Over the years, IT has evolved from a basic support function to a critical driver of competitive advantage. However, for many small and mid-sized organizations, building and maintaining a robust and resilient in-house IT department presents a daunting–some might say insurmountable–challenge. It’s like that expression about building a plane while flying it: you’re managing complex systems and putting out fires, while you’re also trying to chart a strategic course for the future.
This is where co-managed IT services offer a compelling potential solution. At its core, the co-managed model is all about partnership. It’s an approach that allows your internal IT team to collaborate with an external squad of specialized experts, giving you the best of both worlds.
Think of it like a relay race. Your in-house team runs the first leg, maintaining a deep understanding of your unique business needs. Then they pass the baton to your co-managed partner, who brings a fresh burst of speed in the form of technical expertise and scalable resources. Together, they carry your IT strategy across the finish line.
Key Benefits of the Co-Managed IT and Cybersecurity Model
Co-managed IT services offer a powerful blend of flexibility, expertise, and strategic support, enabling organizations to optimize their technology initiatives in a highly targeted way. By leveraging co-managed services, businesses can tap into a wealth of benefits that would be difficult to achieve through a purely in-house approach. Here are the top four benefits:
Cost-effective, Specialized Expertise
Co-managed IT allows organizations to augment their internal capabilities with targeted external support, providing economical access to niche skills and experience.
Improved Efficiency and Reliability
By leveraging the best practices and collective knowledge of a co-managed partner, businesses can streamline processes, reduce downtime, and ensure consistent performance.
Enhanced Cybersecurity and Compliance
Co-managed providers bring a deep understanding of the ever-changing threat landscape, helping organizations fortify their defenses and navigate complex regulatory requirements.
Improved Focus on Strategic Initiatives
With day-to-day IT operations in capable hands, internal teams are freed up to concentrate on high-impact projects that drive business value. In essence, the co-managed model empowers organizations to fill gaps, extend capabilities, and scale resources in a highly agile manner – all while maintaining strategic control and oversight.
James Rich, TMG’s VP of Managed Services, underscores the strategic power of this approach: “Co-managed services offer an attractive middle ground between the traditional in-house IT model and fully outsourced arrangements. By providing targeted expertise and flexible support, co-managed partnerships enable organizations to optimize resources, improve performance, and drive digital transformation.”
Master the three “R’s:” Readiness, Resiliency, and Robustness
Co-managed services are the most efficient and affordable way to build your organization’s readiness for projects and incident response, strengthen its resiliency in both technical and human resources, and build depth-of-bench and expert capacity to take on any challenge.
Pain Points for Growing Businesses
For many organizations, IT management can feel like a high-stakes juggling act. As businesses grow, their technology needs become more complex, but their resources often struggle to keep pace, all the while cybersecurity risk keeps increasing. This can lead to a host of pain points that, if left unaddressed, can severely hinder efficiency, agility, and overall business success.
Some of the most common IT challenges faced by growing businesses include:
Difficulty Attracting and Retaining Top IT Talent
Smaller organizations often struggle to compete with the salaries, benefits, and career development opportunities offered by larger enterprises, making it challenging to build and maintain a skilled in-house IT team.
Lack of Bandwidth to Support Strategic Initiatives
When IT staff are constantly firefighting and struggling to keep up with day-to-day operations, they have little capacity to focus on forward-looking projects that could drive innovation and competitive advantage.
Constantly Evolving Cybersecurity Threats
The cyberthreat landscape is becoming increasingly complex and fast-moving, requiring specialized expertise and constant vigilance to keep data and systems secure.
Pressure to “Optimize” IT Budgets
As businesses grow, so too does the pressure to do more with less – IT leaders must find ways to maximize the impact of their technology investments while minimizing costs.
Taken together, all these pain points can create a vicious cycle, where IT teams are so busy reacting to immediate needs that they can’t invest in the strategies and solutions that could alleviate the underlying problems. The situation can frustrate even your best people, potentially inspiring them to look for less stressful work elsewhere. This is where the co-managed IT model can be a game-changer.
By providing flexible access to specialized expertise, co-managed services can help growing businesses break free from the limitations of their in-house resources. This approach allows organizations to fill skill gaps, reduce the burden on internal staff, and ensure that critical systems are always expertly monitored and maintained. Most importantly, it frees up internal teams to focus on the strategic initiatives that will propel the business forward.
In essence, co-managed IT is about empowering growing organizations to tackle their most pressing technology challenges in a sustainable, strategic way. By leveraging the right mix of internal and external expertise, businesses can optimize their IT operations, enhance their cybersecurity posture, and drive innovation – all while keeping costs under control.
Frequently Asked Questions About Co-Managed IT Services:
How does co-managed IT and cybersecurity work in practice? What does the day-to-day collaboration look like?
In the co-managed model, your internal IT team and external provider work as a unified squad, strategically dividing responsibilities based on expertise and bandwidth. On a daily basis, this looks like fluid communication, shared project management tools, and regular check-ins to align priorities. Your co-managed partner acts as a seamless extension of your team, providing tactical support and strategic insights in lockstep with your in-house staff. It’s a dynamic, collaborative approach that adapts to your unique needs and rhythms.
Won’t we lose control over our IT strategy and decisions by partnering with an external provider?
Absolutely not. The co-managed model is designed to empower, not replace, your internal IT leadership. You maintain full strategic oversight and decision-making authority, while your co-managed partner provides complementary expertise and execution support. Think of it like the relationship between a CEO and a trusted advisor – your provider brings valuable insights and recommendations to the table, but ultimately, you steer the ship. It’s a partnership in the truest sense, built on transparency, trust, and shared goals.
How can we ensure that a co-managed provider will understand our unique business needs and challenges?
The key is in the onboarding process. A reputable co-managed provider will invest significant time upfront to learn your business inside and out – your goals, your challenges, your systems, your culture. They’ll conduct in-depth assessments, interview stakeholders, and review documentation to gain a comprehensive understanding of your IT landscape. This discovery phase lays the foundation for a partnership that is tailored to your specific context. And of course, the learning doesn’t stop there – through ongoing collaboration and communication, your provider will continue to deepen their understanding of your evolving needs.
How can co-managed IT and cybersecurity help us balance cost optimization with strategic technology investments?
Co-managed IT is all about smart resource allocation. By leveraging external expertise for routine maintenance, troubleshooting, and project-based work, you can free up your internal team to focus on higher-value strategic initiatives. Your co-managed partner can also bring a fresh perspective on optimizing your IT spending – identifying areas of inefficiency, recommending cost-saving solutions, and helping you prioritize investments based on business impact. It’s about getting the most bang for your IT buck, while still driving innovation and growth. Plus, the flexibility of the co-managed model allows you to scale resources up or down as needs change, so you’re never paying for more than you need.
Level-Up Your IT Game
At the end of the day, co-managed IT is about partnership in the purest sense. It’s a way to augment your internal capabilities with external expertise, so you can tackle technology challenges and opportunities with greater agility, resilience, and innovation. With the right partner, you can optimize your IT operations, enhance your cybersecurity posture, and drive strategic value – all while maintaining control over your technology destiny.
Of course, co-managed IT requires careful planning, clear communication, and a willingness to embrace a new way of working. To truly leverage the potential of this model, organizations must find a provider who deeply understands their unique needs, challenges, and goals. The right partner is more than just an extra pair of hands–it’s a key strategic ally.
But for organizations that get it right, the benefits can be game-changing. If you’re looking to level up your IT game without breaking the bank or losing autonomy, co-managed services are worth exploring. Just remember – not all providers are created equal. Look for a partner who takes the time to truly understand your business, who is transparent about their processes and deliverables, and who is committed to your success for the long haul.
Explore more articles by Chris Moschovitis:
A Cybersecurity Reckoning: It’s Time to Demand Genuine Accountability
Unmasking Algorithmic Bias: Hidden Injustices within AI
Explore TMG story:
I am certified in Cybersecurity (CSX, CISM), Enterprise IT Governance (CGEIT), Data Privacy Solutions Engineering (CDPSE), and as a Certified Information Privacy Professional (CIPP/US). I am also an active member of organizations including ISACA, IAPP, and ISSA. In 2018, my book Cybersecurity Program Development for Business: The Essential Planning Guide was published by Wiley to critical acclaim. My second book, Privacy, Regulations, and Cybersecurity: The Essential Planning Guide, received an equally positive reception upon its release by Wiley in 2021. Additionally, I co-authored History of the Internet: 1843 to the Present and contributed to the Encyclopedia of Computers and Computer History as well as the Encyclopedia of New Media.
