The Future MSP

Managed Service Providers (MSPs) are facing increasing challenges to support their customers as cybersecurity and compliance needs continue to grow.  Many look to build their own Security Operation Center (SOC), select and purchase a SIEM tool and staff the SOC to help customers monitor their networks for threats, but this can be a daunting outlay of cash before you have your first paying customer, and the ongoing costs to maintain a SOC are also high.

Customers who fall under compliance requirements based on business type (healthcare, financial, retail, etc.) or by state regulations are another challenge.  MSPs are being asked for help with meeting the requirements for many different compliances – how do you hire efficiently to have the expertise customers need, when they need it?

What about incident response?  The dreaded call from a customer that they believe they have been hacked and they need your help.  Most MSPs do not have trained forensic and legal resources on staff to assist these customers and help them to insure that the critical first steps they take are appropriate and meet requirements for reporting incidents and preserving evidence in case of future legal action.

Finally, outside threats in the form of competitors – whether it is other MSPs who CAN offer these services or even cloud-based solutions like Amazon and Google whose “As-a-Service” offerings may erode the existing service contract revenue.

A transformation is needed from traditional MSP to a more security focused provider who can consult with clients about their individual risks, assist them with cybersecurity framework or compliance alignment, and provide ongoing testing, patching, monitoring and incident response support.  MSPs may be able to do some of this with existing staff or hiring new talent, but you don’t have to.  Foresite’s Channel-only Partner program can be used to supplement as you grow enough pipeline to justify bringing on additional resources or can be used to fully outsource these services, which also provides separation of duties for existing customers.

Whichever option you choose, don’t be left behind.

Tracy Fox
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