How to Overcome the Challenges of Remote IT Support

Most American workers prefer remote and hybrid work over traditional in-person work models. In a recent Morning Consult survey, 2% of employed adults in the U.S. chose hybrid work, and 23% preferred to be fully remote. Just 46% wanted to work in the office exclusively.

Although remote and hybrid work are the preferred models, the details vary widely. Some employees would rather work at home most of the time and come to the office a few hours a week for meetings. Others would like the flexibility to work from home one day a week.

In-house IT staff need the agility to support workers wherever they are, often outside of a traditional 8 to 5 schedule. That’s a tall order for IT teams that are already grappling with heavy workloads. According to a recent ESG study, 65% of U.S. help desk staff are facing stress and burnout. The primary cause was increased pressure and workloads due to the rise of remote work and needing to provide both on-site & remote IT support.

In-House IT Teams Struggle to Keep Up With Remote IT Support

In the same ESG study, 96% of organizations reported that remote support is their biggest IT workload. An IDC study found that support is the top IT challenge related to remote work for 44% of organizations.

Remote work has been around for years but was traditionally limited to a handful of employees. Few IT teams are equipped with the tools and resources they need to support large numbers of remote workers. There are other challenges, as well. While most organizations have a limited set of systems and applications on-premises, remote workers use a diverse array of devices. In the IDC study, 37% of respondents said inconsistent technology across remote and onsite workers was a top challenge.

Security is another major concern. More than a third (36%) of organizations say they’re worried about the security of home networks. When tasked with both on-site & remote IT support, IT teams must ensure that remote workers follow security policies and best practices and that their systems are kept up-to-date and patched. That’s a tall order when it comes to equipment that they don’t control.

The Value of Outsourcing Remote IT Support Services

Of course, these issues negatively impact employees working remotely. In various studies, remote workers reported waiting hours for tech support to resolve an IT issue. They also said that seeking support from the IT team is a negative experience. Poor remote support saps productivity and reduces employee satisfaction.

To relieve these pressures using in-house resources, organizations would have to hire more tech support personnel with diverse skill sets and invest in more robust remote monitoring and management (RMM) tools. A better option is to partner with a managed services provider (MSP) with the manpower and expertise to deliver prompt and effective remote IT support services.

In-house IT teams are overwhelmed by the demands of remote work. Outsourcing remote IT support to a qualified MSP can reduce stress, improve security, and ensure quick resolution of tech issues.

Qualified MSPs have already made significant investments in RMM and have developed disciplined processes to ensure that support is delivered in a timely and professional manner. The MSP will have a deep bench of engineers and technicians with expertise in a wide range of technologies, enabling them to resolve problems quickly and accurately. Best-in-class MSPs also provide unlimited help desk support and give remote workers around-the-clock access to on-call experts.

Features to Look for in Outsourced Remote Support

By partnering with an MSP, organizations also eliminate the burden of managing remote systems. The MSP will perform routine maintenance and apply critical patches and updates promptly. As a result, remote users will experience fewer technical issues, and the organization’s security posture will get a significant boost.

Around-the-clock monitoring is another key feature of outsourced support services. The MSP’s team will receive alerts when errors are detected or system resources cross predefined thresholds. This enables them to resolve many issues before the user knows there’s a problem. The MSP’s monitoring tools will also look for suspicious activity, enabling security experts to respond rapidly to security incidents.

When selecting an MSP for remote support, it’s important to look not only at the scope of services but the MSP’s internal security measures. MSPs have become a primary target of cyberattacks because they’re connected to the IT environments of multiple customers. Reputable providers will have multiple levels of security to prevent bad actors from conducting such large-scale attacks

GDS Offers Remote Managed IT Services

GDS remote desktop management services check all the boxes. The GDS team provides highly responsive support that minimizes productivity-killing downtime and increases employee satisfaction. Our Network Operations Center is equipped with the latest monitoring and management tools, and our highly skilled staff has the expertise to identify and troubleshoot problems rapidly. We minimize vulnerabilities by applying patches and updates promptly and responding rapidly to events impacting the desktop environment.

GDS can support users whether they’re working at home, in the office or in a remote location while freeing in-house IT staff to focus on strategic initiatives. Let us help you overcome remote IT support challenges and maximize the success of remote and hybrid work. Contact us to learn more about our remote IT support.

Benefits of Managed IT Services from Global Data Systems

• Strategic Managed IT: We help you solve your technology related business problems.
• Connectivity: We get you reliable, secure connectivity anywhere in the western hemisphere in 48 hours.
• Support: When you need help simply call our 24x7x365 support number.
• Billing: Instead of managing hundreds of vendors - get one, easy to read bill from GDS.

Contact Managed Services Provider, Global Data Systems >