Many companies rely on MSPs to manage their IT infrastructure and related processes. Without MSPs, it can be hard for companies to manage repetitive tasks related to the IT infrastructure. Apart from businesses, government agencies and non-profits also rely on MSPs (Managed Services Providers) for managing the IT infrastructure. However, the complexity of IT infrastructure is increasing every day and is a challenge for MSPs. MSPs must dedicate technological and human resources to manage the increasing complexity of IT infrastructure. The automation of certain functions enables cloud managed service providers to require less manual interaction than earlier. Automation is needed by MSPs for IT infrastructure-managed services. Read on to know why automation is needed desperately by MSPs in 2022.

Understanding the need for automation in the industry

MSPs help their customers manage several tasks related to the IT infrastructure. MSPs also perform several management tasks on behalf of their customers remotely. To manage large IT infrastructures, MSPs have to hire many employees and rely on a wide range of technology. At present, businesses prefer digital transformation services and solutions for IT management. Some digital transformation services and solutions are new and complex, even for the MSPs. As the workload increases, MSPs have no option other than to hire more employees for the management of complex IT infrastructures.

How long can MSPs keep hiring more employees for the management of IT infrastructures? There will be a time when overhead costs will become a burden on the MSP. Since the volume of work is increasing, MSPs need automation to slash overhead costs. Also, there are several repetitive tasks to be completed by MSPs. For example, monitoring software systems connected to the IT infrastructure is a mundane task for MSPs. Application performance monitoring is always essential for detecting errors and performance issues. An MSP cannot keep hiring system administrators every time the number of software systems increases. Similarly, there are many other mundane tasks to be completed by MSPs on behalf of their clients.

Completing mundane tasks on time is the biggest reason why MSPs need automation. Tasks that need to be repeated daily can be automated, and the need for human labour will be decreased. MSPs also need automation to predict service availability of a client. When an MSP predicts high service availability, the client’s mind is at ease. Human minds can’t predict the service availability for now. It can only be done with the help of automation technologies and AI/ML algorithms. To keep with their promises regarding service reliability and availability, MSPs need automation more than ever. Also, automation technologies play a major role in boosting the productivity of MSPs.

Pros of automation for MSPs

There are several benefits of automation for MSPs in 2022. Automation technologies have now fully developed, and MSPs are leveraging their power to boost productivity. Some major benefits of automation for MSPs in 2022 are as follows:

Efficient workflow

There are several activities conducted by MSPs that need a proper workflow. For example, incident management is a task for MSPs that needs a proper workflow. Incident management passes through several steps from its initiation to completion. For example, it starts with rigorous monitoring and is followed by correlation, root cause analysis, and many other processes. If any processes are overlooked, incident management cannot be completed effectively. It is why MSPs need a workflow automation software architecture more than ever. A dedicated workflow helps in making the best use of the available business resources. Automation technologies can help MSPs design a clear workflow for several activities and help in IT cost optimization as well.

System recovery

MSPs are also responsible for recovering software systems during emergencies. Every business depends on some crucial software systems for the delivery of services. If the crucial software systems fail, the business cannot offer any service to the customers. A single minute of downtime can result in a huge loss for the respective organization. MSPs have to predict system outages and failures on behalf of their clients. Also, they have to find ways to reduce system failures and downtime. All this isn’t possible without automation for MSPs. Manually, one may keep searching for the root cause of a system failure and may never find it. Automation technologies reduce the system recovery time and boost service availability.

Complete routine tasks

Sometimes, an MSP can face employee shortages or any other crisis. How will an MSP offer the basic services to clients during a crisis? With automation, an MSP can ensure that basic services are always offered. For example, automation technology can perform routine tasks like patching and monitoring without any human interference. The client of an MSP will know that even during adverse times, the MSP will offer the basic services. Consider the example of the recent COVID pandemic, where MSPs faced a labour shortage. During the pandemic, MSPs that used automation services maintained their service availability and satisfied the clients. Routine tasks can be easily automated with an automation technology like AIOps (Artificial Intelligence for IT Operations).

Use cases of automation technologies in the industry

MSPs rely on automation technologies for several tasks, which are as follows:

• MSPs rely on automation for real-time monitoring of software systems, network devices, endpoints, and more. For example, an AIOps-based analytics platform can perform monitoring tasks even when there is no staff or employee.

• With the help of automation technologies, MSPs can easily offer remote support to their clients.

• With the help of automation technologies, MSPs can offer proactive support to their clients. They can predict performance issues even before the client complains about them.

• With a centralized automated solution, an MSP can control all IT activities from one place. For example, MSPs prefer AIOps-based analytics platforms for a unified view of the entire IT infrastructure.

• With the help of automation technology, an MSP can schedule maintenance tasks.

Many MSPs prefer an AIOps-based solution in 2022 due to its capabilities. The best AIOps products and tools will boost the service availability for cloud managed service providers. Start moving towards hyper-automation now for better results in the future!