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Stop Burning Your Best Talent on IT Fires: Why Production Teams Shouldn’t Handle IT

Jason Clause
Jason Clause
|
January 28, 2025

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An Insider's Take on The MSP Industry

The MSP industry is ever-changing, and staying ahead requires insights from those deeply embedded in the field. In this Insider's Take, Endsight's leaders share their perspectives on emerging trends, key challenges, and the evolving needs of businesses relying on IT services. Whether it’s navigating the complexities of cybersecurity or adapting to client growth, our team provides practical advice and forward-thinking strategies to help organizations thrive.

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Your engineers, developers, and other technical professionals are your company’s heavy hitters. They’re the ones designing innovative solutions, driving revenue, and pushing your business forward. But when IT issues arise, these key players often get pulled away to put out fires—fixing network glitches, solving hardware problems, or troubleshooting email outages.

It might seem efficient to lean on your technical talent for IT support, but this approach comes at a steep cost. IT distractions chip away at productivity, morale, and innovation, leaving both your team and your business struggling to stay ahead.

Here’s why relying on your production team for IT doesn’t work, which trends demand a dedicated IT strategy, and how the right IT partner can protect your most valuable resources from burning out.


The Tyranny of the Urgent

IT issues rarely wait for a convenient moment. They’re urgent by nature, disrupting workflows and demanding immediate attention. When your production team gets tasked with solving IT problems, they’re pulled away from the work that truly matters: driving revenue and innovation.

Imagine this: A developer is deep in a critical project when a server outage hits. Suddenly, they’re troubleshooting network configurations instead of completing a feature that could drive your next product launch. Their momentum is gone, the project stalls, and the IT fix is often a “good enough” patch to get things running again.

This isn’t just a productivity problem. It creates a ripple effect:

  • Frustration for employees: The person with the IT problem feels like an afterthought.
  • Demotivation for production staff: Your top talent sees IT as a distraction, not a priority.
  • Missed opportunities: Strategic work takes a back seat to short-term fixes.

Four Business Trends That Demand Dedicated IT

As businesses grow, their IT needs evolve. Emerging trends and technological demands make it clear that IT can no longer be an afterthought. Here are four key trends that underscore the need for dedicated IT resources:

1. Cybersecurity Readiness

Cyber threats are relentless, and the stakes are higher than ever. Ransomware attacks, phishing schemes, and data breaches can devastate a business. Staying secure requires constant vigilance, proactive measures, and specialized expertise. Your production team doesn’t have the bandwidth to monitor and mitigate these threats while maintaining their primary focus on innovation.

2. Data Management and Privacy Compliance

With regulations like GDPR and CCPA, businesses are under increasing pressure to manage data responsibly. Non-compliance can lead to steep fines and reputational damage. Dedicated IT professionals ensure your systems stay compliant and secure, while your production team focuses on delivering value.

3. Cloud Integration and Optimization

The cloud is essential for scalability, remote work, and collaboration. But it’s not a set-it-and-forget-it solution. Optimizing cloud environments requires ongoing oversight to control costs, improve performance, and ensure security. IT specialists can handle these tasks without diverting your revenue-generating team from their core work.

4. AI and Automation

Artificial intelligence and automation tools like Microsoft Copilot are game-changers for productivity and decision-making. However, integrating these technologies into your workflows requires expertise and long-term planning. A dedicated IT team can ensure these tools are implemented effectively, delivering real ROI without disrupting your operations.


Why IT Is More Than a Fix

Too often, businesses treat IT as a reactive function, solving problems as they arise. But IT is far more than a fire extinguisher. It’s a strategic enabler that:

  • Prevents problems before they occur.
  • Supports scalability and growth.
  • Aligns technology with business goals.

When IT is handled by production staff, it’s approached as a secondary task—a necessary nuisance that takes them away from their real priorities. This reactive mindset leads to:

  • Band-aid fixes instead of lasting solutions.
  • Frustrated employees and clients.
  • Missed opportunities to leverage IT as a growth driver.

The Cost of Burning Out Your Team

When your production team is tasked with IT support, it’s not just their productivity that suffers. It’s their morale. Solving IT issues is rarely the kind of work that excites top-tier engineers and developers. For them, IT problems are interruptions—a barrier between them and the high-value work they were hired to do.

This dynamic creates a lose-lose situation:

  • The person experiencing the IT issue receives rushed, subpar support.
  • The production resource feels drained and demotivated.
  • Your strategic projects lose momentum.

Over time, this cycle can lead to burnout and turnover, costing your business more than just a few delayed projects.


Not All IT Partners Are Created Equal

Outsourcing IT is the logical solution, but finding the right partner is critical. The wrong provider can create more headaches than they solve. You need an IT partner with the right mix of:

  • Size and scalability to grow with your business.
  • Proven processes for consistency and reliability.
  • Specialized skills in areas like cybersecurity, compliance, and cloud management.
  • Operational maturity to align with your strategic goals.

That’s why we created An Insider’s Take on the MSP Industry. This guide helps you navigate the complexities of managed IT services, so you can choose a partner that truly meets your needs. Download your copy today—no email required.


Moving Forward

Your engineers and developers are your business’s most valuable resources. They were hired to innovate, create, and drive revenue—not to troubleshoot printers or manage firewalls. By outsourcing IT to the right partner, you free your team to focus on what they do best while ensuring your business’s technology is secure, scalable, and ready for the future.

The trends shaping today’s IT landscape—cybersecurity, compliance, cloud optimization, and AI—demand expertise and a proactive approach. IT isn’t just a necessary function; it’s a strategic advantage that can elevate your business to the next level.

Stop burning your best talent on IT fires. Partner with experts who can keep your business running smoothly while your team focuses on growth. Download An Insider’s Take on the MSP Industry today and take the first step toward building an IT strategy that works for your business.


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