Adding Security to Turn MSPs to MSSPs
With the managed security service provider (MSSP) market estimated to grow almost 15% annually through 2025, many managed service providers (MSPs) want to add the additional S for security to their offerings. With this hot market, the earlier an MSP moves, the better the potential for getting in on the growth.
Unfortunately, adding the security aspect of the service is not as simple as just declaring that you can provide it. It requires defined offerings and the ability to communicate the value-added to the customer to justify the move. For MSPs looking to move to an MSSP, we will explore the essential facets of making the switch and delivering a solid set of solutions for your customers.
Adding the S to MSSP
The first part of moving into the security space as an MSP is determining what aspects of cybersecurity service you wish to offer to your customers. There is a broad range of security services that you can provide depending on the skillset of your technicians and the software solutions you wish to employ. With this decision, you can focus on your exact offerings to deliver the most benefit to your customers and maximize profit along the way.
Providing Security Solutions
The data security solution chosen by an MSP is essential for determining the exact offerings that you wish to provide for your customers. An excellent way to narrow down your offering is to start with a set of software solutions as your foundation for the offering. Looking for solutions that deliver on multiple security areas at a reasonable cost is essential for this process. Reasonably priced solutions allow room for better margins on resale while still offering the customer value.
Rather than buying the first offering that meets your price point and service need, your MSP should test it in action. A company that has faith in its product offering will often allow a trial run of the software to enable an MSP to understand how to operationalize the product and validate that it delivers as promised. This process helps eliminate solutions that promise more than they provide or are a management nightmare.
Simplify Management
The level of management that a solution requires can make or break its usefulness to an MSP. Your organization can spend time on additional customers rather than managing and maintaining a solution. Time spent on management is an operational loss, and effective solutions will minimize it.
Management is not simply about installation, patching, and upkeep; it is also about effective day-to-day product utilization. Optimal solutions will streamline operations with easy management consoles and a single pane of glass visibility for monitoring. These design factors make it easier for technicians to oversee the daily operations with minimal time investment. Efficient operations minimize the workload for technicians in a market that is already stretched thin for skilled security personnel.
Delivering Quality
Like streamlining management operations, a good solution also needs to have minimal impact on the user experience. When providing a solution to a client, their experience will suffer if it requires multiple additional steps and applications to juggle to accomplish their job. Unfortunately, by implementing security, there will always be some impact and restriction that comes with any implementation. When choosing a software solution, it is essential to find one that can still deliver on the security end while only minorly impacting the user experience.
Building Client Base
The other aspect of moving into the security realm is to get new clients on board or convince existing clients to grow their current service portfolio to include the security aspects. Doing this requires finding ways to pitch the client and get your foot in the door. This can be done with a combination of demonstration of the value proposition and presenting the educational value add for employees and how this improves overall security.
By moving to a security space, the MSSP also can court new markets in more regulated industries. MSSPs can deliver solutions to help them meet their compliance requirements and stop struggling to manage their environment. With a managed security solution, these new customers can focus on what they do best rather than being tied up with operations.
Door Opening
No matter the customer, the first step is getting a foot in the door. Showing a practical demonstration of what a solution can deliver in their environment is one of the easiest ways to demonstrate the immediate realization of value.
An example of this is using a security tool to run data risk discovery to identify and categorize the different varieties of data on their endpoints and network.
With this type of demonstration, a quick risk assessment can be performed, giving them instant visibility and a 'Dollar Value Report' into their current risk posture.
Many organizations have no idea where their sensitive data is hiding, and this demonstration can be pretty eye-opening. This requires a tool that can quickly be implemented and deployed on a customer premise. Still, it is an immediate conversation starter that adds value to their business to the forefront. The other beneficial aspect of this demo is that you can also leverage it into an employee’s educational opportunity by explaining to employees the risk and impact of what they are doing and how they can improve, furthering the value proposition.
New Opportunities
Delivering security services that provide compliance also creates a segue into servicing highly regulated industries, such as government, healthcare, or fintech. These industries handle sensitive information and have to comply with stringent regulatory requirements. Having the infrastructure to help them meet their compliance obligations opens the door to your service.
Going beyond identification and classification, it is crucial for a security tool to deliver confidentiality for regulated industries. With these compliance mandates, encryption is the driver for many confidentiality controls and comes with additional safe harbor benefits. This allows organizations to protect their data with encryption to reduce risk and handle cleanup and management later. Then if there is a breach or malware with exfiltration, the data is protected. So your MSSP and the organization are protected from liability.
You may also be interested in:
What Data Security Features Should SMEs Ask From Their MSPs
How Can MSPs Stay Compliant with New and Existing Regulations?
Data Risk Discovery As an MSP Door Opener
Trusted Toolset
Actifile is a valued resource to help MSPs transition to MSSPs. Actifile is a holistic software security suite that manages the identification of sensitive data, DLP, encryption, and access restriction on portable media. With Actifile, you can protect your customer’s data throughout its lifecycle and provide the evidence needed for auditors to validate compliance for highly regulated industries.
Contact Actifile today to schedule a demo to learn more about how Actifile can help your MSSP build its security foundation.