A 3-AM epiphany about Flux-Capacitor for MSPs
Key takeaways:
A groundbreaking 3AM epiphany about MSPs
The Reactive Break/Fix mentality in action
Enter the Proactive, data-driven mindset
What’s the difference between the two?
How are all requests anticipated?
Resource Planning for MSPs: A quick summary
So, it’s 3 am (the best time to write blog articles!), and I just hit my head. But I wasn’t standing on my toilet hanging a clock, and the Flux-Capacitor design is not what I came up with.
Instead, I came to an epiphany about MSPs: while they have transitioned from VAR, Break/Fix, and Man-in-the-Van operations to being an “official” Managed Service Provider, they haven’t yet transformed from a reactive/break-fix mentality to a proactive, data-driven mindset.
The Reactive Break/Fix Mentality in Action
This reactive, break/fix mentality means that every time the phone rings, an email comes in, sales op closes, tech sends a text, or a cocktail napkin is dropped on a Service Coordinator’s desk, the SOP is to react and figure out what to do next.
Alert, alert, alert, all day long! Just like a hardware interrupt in a computer, this is how many of us are wired. Distracting? Yes. Productive? Hardly.
Enter the Proactive, Data-Driven Mindset
Conversely, a proactive, data-driven mindset is that tomorrow, we're going to see X number of hours of new requests. And not only the number of hours in the aggregate but also the number of hours for each workflow:
Critical requests
Quick Hits and High-priority requests
High – Back Up Alerts
Medium and Standard requests (never tell a customer their request was a low priority)
Moves/Adds/Changes
Installs
Projects
Preventive Maintenance work
And other types of requests
Procurement
Sales
Etc.
Every MSP can probably add to this list.
The Key Difference Between Reactive & Proactive
Reactive and proactive look a whole lot different in action. The key difference between the two is that in the proactive world:
Each type of request is called out
An SOP and SLA are defined for each one
Historical data is mined to know how many hours are going to be needed for each workflow
A plan is already in place to process the tickets in each workflow in the most efficient manner.
No reaction, no fanfare, no chaos, just processing.
This is huge and such a game-changer for so many MSPs. Rather than letting chaos reign and running from one Crisis to another (a pro-active MSP handles less than 1 Client-crisis per month, and they have a process to handle the Crisis without creating any chaos), all requests are anticipated.
All Requests Are Anticipated…How so?
By anticipated, we mean that we have looked at the historical data over the last 30 days, workflow by workflow. We can safely say (we know this from experience) that whatever the average labor hours used over the last 30 days for each workflow can be the anticipated average hours needed over the next 30 days. With this information in hand, Resource Planning for the next 30 days can be done.
We simply take 80% of the total available billable hours and subtract the volume of labor needed for all non-project workflows. The remainder is Project Availability.
For Critical Request labor, we block out time on the best Resources and have them standby each day for Critical Requests. They will come; the historical data does not lie. Now, if you’re super concerned about Techs sitting around, you can have them work on low-priority tasks so they can instantly pivot when needed. But…if you forecast right, they won’t be idle.
For High and High Backup priorities, be sure to have a middle-skilled Resource available to take these later in the day or first thing in the morning.
Medium, Standard, Quick Hits, and Install/Move/Add/Change <4 hours, the Level 1 Techs need to be available to engage on these requests, but they need to be available tomorrow or the day after. They should already have 8-12 tickets (representing 4-6 hours of labor) in their Ready to Engage widget.
The rest of the workflows need to be scheduled in the calendars where they fit. This would be where there are more hours available than will be needed for Critical thru I/M/A/Cs < 4 hours.
Resource Planning for MSPs: A Summary
This is Resource Planning for MSPs. In summary, here are the steps:
1) Define Workflows for every type of Client Request, and monitor them to make sure they are being used appropriately.
2) Review the Historical Data to determine how many hours are needed each day and each week for each workflow.
3) Schedule Preventative Maintenance work first - and a year in advance.
4) Pre-position the right skill level for each Incident and short-duration Service Request.
5) Schedule Service Requests estimated to require more than 4 hours of labor.
a. Schedule them out at least 3 days.
b. Leave room for all the Incident and short-duration Service Requests that are still coming in.
6) Schedule projects for any hours that are left over after all the other Client Request Workflows have been accounted for.
The concepts are simple. The application and habit building is not. If you need help, please don’t stand on your toilet and risk hurting your head - there is an easier way (we promise!). Just email us at Info@AGMSPCoaching.com.
The elephant in the room:
Who is Advanced Global, and why should we listen to them?
Recently someone we’ve been in communication with since DattoCon 2018, who was faithfully reading our articles, commented that up until a few months ago, “I really did not know what Advanced Global does.” So here are a few bullet points to let anyone interested know who we are and what we do:
1) We Are – the Autotask Global Service Delivery Authority
2) We Help – MSPs thrive
3) We Solve – Service Delivery issues, inefficiencies, and challenges by making sure:
a. Techs know what to work on next
b. Someone is managing all open tickets and driving them to completion
c. The staffing levels are correct, and the workload is balanced
d. Real-Time Time Entry is a cultural habit
e. The Client has a great client experience
f. Profit is maximized
g. Autotask is being fully leveraged
h. The historical data that is in the Autotask software is accessible to benchmark, track & USE effectively
i. The Service Delivery operations can scale
j. Projects are completed On-Time and On-Budget
k. The Company can grow
l. MSPs know what they don’t know
4) Our Tools:
a. Autotask “Best in Class” standard build
b. Our MSP robust Service Delivery SOP library
c. Advanced Live Reports
d. Expertise in providing a transformational experience
Note: We are not philosophers; we are doers with 31+ years of Service Delivery experience, bringing real Service Delivery Improvement change, profitability, and Best in Class performance.
We start by offering a FREE No-Obligation PSA Configuration Evaluation.