As discussed last week, there are a variety of challenges that come with retaining and managing top-level enterprise software technical resources, whether for Perceptive Content or nearly any other ERP or ECM solution. It is of the utmost importance to retain either direct employees or outside resources or consultants who have the right skills and experience for the unique software combinations that form your environment. RPI Consultants’ managed services offerings are flexible and cost-effective, which help our clients focus on their core business processes by putting their system in the hands of a team that has implemented, supported, and done all of this before. So, what should be included in a managed services offering, and what should be left out?
Let’s start with what managed services is not, which is a Support and Maintenance Service Agreement, otherwise known as an SMSA. These are standard license agreements with vendors that clients sign, typically with the software manufacturer, to ensure the support and maintenance of their solution. Having an active SMSA is oftentimes required when purchasing enterprise software. This type of agreement allows RPI to support standard software issues that may occur, and ensure you have timely access to fixes and patches.
However, SMSA support does not include standard troubleshooting or enhancements. A managed services contract is also not pay as you go or ad hoc support. Usually (but not always), ad hoc support is contractually drawn up with a specific goal in mind, whereas Managed Services further enables your team to derive maximum value from a software investment, even if your team is not yet sure how that value may be gleaned.
Hope to see you back here next week, when we will continue to look at how Managed Services offerings can assist you!
