Answers to all your questions in one place
Managed IT Services
A Managed Services Provider (MSP) is an external IT partner that takes on the responsibility of proactively monitoring, maintaining, and supporting an organization’s technology infrastructure. Rather than reacting to issues as they arise, MSPs focus on preventing problems, optimizing performance, and providing continuous improvements to keep your IT environment stable and secure.
Nearly any business that relies on technology to operate efficiently can benefit from managed IT services. This includes small and mid-sized companies that need access to professional IT support without the cost of maintaining an in-house team, as well as larger organizations looking to supplement their existing staff or offload specialized tasks. Industries ranging from healthcare and manufacturing to finance and professional services typically leverage MSPs to reduce downtime and stay competitive.
While offerings may vary depending on the provider and your business needs, a typical MSP plan often includes:
- Proactive Monitoring & Maintenance: 24/7 surveillance of networks, servers, and devices to identify issues before they become major problems.
- Help Desk Support: A dedicated team to troubleshoot user inquiries and technical issues.
- Security & Compliance: Firewalls, antivirus, threat detection, and ongoing security monitoring to protect against cyber threats.
- Backup & Disaster Recovery: Regular data backups, offsite storage, and tested recovery processes.
- Patch Management & Updates: Automated updates to operating systems and software to ensure stability and security.
- Strategic IT Consulting: Guidance on technology upgrades, infrastructure planning, and alignment with business goals.
Break-fix IT support typically means you only call an IT professional when something goes wrong, and you pay for each service as needed. It’s a reactive model that can lead to unexpected downtime and unpredictable expenses.
An MSP, on the other hand, uses a proactive and preventive approach. Through continuous monitoring and scheduled maintenance, MSPs aim to identify and resolve issues before they disrupt your operations. Most MSPs work on a subscription or retainer model, making budgeting more predictable and ensuring constant access to expert resources.
Onboarding & Engagement
Our onboarding process starts with a comprehensive assessment of your current IT infrastructure. We review servers, workstations, network devices, cybersecurity measures, and any industry-specific compliance requirements. Next, we collaborate with you to create a tailored onboarding plan that includes timelines, milestones, and communication protocols. This thorough approach ensures a smooth transition with minimal disruption to your daily operations.
Most of our clients opt for annual or multi-year agreements to lock in stable pricing and build a long-term IT strategy. However, we do offer month-to-month or shorter-term options if flexibility is a priority for your business. Our goal is to provide a partnership model that best suits your operational and financial needs.
We conduct a detailed audit of your existing network architecture, hardware, software, security policies, and business processes. This includes interviews with key stakeholders, on-site inspections (if needed), and remote diagnostic tools. By gathering a complete picture of your environment, we can identify potential risks, opportunities for optimization, and any immediate concerns that need addressing.
We handle the heavy lifting for you, but we do ask for input and cooperation from your internal team—mainly to provide access, credentials, and relevant documentation. In the initial phases, we’ll schedule regular check-ins to ensure everyone is on the same page. Once onboarding is complete, we manage the day-to-day tasks, allowing your team to focus on core business activities.
Service Level Agreements (SLAs)
Our SLAs specify clearly defined response and resolution targets based on the severity of the issue. For critical (Tier 1) incidents—like major outages or security breaches—we aim to respond within 30 minutes to 1 hour, with a goal of restoring service as quickly as possible. Lower priority items may have longer response windows, but we always communicate timelines upfront and keep you informed until the issue is fully resolved.
Yes. We provide round-the-clock monitoring and emergency support to ensure your systems are protected every hour of every day. Our network operations center (NOC) and help desk teams are always ready to tackle urgent issues, even on weekends and holidays. For non-emergency requests, we also offer extended weekday support hours to handle routine maintenance and questions.
We have a structured escalation process in place to quickly bring in the right expertise and resources:
- Initial Triage: Your ticket is prioritized based on severity.
- Escalation to Senior Technicians: If the issue is not resolved within the first tier’s timeframe or requires specialized skills, a senior engineer is immediately brought in.
- Management Involvement: For ongoing or highly critical incidents, management will join the incident response team to expedite resolution and maintain continuous communication with stakeholders.
This multi-tiered approach helps us rapidly mitigate complex or system-wide issues.
Yes. Our SLAs typically include a guaranteed uptime percentage (for example, 99.9%) for your critical systems. This commitment ensures that we proactively monitor and maintain your infrastructure to avoid disruptions. Should we fail to meet our agreed-upon uptime metrics, we’ll provide service credits or other remediation as outlined in your contract. Our goal is to keep your business operating smoothly and efficiently around the clock.
Pricing & Billing
We typically base our pricing on a few factors, including the number of users or devices, the complexity of your network, and the range of services you need (e.g., advanced cybersecurity, cloud management, etc.). During our initial discovery, we’ll evaluate your environment and create a custom proposal that aligns with your budget and objectives.
We offer both models:
- Flat Monthly Rate: A fixed rate that covers a predefined scope of services. This option is great for businesses seeking predictable costs and fewer billing surprises.
- Per-User/Per-Device Fee: This allows greater flexibility if your workforce or device count fluctuates. Your monthly costs scale up or down based on actual usage.
We’ll help you pick the model that best suits your business needs and growth plans.
We’re transparent about all fees, including any one-time onboarding charges or costs for specialized projects. If you require additional hardware, software licenses, or special integrations beyond the agreed scope, we’ll present these options to you with clear pricing before moving forward. There are no hidden charges—everything is detailed in our proposal and contract.
We bill in advance on the first of every month, so you’ll always know exactly what to budget for. Invoices are processed through our partner, Alternative Payments, and can be paid via credit card or ACH. Most of our clients choose to enroll in auto-pay for added convenience. We also provide a secure payment portal at pay.hudsonsky.com where you can review invoices and manage payments. For larger hardware or capital expenses, financing options are available through Alternative Payments to help spread out costs and keep your budget predictable.
Cybersecurity & Compliance
We take a multi-layered approach to security, which typically includes next-generation firewalls, advanced endpoint protection (antivirus/antimalware), intrusion detection systems, and multi-factor authentication (MFA) for critical systems. We also perform regular security audits, vulnerability assessments, and ongoing user training.
To learn more about our advanced threat detection, real-time monitoring, and additional security measures, visit our dedicated Cybersecurity Solutions page.
We follow a structured incident response plan from initial detection through containment, eradication, and recovery. If a security event occurs, we quickly identify the root cause, mitigate the threat, and update you at each step. We adhere to any relevant breach notification laws and coordinate with law enforcement if needed. Our overarching goal is to minimize disruption and data loss, so you can keep running without extended downtime.
For an in-depth view of our processes and the technologies we use, check out our Cybersecurity Solutions page.
Absolutely. We support a variety of compliance frameworks, including HIPAA for healthcare, PCI-DSS for payment card data, GDPR for organizations handling EU citizen data, and CMMC (Cybersecurity Maturity Model Certification) for defense contractors. We stay current on all relevant regulations and best practices, helping you implement the right policies, processes, and technical safeguards to maintain compliance.
For more details on how we handle these standards, visit our Compliance page.
Yes. Since human error is one of the top causes of security breaches, we place a strong emphasis on user awareness training. Our modules cover key topics like phishing prevention, password management, and safe remote work practices. By educating your workforce, we help transform employees into your first line of defense rather than a vulnerability.
Learn more about our training programs and overall security strategy on our Cybersecurity Solutions page.
Data Backup & Disaster Recovery
We provide a flexible, cloud-based backup solution that can protect entire system images as well as individual files or folders. Depending on your needs, we can configure backups to run as frequently as every hour, daily, or weekly. This layered approach helps ensure rapid recovery from data corruption, accidental deletion, or system failure.
Your backups are stored in secure, geographically distributed data centers. All data is encrypted both in transit and at rest, which protects it from unauthorized access. For additional resilience, some clients choose to maintain on-site storage hardware to keep a local copy of their backups, supplementing the primary cloud-based protection.
Recovery times vary based on the extent of the incident and the size of your data. However, because our backup solution allows for both image-based and file-level restores, we can typically get your systems back online within a matter of hours—or even minutes—depending on your recovery objectives. Local backups stored on on-site hardware can expedite restoration by reducing reliance on internet bandwidth.
Yes. We regularly perform test restorations to verify backup integrity and ensure the recovery process runs smoothly. This includes restoring critical systems from both cloud-based backups and any local on-site copies you maintain. Periodic testing ensures our team—and your systems—are prepared to handle real-life disaster scenarios with minimal downtime.
Monitoring & Proactive Maintenance
We use continuous monitoring tools to keep track of servers, endpoints, network devices, and critical applications in real time. Our system checks for hardware faults, performance bottlenecks, security threats, and other anomalies. Should an issue arise, we receive immediate alerts so we can investigate and resolve problems before they escalate.
Absolutely. Our monitoring platform generates instant notifications for critical issues—such as server outages, performance drops, or security events. These alerts are routed to our support team, who can take swift action to diagnose and fix the problem. Whenever possible, we address potential concerns preemptively to minimize downtime.
Proactive maintenance is central to our service. We regularly apply security patches, update firmware, optimize system settings, and run health checks on critical infrastructure. By staying on top of hardware and software updates, we help ensure a stable environment, reduce security risks, and minimize the likelihood of unexpected interruptions.
This varies based on your specific environment and compliance requirements, but generally we apply critical security patches as soon as they’re released. Non-critical updates are scheduled during agreed-upon maintenance windows to avoid disrupting business hours. By keeping your systems up-to-date, we protect against known vulnerabilities and improve overall performance.
Cloud Services & Virtualization
Yes. We work with businesses to assess their existing infrastructure, identify suitable cloud environments, and then plan and execute a smooth migration. Our services range from lift-and-shift (moving on-premise applications to the cloud with minimal changes) to fully optimized cloud-native solutions. We aim to minimize downtime during the transition and ensure your organization’s data and applications are secure and accessible once in the cloud.
Absolutely. Many of our clients prefer to keep certain workloads on-premise and move others to the cloud. Our team can design, implement, and manage a hybrid architecture that integrates the two environments seamlessly. We also handle ongoing maintenance, such as patching and performance optimization, to keep your hybrid setup running efficiently.
We’re experienced in a variety of public, private, and hybrid cloud platforms. Depending on your business needs—like scalability, compliance, or cost efficiency—we’ll recommend the best-fit platform. We also manage ongoing services such as backup, high availability, and disaster recovery within these environments, ensuring your workloads remain secure and performant.
We follow a shared security model approach, working closely with cloud providers to ensure data is encrypted at rest and in transit. We also leverage built-in security features like identity and access management, network segmentation, and advanced threat detection. Combined with our continuous monitoring and proactive maintenance, this helps keep your cloud environment safe from unauthorized access and cyber threats.
Hardware & Software Procurement
Absolutely. We maintain relationships with multiple hardware and software vendors to ensure you get the best pricing and options for your needs. Whether you prefer to purchase equipment outright or explore leasing options, we’ll handle the research, procurement, and setup—so you can focus on running your business.
Yes, we’ll take care of warranty registrations, track renewal dates, and coordinate with vendors for any repairs or replacements. This includes handling support requests if hardware malfunctions or software issues arise. By centralizing vendor management, we streamline the process and reduce your administrative burden.
We work with a variety of trusted hardware and software providers, but our primary goal is ensuring each solution aligns with your technical requirements and budget. We’ll present you with options from reputable brands known for reliability, security, and excellent support. Our recommendations are always driven by what’s best for your business goals.
Absolutely. We’ll guide you through the licensing process, making sure you’re compliant with relevant usage rights and that your licenses scale appropriately as your organization grows. If you operate in regulated industries, we’ll help ensure your software licensing aligns with any industry-specific compliance requirements.
Communication & Reporting
We use a mix of phone calls, email updates, and a dedicated ticketing system to keep you informed. For larger initiatives or projects, we schedule regular check-in meetings and provide progress reports detailing milestones, timelines, and any immediate action items. Communication preferences can be tailored to your organization, ensuring you stay in the loop on your terms.
Yes. We deliver monthly or quarterly reports (depending on your preference) covering critical metrics such as system uptime, security patch status, ticket resolution times, and overall network performance. These reports help you gain insights into the health of your IT environment, measure our effectiveness, and plan for any upcoming needs or investments.
For day-to-day issues or routine requests, you can reach our help desk via phone, email, or our client portal. In the case of high-severity incidents like outages or security breaches, you’ll have a direct line to our 24/7 emergency response team. Our escalation procedures ensure critical issues get the immediate attention they require.
We typically assign an account manager to oversee the overall relationship and serve as your primary point of contact for strategic discussions. This person collaborates with our technical leads to ensure your IT needs, projects, and business goals are aligned. Having a single point of contact helps streamline communication, improve accountability, and strengthen our partnership.
Scalability & Growth
Yes. Our managed IT services are designed to adapt as your organization’s needs change. Whether you’re adding new locations, hiring more staff, or even reducing your footprint, we can quickly adjust your service level and resource allocation. This flexible model helps ensure you only pay for the capacity and support you actually need.
We treat each new location or remote office as a distinct project phase, ensuring we properly assess the site’s connectivity, hardware, and security needs. We then integrate it into our existing infrastructure management plan, so all locations receive the same level of monitoring, maintenance, and support. This consistent approach helps maintain a stable, secure environment across your entire organization.
Absolutely. We know business demands can evolve quickly, so our contracts include provisions for scaling up or down. You can add or remove users, devices, or specialized services (like advanced cybersecurity) without a major overhaul to your agreement. We work closely with you to forecast growth and plan accordingly, so there are no surprises.
We regularly collaborate with third-party vendors or your in-house development teams to understand the unique requirements of custom software. We’ll integrate these needs into our monitoring and maintenance routines. If you have compliance-related or performance-intensive applications, we’ll tailor solutions that match these specific demands to ensure seamless operation.
Exit Strategy & Contract Termination
We understand that business priorities change. If you decide to transition to another provider or bring your IT operations in-house, we’ll work closely with your team to ensure a smooth handover. This typically involves sharing network documentation, transferring credentials, and coordinating with your new IT partner to minimize disruption.
Absolutely. We maintain detailed documentation of your network topology, configurations, and security protocols throughout the duration of our partnership. Upon termination, we provide you with these records and any other necessary materials. If a data migration is required, we’ll collaborate with your chosen IT resource to facilitate a structured transfer of files, applications, and user accounts.
This varies based on your contract. Many of our agreements outline a standard notice period (e.g., 30 or 60 days). If you’re on a month-to-month plan, you can typically cancel at any time without penalty. Longer-term contracts might have early termination fees or stipulations. We encourage you to review your contract terms or contact us for more details.
Communication is key. We’ll schedule transition meetings to walk through your environment, answer questions, and share best practices. This includes reviewing hardware inventory, license details, backup protocols, security configurations, and other critical information. Our goal is to minimize downtime and keep your IT operations stable, even if we’re no longer managing them.