5 ways to improve the corporate financial performance of an MSP

If you are the owner or manager of a company that follows the model of managed IT services or MSP, you have different responsibilities on your shoulders. You have to make sure:

·         that the work is done properly;

·         that customers are happy;

·         that technicians work hard without risking a nervous breakdown.

In other words, you are responsible for the success and Corporate Finance Services in Dubai situation of your company.

There are several ways in which you can, each month, directly influence the income, the balance sheet or the corporate cash flow.

I chose five to share with you in this article.

1. Close the projects

The 95 % complete projects, which lack the last nudge to be concluded, are THE enemy.

Not only do they stand there, on the chalkboard or on PCs, screaming "you have not finished with me!", But usually also represent the precious time "billable" that has been spent by you or your technicians and collaborators, but not billed in any way.

Close the projects!

Invoice the customer as soon as possible. Remember that a customer pays bills (we hope!), But only after receiving them. It is very likely that right now you are still waiting for payments for jobs you did 60 or 70 days ago. Am I wrong?

These situations kill cash flow . I'm serious.

2. Close the support tickets

A reasoning similar to that done for projects also applies to assistance tickets that remain locked in the same status for days, weeks or months, are bad for your business.

Even if it is a customer to whom you offer a "complete package" of services, and therefore you will not pay more to settle a grain, a non-closed ticket means that there is an outstanding problem with that customer. And if the customer has problems, he is not happy. You also know that an unhappy customer is less willing to pay and buy other services than you, right?

If the ticket is related to a customer to whom you offer assistance Corporate Finance Services traditional mode or break-fix, this open ticket represents money you are not cashing . Even if you have already incurred the costs for its resolution by paying the salary to your technicians.

In these cases, the more aspects, the less the chances of being paid. If you and your employees resolve a ticket after weeks or months, do you think the customer is happy and happy to pay you? Customers are not all the same, but the equation expressed implicitly in the previous lines remains valid:

Unhappy customer = no money

3. Take advantage of your RMM to create scripts and automate recurring operations

Too often you see RMM (Remote Monitoring and Management) tools used as expensive remote control tools.

It's an incredible mistake.

Devoting time and resources to understanding how your remote management tool works may seem crazy when you have to handle the needs of many customers, but it is not. Indeed, it is a vital activity.

Studying the RMM tool must become a priority for you and your technicians; otherwise you will not be able to exploit the full potential of the tool.

Once you become "good" with your RMM the road is all downhill: you can use scripting and automation to quickly and effectively resolve recurring problems, you will save time and money and offer a better service to your customers.

4. Train the technicians so that they think "should I solve this problem?"

I often see technicians scurrying to solve problems that should be eliminated by replacing the hardware or software that generates them.

This is why your technicians and collaborators should be able to recognize immediately when something needs to be replaced and not repaired. Make the question "should I fix it or change it?" "Enter the corporate culture.

If the solution is to change the element that generates problems, it can be a good sales opportunity.

5. Track where the technicians are spending their time.

The time of your technicians is precious, not only because you are paying for their working hours, but also because it is often the time that the technicians use to solve a task that makes you earn. How can you be sure of correctly billing all the "hours" to customers? How do you know you're not losing money?

You need to know for sure where your technicians' time is spent: are they training? Are they solving a customer problem? Are they studying new solutions for your company?

The best way to measure the time of your technicians and verify that you are not losing valuable "billable hours" is to use a tool PSA or Professional Service Automation.

These suggestions are not the solution to all ills, but if applied they can all bring significant benefits in terms of operational efficiency and cash flow to your company.

Related Post: An ERP system for financial services, CAS Dubai

An ERP system for financial services, CAS Dubai

What should you pay attention to when implementing an industry-specific ERP system? This article focuses on ERPs for financial services.

The financial sector has not had it easy in recent years. Although the crisis years are now over, they have significantly damaged the reputation of the industry. Whether you are a bank, insurer, pension fund or financial advisor, you have to work hard to regain the trust and loyalty of customers. ERP software can help, but then you have to choose the right system. This article will go deeper into this issue.

Enter hours automatically

The earnings model has changed drastically for many financial service providers in recent years. Where earning was primarily based on commissions, advice is now the most important source of income.

This change has put pressure on many companies. To keep their heads above water, some entrepreneurs are now opting for IT systems. This is understandable, but IT can mean a large financial outlay and only a few use it optimally.

Unfortunately, such decisions often come up at short notice. Now that more and more billable hours are being worked on, a good ERP system is crucial. Functionalities for time recording and invoicing have become increasingly important. Every hour that is not processed correctly costs direct sales. The system can also be used to clearly show the amount of return per order.

Compliance considerations when looking for ERP

After the recent crises, supervision and regulation for the financial sector have been tightened. An ERP system is also important to meet these new rules. It is too complicated for this article to delve into all the legal nuances and the exact way in which an ERP system can help. However, we would like to emphasize that it is worthwhile to find a provider with industry-specific knowledge and experience.

For example, insurers and mortgage advisors are grouped in the same sector, but the laws and regulations are very different. There are also big differences within the insurance industry. You can understand that there are different rules for cars than for health insurance. Because compliance is an important task for financial service providers, you need to be sure that your ERP supplier is up to date with the latest developments in your industry. Only then can they help you comply with all rules.

Read also: Payroll services in UAE

Integration problems due to security considerations

Specialization in your industry is also important so that the implementation process runs smoothly. The way in which existing and outdated systems, particularly in the financial sector, have to be dealt with requires precision.

It is a major challenge for any company to switch from an old to a new IT system. This is even more difficult for financial institutions, as it is often not allowed to work in older systems.

Take banks for example. These often work with back office systems that were written a long time ago. The programming work is very complex and a technical error has far-reaching consequences. On the other hand, banks are finding that customers are constantly asking for new, attractive front-end solutions. Think of the popularity of mobile internet banking. However, these innovations should be compatible with existing systems. Shielding the backend is therefore an important task for technical implementation partners.

The example above is about banks in this case, but there are similar cases for any type of financial service provider. Only specialized partners have sufficient knowledge of these systems and the languages ​​in which they are written. You understand your situation and this makes everything run a bit smoother.

Online customer support is a must

Proper use of ERP makes it much easier to support, retain and recruit customers. In the highly competitive financial sector, companies must strive for a consistently high level of service in order to guarantee customer loyalty. This leads to high investments, for example in telephone customer care. Automating customer contact can offer a solution. To date, companies associate automated customer support with poor service. However, nothing is less true.

Using an online contract policy portal is a good example. In many ways, this is clearer, faster, more accessible, and more convenient for customers than calling your customer service. With a digital contract guidelines portal, customers can view their data, but also change, expand or request existing services. If this function is part of a Customized ERP Software's in Dubai, the changes are processed correctly.

Less telephone support is required and the number of administrative actions is reduced. Some (high-price-oriented) insurers do not offer any possibility of contacting us by phone. Although the complete elimination of the help desk can be described as rigorous, it is clear that this saves time and money. But online support such as a digital contract guidelines portal can also increase your sales. It is a perfect place to offer and cross-sell. New products and services can be tailored in detail to the individual needs of the customer.

ERP parties for financial service providers                  

If you've been looking for ERP on the internet lately, you'll likely have found hundreds of different options. How do you make the right choice now? Of course, this depends on which functionalities you want, how high your budget is, how much adjustment you need, whether you choose cloud or on-premise.

Related Post: 3 Indisputable Advantages of the Integration between ERP and CRM