In summary
- Response times are increasing without explanation or compensation.
- Does not exist Formal SLA — or it exists, but nobody measures it.
- Sem proactive monitoringit is always the company that discovers the problems.
- It all depends on a single person on the supplier's side.
- Lack of transparency regarding what is installed and what has been done.
In this article
- 1. Increasing response times
- 2. Absence of a formal SLA, or systematic breach of what was…
- Lack of proactive monitoring
- 4. Reliance on a single person, without a structured technical team
- 5. Lack of transparency regarding the state of the infrastructure
- 6. Lack of cybersecurity monitoring
- 7. Unforeseeable costs
- How to make the transition safely
Changing IT supplier is a decision that many companies postpone — out of fear of the transition, through inertia, or simply because “it's been that way for years”. But there are clear signs that a supplier is no longer up to the company's needs, and recognising them early prevents support problems from turning into business problems.
1. Increasing response times
If a support request that used to be resolved in minutes now takes hours — or days — with no clear justification, it is an indicator that the supplier has lost its responsiveness, whether due to the disorganized growth of its client portfolio or a lack of a sufficient technical team.
A good supplier spots it before you do. If every incident starts with a phone call from you, there is a lack of monitoring — and that means problems are only dealt with after they have already cost time.
2. Absence of a formal SLA, or systematic failure to comply with what was agreed
A reliable supplier sets out, in writing, guaranteed response times according to the criticality of each incident. If that commitment has never existed — or exists on paper but is rarely met — the company is, in practice, without guarantees regarding the continuity of its own business.
Lack of proactive monitoring
If problems are only detected after they are already affecting users — a full disk, a backup that stopped running weeks ago, a missing security update — it is a sign that the supplier is working in a purely reactive mode, without continuous monitoring of the infrastructure.
4. Reliance on a single person, without a structured technical team
Small-scale IT companies, or independent technicians, often rely on a single person. If that person is on holiday, ill, or simply stops responding, the company is left without technical support — a significant risk for any business that depends on computer systems in its day-to-day operations.
5. Lack of transparency regarding the state of the infrastructure
A good managed IT provider provides regular reporting — what has been done, what incidents have occurred, what risks have been identified. If the only information that arrives is the monthly invoice, without any visibility over the work carried out, it is difficult to assess whether the service is actually protecting the business.
6. Lack of cybersecurity monitoring
Cyber threats are constantly evolving. If your current supplier has never proposed security improvements, never spoken about multi-factor authentication, tested backups or a dedicated firewall, it is likely that the company's infrastructure is more vulnerable than it should be.
7. Unforeseeable costs
Invoices that vary significantly from month to month, without a clear explanation as to why, make budget planning difficult — and are often a symptom of an ad-hoc support model, rather than a well-scoped managed services retainer.
How to make the transition safely
The most common fear when changing provider is continuity — losing configurations, access credentials or history during the transition. A well-conducted change process always includes a complete audit of the existing infrastructure, validation of current contracts and licensing, phased migration of critical services (email, backups, VPN, domain) and an enhanced monitoring period in the first weeks, to ensure there are no service interruptions.
If you identified two or more of these signs in your company, it might be worth evaluating alternatives — even if the final decision is to keep your current supplier, the exercise of comparison usually brings clarity on what is, or is not, actually being well served.
Does your company need a reliable IT partner? DataRoad is an IT support company dedicated to keeping your business up and running at all times. Find out more about our IT support for businesses.
DataRoad — ongoing IT support for businesses
A DataRoad is a Portuguese company specialising in managed IT services (MSP), headquartered in Alfragide (Lisbon) and with an active presence in Porto, Faro, Funchal, Évora, Setúbal and Beja. Since 2015, it has ensured the smooth running of IT infrastructures for businesses that cannot afford downtime — hotels, clinics, embassies, universities, multinationals and demanding SMEs — with a certified technical team, continuous monitoring and 24/7 support.
DataRoad ensures the ongoing IT support of companies via the service IT Unlimited: unlimited support at a fixed cost, both remote and on-site, with 24/7 monitoring, alerts and proactive interventions. The aim is simple — to prevent problems from even bringing operations to a standstill.
DataRoad Services
- IT Unlimited — round-the-clock IT support: unlimited support at a fixed cost, both remote and on-site, with incident management and rapid response.
- Computer networks and structured cabling: network design, installation and certification; Layer 3 switching and PoE.
- Enterprise wireless networks (Wi-Fi 6 and Wi-Fi 7): coverage study, cloud management and isolated visitor networks.
- Cybersecurity and corporate firewalls: perimeter protection, traffic control and threat mitigation.
- Servers, backups and disaster recovery: servers, NAS devices and centralised backups.
- CCTV video surveillance: video surveillance systems with continuous recording.
- Monitoring, alarm systems and reporting: real-time monitoring, automatic alerts and proactive interventions.
- IT consultancy and project management: relocation of premises, new facilities and modernisation of infrastructure.
- Cross-platform support: Windows and Apple environments, with comprehensive management of the IT infrastructure.
Get in touch with DataRoad
Do you need IT support for your business, to set up or upgrade your network, or simply a second opinion on your infrastructure? We’ll assess your situation and provide you with a no-obligation quote.
