What Benefits Do Managed Network Services Have?

Businesses today rely heavily on their technology and connectivity to maintain operations. Tech can also be leveraged to gain and retain a competitive advantage. As technical progress races ahead, many companies find it difficult to keep up with the changes and stay current with their competitors. As a result, they often turn to managed service providers (MSPs) for assistance in various areas of their technological needs.

MSPs offer an array of services, including managed network services (MNS). MNS is increasingly becoming an appealing managed service option for many large-scale companies. This is perhaps no surprise since a growing number of employees are working remotely, multi-cloud computing is the norm, IoT is still growing, 5G continues to expand and threat actors are still steadily hard at work launching their attacks – it’s difficult to keep up.

Meeting the current demand for reliable networks, along with developing strong cybersecurity measures is a challenge for most companies. If this all sounds familiar, the good news is there is a solution to be found in MNS. In this article, we’ll define MNS, look at its advantages, explore types of services and see why many businesses are electing to use it.

What are Managed Network Services (MNS)?

Managed Network Services is a service offered by a third-party partner to businesses to assist in business IT management. Organizations of all sizes find many advantages to outsourcing this component of their operations, including enterprise-sized companies.

How it works is that the provider takes on all the responsibilities associated with managing, maintaining and optimizing a business’s network infrastructure. This includes but isn’t limited to design, installation, real-time monitoring, cybersecurity, maintenance and the rapid troubleshooting of issues relating to the company’s network.

Common Types of Managed Network Services

Modern IT infrastructures are growing increasingly complex. Having an experienced team in place to handle network technology can be difficult and financially burdensome for many organizations. The following are a variety of the available services companies can opt to select when determining the types of services they’ll need.

• Network monitoring
• Connectivity services
• Managed internet
• Wireless and mobility services
• Network security monitoring
• Help Desk services
• Virtual network functions (VNF)
• Business continuity and disaster recovery services
• System installation and upgrades
• IT consulting
• Managed cloud services

If your company is like others, you might have realized it can be tough to adequately monitor and maintain all aspects of your networks. The good news is a skilled partner, who is 100% dedicated to the task, can ensure your business has continuous service and, in the event an incident does occur, is fully equipped to move swiftly to resolve it, minimizing downtime.

Why are Businesses Shifting to Managed Network Solutions?

The value of MNS is becoming apparent, and its adoption is steadily growing in demand across all types of industries. According to some statistics, the MNS market size across the globe is projected to reach a staggering $167.37 billion by 2034, up from $76.67 billion in 2024. Tangible advantages include cost savings, enhanced security, access to expert tech support, better network performance, scalability and more.

Outsourcing network components empowers a business to let specialized experts handle all the network’s technical functions. This way, internal employees can focus on the company’s core competencies without carrying the burden of trying to keep up in terms of new tech, knowledge and skills to maintain the business’s network.

If a problem disrupts the network, the MSP is right on it to restore services.

Key Benefits of Managed Network Services

Being businesses are so heavily reliant upon operational, efficient and secure network infrastructures, they want to rest assured downtime is minimized. Managed network services are the ideal solution for managing the complexities associated with your network infrastructure. Let’s look at some of the key benefits of investing in MNS.

Enhanced Network Performance

Adopting managed network services can assist in optimizing your business’s IT infrastructure. Your partner will steadily monitor and manage your network architecture to ensure it runs smoothly and seamlessly. If an issue arises, a dedicated expert team will move quickly to identify and resolve it. This ensures you do not have to worry about downtime, unreliability or other hiccups as your employees perform their jobs.

Proactive network optimization and maintenance is a substantial perk of adopting MNS. Downtime can be detrimental to a large-sized company, costing tens of thousands to even millions of dollars per hour. Since your dedicated team will work tirelessly to ensure your uptime is maximized, you can rest assured knowing your company will always be one step ahead with improved performance.

Cost Efficiency

One of the most significant and appealing factors of partnering with a managed service provider to handle your network infrastructure is the long-term cost-efficiency your company can enjoy. Integrating MNS reduces the need to maintain an in-house IT staff and equipment. Your partner can handle it all.

You will need an initial investment, but you eliminate the need to hire, train and maintain an in-house team. Another advantage is you avoid having to consistently purchase costly upgraded equipment. The reduced downtime you experience will also result in cost savings for your organization.

Scalability

As an organization expands, so do its network requirements. MNS offers the scalable and flexible solutions your organization might need. Whether your company is growing and needs an expanded network, plans to introduce new services or needs more bandwidth to support web traffic, your partner can adjust up or down to accommodate your current business needs.

Enhanced Security

Employing the services of an MSP to handle managed network services ensures you have proactive monitoring and threat detection at all times. Cybersecurity concerns are ever-present, and threat actors are always on the prowl to exploit businesses for illicit profit.

Your MNS provider can handle the full realm of network security management, including the ability to integrate and leverage advanced security measures, such as intrusion detection systems, firewalls, encryption and other tools to safeguard your data and your overall IT ecosystem.

Business Continuity

Business continuity is vital. Yet many events can disrupt your organization’s operations, such as cyberattacks, fires, natural disasters and even hardware failure. Any of these can result in data loss and downtime. Working with an MSP who delivers network services will supply a comprehensive disaster recovery plan to ensure continuity, restore service rapidly and minimize the impact of any type of disruption.

24/7 Monitoring & Support

A disruptive network issue can arise at any time, day or night. Working with an MSP for managed network services minimizes downtime and ensures rapid issue resolution. Your partner will be there for you around the clock, monitoring your network to detect disruptions or anomalies, thwart attacks and essentially resolve any incident that emerges.

Compliance

Not considering industry and regulatory compliance is not an option nowadays. The experts MSPs employ are fully knowledgeable about compliance issues relating to networks and can ensure your company adheres to the measures required in its industry or by the government. This will help to avoid non-compliance, legal risks and the costs that come with them.

Upgraded Technologies

Your partner will be current with the latest networking technologies and is equipped to integrate these solutions into your company’s infrastructure. This is valuable due to the cost savings it offers, along with the ability to enjoy current tech solutions without the large capital expenditures that normally accompany gaining access to these technologies.

Frees Up Time

Adopting MNS empowers your organization to better focus on its core competencies since your team is relieved from the responsibilities of maintaining a complex network infrastructure. When your partner takes over network duties, your internal teams can focus on tasks that support your business’s core operations, its objectives and promote its growth.

The potential benefits of network management are many and the opportunities it opens up for your business is limitless once you can redirect your budget and resources to other important priorities.

Who Should Consider Managed Network Services?

Employing the services of a managed service provider to deliver network services is not a one-size-fits-all concept. Just like every business is different, so are solutions that must be customized to fulfill its needs. Generally speaking, organizations that often consider managed network services include:

• Businesses looking to reduce IT overhead
• Companies needing robust cybersecurity and compliance
• Organizations requiring high network availability and performance

Most businesses can typically relate to at least one of these three issues, making the outsourcing of network services a positive investment for many companies. Your network is a priority and outsourcing its management offers tangible and valuable returns.

Hidden costs associated with networks

Not placing a priority on networks can result in many hidden costs, including but not limited to:

• Slow connections. This can be costly if employees cannot be productive or customers cannot access your website.
• More frequent outages. Downtime is costly in terms of money. However, it can also harm goodwill with employees, clients and other stakeholders.
• Bandwidth issues. Not having sufficient bandwidth can make simple tasks into time-consuming ordeals.
• Outdated or patchwork architecture. Relying on obsolete technology or a maze of consumer-grade and business equipment can lead to unpredictability in performance.
• Incompatible technologies. This often leads to improvised workarounds that may be inefficient, not secure or lead to other underlying architectural problems.

Leveraging MNS Can Help You Better Your Business

MNS is the outsourcing of a business’s management, maintenance and optimization of their network to an expert third-party provider. This is a growing industry that is projected to expand much further over the next several years.

As the complexities of networks continue to grow, it is challenging for organizations to maintain currency and use relevant technology. Reliability, productivity and cost-efficiency are all vital to the successful operations of any business, regardless of size or industry.

Maintaining in-house teams to perform network security management and operations is resource intensive. Investing in managed network services is a strategic way to overcome any hurdles. You can avoid the high costs of maintaining your network and enjoy the ability to reallocate your resources to other areas of your organization.

Instead of facing the unpredictable costs and nature of network management, by exploring managed network solutions, your company can enjoy a transparent, predictable, fee-based service from your chosen MSP.  This, along with the access to expertise, advanced tools and 24/7 support, you can relax knowing your company is in good hands and fully operational at any given time.

Ready to Explore Managed Network Services Options? Red River Can Help!

Keeping your business up and running is an essential task in a world that increasingly relies upon connectivity. Entrusting your networks to a managed service provider can help you deliver the dependability you need while ensuring a seamless experience for employees, clients, customers and other stakeholders.

If your organization is seeking ways to improve connectivity, reliability and remove many of the burdens associated with running networks, Red River is here to help. The team of experts at Red River is highly experienced and qualified to handle everything relating to the various types of networks and their security.

We can help with the migration and management of cloud services, offer collaboration and integration support, provide comprehensive cybersecurity, deliver 24/7 user support and complete network infrastructure design, installation and support.

To learn more about these options and other solutions we offer businesses, contact the Red River team today to schedule a consultation to get the conversation started. We’re happy to provide information and answer any questions you have about the benefits of managed network services, network security management, how the process works and all other services we provide.