Written By: Frank Saulsbery
THE LATEST THOUGHTS FROM THE FOUNDER
A running column from Frank Saulsbery. Not a sales pitch, just the way he’d explain it if you pulled up a stool next to him. Meet Frank →
A SNEAK PEEK…
“At the end of the day, your IT company should feel like a steady, reliable partner.”
You know that feeling when something just isn’t working the way it used to, but you can’t quite put your finger on why? Maybe your team is waiting longer for help. Maybe small issues seem to turn into big ones. Or maybe you’ve grown quite a bit as a business, and suddenly your technology feels like it’s lagging behind everything else.
It’s frustrating. Especially because IT is one of those things you don’t want to think about all the time, you just want it to work so your people can do their jobs.
Sometimes it’s not your IT company that’s changed, it might be your business. As companies grow, things get more complex. You might have more employees, more locations, more systems, or higher expectations around security and compliance. What worked well when you were a smaller organization may not fit as well now. It’s a bit like outgrowing a building, nothing is wrong with the building, but it just doesn’t meet your needs anymore.
Other times, though, it really is the IT company, service can slip, response times get longer. Communication becomes inconsistent or you start to feel like you’re chasing answers instead of getting guidance. When that happens, it doesn’t take long before frustration turns into lost time, and lost time turns into real cost for your business.
So how do you know when it’s time to seriously consider a change? I usually tell business owners to take a step back and look at the overall experience. Not one bad ticket or one rough week, but the bigger picture. If most of your interactions feel helpful, responsive, and aligned with your goals, you’re likely in a good place. But if the majority of your experience feels more frustrating than helpful, that’s a signal worth paying attention to. A simple way to think about it is this. If you feel like about three quarters of your experience is negative and only about a quarter is positive, it is probably time to start looking at other options. That kind of imbalance tends to affect your team more than you realize.
Before you make any move, though, I always recommend starting with a conversation, sit down with your current IT company and be honest. Share what’s not working, ask if they can support where your business is today. Sometimes they can adjust, bring in more resources, or offer services you weren’t aware of. A good partner will appreciate the chance to fix things.
If, after that conversation, you still don’t feel confident, then it’s reasonable to begin exploring other options. One practical step that can really help is to write down everything that’s bothering you about your current situation, be specific. Maybe it’s slow response times, maybe it’s unclear communication, maybe it’s a lack of proactive guidance. Whatever it is, get it on paper. This becomes your measuring stick when you talk to a new IT provider. It also does something important. It keeps you from making the same decision twice.
Not every business needs to switch IT providers just because of a few bumps. Change can be disruptive and there is always some cost involved. But staying in a situation that consistently slows your team down or leaves you feeling unsupported has a cost too, and it’s usually higher than people expect. At the end of the day, your IT company should feel like a steady, reliable partner. You should have confidence that they understand your business and are helping you move forward, not just fixing things after they break.
So here’s a simple question to ask yourself. When something goes wrong with your technology, do you feel relieved that your IT team has it covered, or do you feel a little bit of stress wondering how long it’s going to take? That answer will tell you a lot.
If you’re unsure, take a few minutes this week to jot down what’s working and what isn’t. That alone can bring some clarity, and it’s often the first step toward getting the support your business really needs.
That’s how I see it, anyway, and I’d enjoy hearing how you see it. None of this is a sales pitch. It’s just the kind of thing I’d talk through with you if we were sitting across the table. If it raised a question, or you think I have it wrong, I want to hear about it.
My door is always open. Whether you want to talk this through or just say hello, you can reach me anytime.
Network Solutions Unlimited is a generational managed IT services provider based in Decatur, Illinois, serving businesses and nonprofits with genuine support and decades of trusted relationships. Led by Baily Saulsbery and founded by her father Frank, we're not just your IT provider; we're your neighbors who happen to be really good at technology. Contact us today to experience IT support that actually cares.
