How to Reduce Downtime and Security Risks with Managed IT Services
Managed IT services reduce downtime by providing business continuity systems, including backup and recovery plans, stronger cybersecurity solutions, 24/7 proactive support, employee awareness training, and more.
Reducing downtime means investing in your IT. It means keeping your computers running at their best, setting up business continuity systems like backup software, layering your cybersecurity defenses, and training your employees.
If that sounds like too much to handle on your own, then don’t worry. That’s exactly where a managed service provider (MSP) comes in. In this blog we’ll show you exactly how managed IT services can reduce downtime and security risks.
Key takeaways
- Managed IT services reduce downtime through proactive monitoring, routine maintenance, 24/7 support, and faster issue resolution.
- Backup and disaster recovery systems help businesses recover quickly from cyberattacks, outages, and other disruptions.
- Layered cybersecurity defenses like multi-factor authentication, encryption, and Zero Trust help reduce security risks.
- Cyber awareness training helps employees recognize and avoid common threats like phishing and social engineering.
- Managed IT services can be more cost-effective than relying on break-fix support or maintaining a full internal IT department.
The Cost of Downtime
Downtime is really just a way of saying: your business has stopped moving forward.
It can be loud and demand attention, like during a cybersecurity incident or power outage, but it can be just as subtle, eating away at productivity, like when an employee’s computer runs slowly.
And the stats paint a pretty good picture of just how bad things can really get. For example, the estimated cost of downtime for SMBs with 20-100 employees is roughly $100,000 per hour, while the average worker loses around 22 minutes per day due to slow performance issues and IT disruptions—That’s more than two weeks per year wasted because of poor technology management.
Managed IT Services Help Reduce Downtime and Security Risk
An MSP acts like an internal IT department (or an extension of your existing internal IT department if you have one), just outsourced. Submit a ticket or call their lines, and you’ll have an IT expert ready to assist. But even more than that, partnering with an MSP means having someone who watches over your technology and helps set up business resilience and continuity systems without you having to do any of the heavy lifting yourself.
Here’s how managed IT services help reduce downtime and security risks.
24/7/365 Proactive Support
A pillar of any good managed IT service model is 24/7/365 proactive support. A continuous support model aims to fix issues before they turn into downtime and has generally replaced the older break-fix model, where issues are addressed only after they happen.
When you partner with a 24/7/365 managed IT provider, you typically receive access to a team of on-call technicians who are always on standby, no matter the time or day. And while that means you always have someone to call if you need help with something, the real power lies in the simple fact that your MSP will always be watching your systems.
Through remote monitoring and management, they can spot when a computer needs a tune-up, if there’s suspicious activity that indicates a security threat, which computers may need replacing, and so on and so forth.
That way, your business is never just reacting to issues when things go wrong, and significantly cuts back the risk of downtime.
Routine Maintenance
These monitoring tools also allow your IT service provider to schedule regular maintenance across your business. That could involve the rollout of a company-wide security update, routine restarts at the end of every workday, or simply making sure your security permissions remain up to date.
Without dedicated support, staying on top of routine maintenance can be a significant chore. That’s how computer restarts or security updates get skipped, vulnerabilities widen, and performance issues turn into downtime—things like slow computers, randomly restarting servers, a slow internet connection, etc.
When you partner with a managed IT service provider, you ensure that everything is addressed as it should be, keeping your security and performance gaps to a minimum and uptime to a maximum.
Disaster & Recovery Systems
Unfortunately, no matter how defended and prepared your systems are, there’s always a chance that something can go wrong; there’s no controlling freak storms, after all. That’s where strong disaster and recovery systems come in.
Your MSP can help you outline a robust disaster and recovery plan – a vital part of mitigating the length of downtime. These plans are also supported by detailed backup systems that make copies of your data so your critical data is always recoverable even after an outage, all to get your business up and running as fast as possible.
Even better, an MSP can keep this plan updated as your business grows and your environment changes, so you’re never caught out when the worst comes to pass.
Layered Security Defenses
At a more granular level, a service provider can outfit your company with a layered system of unique security tools. Multi-factor authentication to mitigate account-based threats, network encryption to keep your data private and secure, security policies like Zero Trust to limit access into your network, and much more.
By layering these tools, you significantly reduce your company’s attack surface – that’s any part of your organization that a bad actor could use to enter – further mitigating the risk.
Cyber Awareness Training
Your employees are your first line of defense, and the hackers know it. In fact, 60% of security breaches involved the human element, whether that was falling victim to a phishing attack, error, or misuse.
An MSP can help close that security gap by offering regular cyber awareness training that educates your employees on these very real threats. In fact, according to KnowBe4’s 2026 Phishing by Industry Benchmarking Report, just one year of consistent security awareness training can reduce phishing susceptibility by 79%.
When your employees get armed with proper security knowledge, your business suddenly gets much more secure.
Managed IT Services are More Affordable Than You Think
You might have read all that and be thinking:
“Well, that’s great, but I don’t have enough room in my budget for outsourced managed IT services.”
Totally fair. However, did you know that companies that use proactive IT services save around 25% on IT costs annually? That’s because proactive, expert IT support can help you avoid spending money on otherwise preventable issues, like downtime.
Partnering with a managed service provider means investing in your tech now to save yourself money and headaches later. Think of it like paying for your car’s oil change. Sure, you may not want to pay for one every few months, but you do it anyway, because skipping it will end up costing you, and your car, much more down the road.
At the end of the day, a major power outage or cyberattack, or even an office full of slow computers, can end up costing you more than you would have spent on managed IT services in the first place.
The 20 MSP Keeps Your Business Running
If you feel like your business is teetering on the edge of a downtime disaster without any good way of recovering, it might be time to look for a provider that can help.
A partner like The 20 MSP.
With over 30 years of experience, we’ve been helping businesses secure their technology and keep their systems running smoothly. With a 24/7/365 U.S.-based live service help desk, rapid onsite support, and robust disaster recovery solutions, we’ll make sure your business always has what it needs to function at its best—all for one flat, predictable monthly fee.
If that sounds like something you’re interested in, let’s chat.
FAQ
How do managed IT services reduce downtime?
Managed IT services reduce downtime through proactive monitoring, routine maintenance, 24/7 support, and disaster recovery systems. An MSP can help spot issues before they turn into disruptions, while backup and recovery systems help your business get back up and running quickly when something does go wrong.
What is proactive IT support?
Proactive IT support means identifying and addressing IT problems before they become larger issues. Instead of waiting for a computer to fail or a security issue to happen, an MSP constantly monitors your systems and performs routine maintenance so your systems.
How does cyber awareness training reduce security risks?
Cyber awareness training teaches employees how to recognize and avoid common cybersecurity threats. When your employees can identify suspicious activity and social engineering tricks, such as phishing, businesses can significantly reduce their security risk.
Aren’t managed IT services too expensive?
Not necessarily. While a managed service provider’s monthly fee is an investment for many businesses, proactive IT support can help avoid the cost of downtime, security incidents, emergency repairs, and other preventable IT issues. For many businesses, the predictable cost of managed IT services can also be far easier to budget for than unpredictable break-fix expenses.
About The 20 MSP
As a leading provider of managed IT services, The 20 MSP serves thousands of businesses nationwide, including single and multi-location organizations, delivering white-glove service, secure and streamlined IT infrastructure, and 24/7/365 support. We believe in building lasting relationships with clients founded on trust, communication, and the delivery of high-value services for a fair and predictable price. Our clients’ success is our success, and we are committed to helping each and every organization we serve leverage technology to secure a competitive advantage and achieve new growth.
