your services, so it is important to understand the differences between them.

Cost differences

• Full-time, experienced IT professionals are highly sought after, so they can expect higher salaries. The expected salary can vary depending on experience.
• The average annual salary for a Computer/Network Support Technician is $43,501.00, or approximately $21/hr.
• An experienced network administrator earns approximately $53,666.00 per year, or $26/hour.
• These numbers are not insignificant for a small to medium-sized business. If they have the technical knowhow to keep things running smoothly, and the leadership skills to improve the processes, it can be worthwhile.

A Managed Services Provider (MSP), on the other hand, can be less depending on the size and complexity of the client. An MSP doesn’t come with employee overhead costs such as pensions, sick days, vacations, and benefits. There are no additional costs for remote monitoring or replacement of hardware or software.

Outsourced IT teams have the added advantage of only getting paid as they work. This allows your company to grow incrementally and you only pay what you use. The cost of a new hire to an in-house IT team may be high due to the large leaps in salary. But cost is just one factor when deciding whether to hire an IT team in-house or a managed service provider.

There are other considerations than cost

Many companies believe that having an IT department in-house gives them greater control over their technical operations. They are able to gain a deeper understanding of the company’s infrastructure, immediate requirements, and internal politics. They can quickly respond to any problems that may arise. Many companies have complex systems that require a full-time staff to understand.

In-house staff can be too inexperienced or too skilled to handle complex tasks. An MSP or managed service provider, on the other hand, gives you access to a wider range of people. This ensures that there is always enough staff to manage day-to-day operations as well as to work on other projects. The expertise you receive ranges from entry-level to CTO.

An excellent MSP will have all the skills you need and will take proactive steps to avoid problems. This helps to reduce downtime and keep your business running smoothly. An MSP also has the purchasing power to access the best tools, as they manage multiple workstations.

An MSP is able to provide remote support that is better than a head office IT department, especially if there are multiple locations. They will have both a dedicated remote team and a dedicated team in the field.

You can have both!

You may need to combine in-house support with outsourced assistance (co-managed IT Services). This combination could give you the level of support and efficiency that you require. While the internal team is responsible for managing systems and day to day operations, an external team assists them with their technical skills and monitors their technology. As not all skills are required, this framework allows you scale support according to your needs.

Hire the right IT professional.

You have many options when it comes to hiring IT personnel for your growing business. This is one of your most important business decisions. It is worth learning how to assess your options. It is important to be educated before you can make an informed decision about hiring IT professionals.

The success of your business depends on smooth operations. A good IT professional can keep you from tech-related headaches or interruptions. For help in assessing your IT needs and exploring possible IT solutions, contact SpartanTec in Charleston SC today.

SpartanTec, Inc.
Charleston, SC 29407
843-418-4792
https://manageditservicescharleston.com/

Serving: Myrtle Beach, North Myrtle Beach, Columbia, Wilmington, Fayetteville, Florence, Charleston

Woodhaven, Lighthouse Point, Farmington, Lynnwood, Hillside, Oak Forest, Oceanview, Mount Pleasant, Green Acres, Northbridge