Managed IT Services

We serve as your business’ technology department.

Managed IT Services – Solution Builders

We’re here to help fix any and all of your IT troubles.

Our mission here at Solution Builders is to bring to you some of the best managed IT services available in the industry. The technology services we offer help businesses keep their technology infrastructure running smoothly at all times. Our team of experts proactively monitors and manages your network, systems, and data to prevent problems before they happen.

With our managed IT services, you can focus on running your business, knowing that your technology is in good hands. We can tailor our services to meet your unique needs, and our team is always available to answer any questions you may have.

What Is Managed It Service Solution Builders Minneapolis

WHAT ARE MANAGED IT SERVICES?

Managed IT services are a comprehensive approach to managing and supporting a company’s IT infrastructure. The overarching goal of managed IT services is to control and monitor a company’s network, systems, and data to eliminate issues, ensure compliance, reduce in-house overhead, increase efficiencies across the board, and maximize uptime management.

A managed service provider (MSP) like Solution Builders will work with a company to assess its IT needs and create a customized plan to support its business goals. This plan will include a schedule of regular maintenance and support, as well as 24/7 monitoring to identify and resolve any potential issues quickly.

Benefits Of Managed It Services For Your Business

There are many benefits to having managed IT services, but the three most important ones are:

PEACE OF MIND

When you leverage managed IT services, you can focus on running your business and leave the worries of managing your technology infrastructure to us. You’ll know that your network, systems, and data are in good hands and that every little thing is monitored around the clock.

PROACTIVE SUPPORT

With managed IT services, you’ll get proactive support to prevent problems long before they even happen. Our team of experts will monitor your network for potential issues and take care of any problems quickly and efficiently.

CUSTOMIZED SERVICES

No two businesses are alike. At Solution Builders, we tailor our managed IT services to meet the unique needs of each of our clients. We’ll work with you to understand your business goals and create a plan that supports them.

Managed It Support Services By Solution Builders

Managed IT services can be customized to meet the unique needs of any business, and they often include the following components:

Managed Cloud
Cloud computing has become increasingly popular in recent years, and for a good reason. Cloud-based solutions are scalable, flexible, and cost-effective.

Solution Builders offers managed cloud services that can help your business take advantage of the many benefits of cloud computing. Our team will work with you to assess your needs and choose the right cloud-based solutions for your business. We will also monitor your cloud infrastructure to ensure it runs smoothly and efficiently.

Technology Strategy & Planning
Technology changes quickly, and keeping up with the latest trends and innovations can be challenging. Solution Builders can help you create a comprehensive technology strategy that will meet your current needs and future goals. We will work with you to assess your current infrastructure and identify areas where improvements can be made. We can also help you choose the right new technology solutions for your business and create a plan for implementing them.
Technology Management
Once your technology strategy is in place, our team can help you implement and manage it. We will work with you to deploy new solutions and ensure they are integrated seamlessly into your existing infrastructure. We will also provide ongoing support and maintenance to keep everything running smoothly.
Best Practices
When choosing a managed IT service provider, choosing a company with experience and expertise in managing and supporting the type of infrastructure you have is important. It is also essential to ensure that the company you choose has a good understanding of your business and its specific needs.
Support Desk & Help Desk Service
In addition to managed IT services, Solution Builders also offers support desk and help desk services. Our team of experts can provide you with the help you need to keep your technology running smoothly. We offer 24/7 support so that you can always get the help you need when you need it.
Backups Management
Backing up your data is essential to protecting your business during a disaster. Solution Builders offers backup management services to help you create a comprehensive backup plan. We will work with you to assess your needs and choose the right backup solution for your business. We will also monitor your backups to ensure they are working correctly.
SB360
SB360 is our comprehensive managed IT service that covers all aspects of your IT infrastructure. Our experts will work with you to assess your needs and create a customized plan that meets your specific goals.

We will then manage and support your IT infrastructure on an ongoing basis. SB360 is the perfect solution for businesses that want to outsource all of their IT needs.

Project Management
Solution Builders also offers IT project management services. Project Management is an essential component of any successful IT project. Our team of experts can help you plan, budget, and manage your IT projects from start to finish. We will work with you to ensure that your projects are completed on time and within budget.

ABOUT SOLUTION BUILDERS

Solution Builders is a leading provider of managed IT services. We have over 25 years of experience managing and supporting IT infrastructure for and on behalf of organizations of all shapes and sizes. Our team of experts can help you plan, implement, and manage your IT projects from start to finish.

Our team of experts has extensive experience in all types of IT infrastructure. We have a team of experts who are familiar with the latest technologies and trends. We also work closely with our clients to understand their businesses and identify their needs. This allows us to provide tailored, managed IT services designed to meet each client’s unique needs. From publicly traded companies to managed IT services for small businesses, Solution Builders has you covered.

MANAGED CLOUD

We manage your cloud infrastructure, securely and efficiently.

Our ThnAir Managed Cloud services allow you to focus on running your business, putting precious capital to work to drive business results, not pay for servers and expensive hardware. Launched in 2009, ThnAir Managed Cloud leverages the largest cloud providers in the country and combines the in-depth experience of Solution Builders support and best practices to deliver exceptional results for our clients.
OFFICE 365 AND MICROSOFT 365 AND MICROSOFT AZURE

We’ve been a Microsoft Cloud Partner since its inception, and now 10 years into their program, we have many migrations with thousands of seats under our belt. The keys to a successful Office 365 migration are a solid work plan, knowledgeable and experienced technicians, and tools which make the transition trouble free for your staff.

Here are some of the services we’ve successfully migrated to Office 365, Microsoft 365 and Microsoft Azure:

  • On-Premise Microsoft Exchange 2003, 2008, and 2013 to Office 365 (all licensing models)
  • Gmail to Office 365 (all licensing models)
  • SharePoint On Premise (all versions) to SharePoint Online
  • Other email systems to Office 365
  • Skype for Business to Microsoft Teams
  • Phone systems to Microsoft Teams
  • Calling Plans
  • In-Cloud Windows Servers to Azure Servers (cloud to cloud migration)
  • Windows Server Shares to Microsoft Teams Files and SharePoint Online
  • Physical desktops to desktops as a service in-cloud utilizing Windows RDS (Terminal Services)
LUMEN MANAGED HOSTING SERVICES

We’ve been working with Lumen Technologies (formerly CenturyLink) for many years now, assisting clients in managing resources in the semi-private and private hosting environment that Lumen Technologies provides. If your organization is thinking about deploying servers in a semi-private or completely private cloud environment, contact one of our cloud hosting and cloud deployment technology experts.

Here are some of the services we’ve successfully migrated to Lumen Technologies semi-private and private hosting environment.

  • Physical infrastructure migration from on-premise to in-cloud
  • Physical desktops to desktops as a service in-cloud utilizing Windows RDS (Terminal Services)
OTHER CLOUD SERVICES

We manage all of our client’s cloud infrastructure, no matter where it is. From 3rd party hosting services to G-mail and G-suite, to Software as a Service (SAAS), our expertise is deep and here to help you be successful in whatever platform you need to be on.

TRANSFORM YOUR ORGANIZATION WITH OFFICE 365

Download our free whitepaper for business leaders and IT administrators – answering common questions and providing guidance to implementing Office 365 and Microsoft Cloud Managed Services

TECHNOLOGY STRATEGY AND PLANNING

Technology Strategy and Planning to ensure your technology continues to match your organization’s goals.

We’ll leverage your technology to meet your goals, big and small. Your organization deserves a trusted technology partner who has your back when assisting you in technology strategy and planning. One who serves as a guide as you craft and implement your strategic plan. You deserve a partner who will guide you in identifying IT and technology challenges and one who will work tirelessly to implement all the appropriate tools and resources necessary to solve these.

Here’s what you should expect from a strategic planning process offering from Solution Builders.

You want a technology partner who understands your technology and IT. As your technology partner, we want to know it all. It’s our goal to assess and gain insights that allow your team and ours to deliver a thorough report of all the solutions that guide you in accomplishing your specific business unit’s objectives. Through this process, a customized and strategic technology plan can be developed.

You want technology strategy and planning processes that align with your business strategy. Your business technologies should improve your day-to-day operations, not impair them. With a trusted technology partner guiding you, you can finally realize the potential ROI of your technology investments. You’ll receive guidance from our team of experts who will align IT with your business objectives while considering their costs.

We’re confident that one of your main objectives is to increase productivity and efficiency. And having a resource that acts as a virtual Chief Information Officer (CIO) as a technology partner means finding the right technology solutions for your business. You’ll get comprehensive and actionable information technology solutions like security, disaster recovery, business continuity, and maintenance and monitoring.

Partner with a technology and managed IT services provider who takes technology strategy and planning seriously, so you are the hero to your clients and customers. Solution Builders is different because of our proven, scalable process. We don’t talk geeky-tech talk, rather our goal is to align your technology needs and resources as a trusted partner because of our proven approach we take with your business. We’ve been serving businesses like yours since 1995 and want to be your technology partner.

TECHNOLOGY MANAGEMENT

HIRE TECHNOLOGY MANAGER
We’ll focus on managing your IT, and you can focus on driving your business.

Our clients are pretty impressive, and one of the things they expect from us is world-class technology management. We’ve taken their hint and expanded it to a comprehensive technology management service offering – all included in our managed IT services offerings.

WE COVER IT ALL
We don’t nickel and dime our clients to death. Our managed IT service offerings cover all technology our clients use. To name a few, servers, firewalls, cloud services, company-owned smartphones, networking, and printers. As technology experts, we often get asked questions about anything with a chip, so we make sure we cover just about everything with a chip in our service offerings.
SERVERS AND STORAGE
We manage our clients’ servers as though they were our own. They are organized according to our years-in-the-making best practices, so they perform to expectations, and failures are rare. Our client management process keeps a tab on their age and health, so if something comes up or gets to the end of life, you already know about it and had the budget set aside. We don’t like surprises, so we work hard to minimize them.
MICROSOFT HYPER-V AND OTHER VIRTUALIZATION PLATFORMS
We have been managing clients running on Hyper-V since the beta versions of Hyper-V, so we have extensive experience in managing Hyper-V and other virtualization environments and making them perform well. All are included in our managed IT services.
FIREWALLS AND SWITCHES
We manage and maintain our client’s firewalls and switches according to our best practices – with a keen eye on security as the default.
CLOUD SERVICES
The Cloud is something we’ve been managing for our clients for a long time. We recommend that our clients run some or all of their information technology on the Cloud. Whether you have parts or all of your infrastructure in a cloud service, support for that infrastructure is included in our managed IT service plans.
PHONE SYSTEMS AND SMARTPHONES
Our managed IT service plans include phone system support, and we help with staff onboarding and terminations. However, we aren’t experts at every system, so we ask that clients maintain a service agreement on their phone systems so we have someone to call. Everyone has a smartphone, and company-owned smartphones are included with support.
PRINTERS
You name the printer and we have probably seen it and supported it. Typically, our clients have office productivity printers and copiers and support for those are included in most of our support agreements.
OTHER HARDWARE
Occasionally, our clients come up with other hardware necessary to run their business. Do we support it? Maybe! Contact one of our technology support experts to find out.

BEST PRACTICES

Management best practices and technology alignment is wholly baked into all of our managed services offerings and solve problems before they happen.

You may be familiar with IT asset management best practices in a different form – a national fast food chain. Most food chains have written procedures – for greeting customers and food preparation – resulting in consistent quality no matter where you live. We did the same thing, but instead of delivering tasty food, we deliver a consistent technology environment for your organization to thrive.

WHY IS A CONSISTENT TECHNOLOGY ENVIRONMENT IMPORTANT?

A consistent technology environment is important to you because the result is reduced support needs. Reduced support needs for your staff as most technology problems are eliminated before they turn into downtime and lost revenue. Reduced support needs resulting in proactive maintenance on your networking, cloud, and server environment to detect faults before they become big issues.

Partner with a technology and IT provider who manages your environment toward the goal of eliminating problems before they turn into downtime and lost revenue. Solution Builders is different because of our proven, scalable process. We don’t talk geeky-tech talk, rather, our goal is to align your technology needs and resources as a trusted partner because of the proven approach we take to your business. We have been serving clients like you since 1995 and want to be your technology partner.

Over the past 25 years, we developed our IT asset management best practices based on experience and what the system manufacturers recommend for the best end-user experience. As a result, you’ll enjoy a “technology noise-free” environment resulting in improved productivity for your staff, and you know your technology budget years in advance.

IT Asset Management Best Practices Include

  • Regulatory Requirements: HIPAA, FINRA, FERC/NRC, CJIS, PCI, FFIEC, and other industry security and operating standards
  • Line of Business Processes and Applications
  • Servers and Workstations
  • Office 365 and Microsoft 365
  • Support Procedures
  • Technology Consulting and Deployments

SUPPORT DESK AND HELP DESK SERVICES

When you have technology and IT issues, nothing is worse than not being able to get a hold of the Help Desk to fix it or having to wait days for a response.

We understand how frustrating technology can be when it’s not working correctly. You’re not alone in this frustration. We also understand how stressful things can be when you can’t work because your technology isn’t working. Not to mention, troubleshooting your employee devices can be less than ideal for non-IT-savvy employees inside your company.

That’s why having outsourced service desk solutions, which are remote and only a call away, will keep your systems, devices, and network on track while preserving your productivity and profit.

Help desk support services will help you by delivering technology support designed to keep you up and running while improving the productivity inside your office. We minimize downtime and fix issues fast and on your terms.

Partner with a technology and Managed IT Services provider who will be there to support your company’s technology struggles when they happen through the fast, practical support desk and helpdesk services. Solution Builders is different because of our proven, scalable process.

We don’t talk geeky-tech talk, rather, our goal is to align your technology needs and resources as a trusted partner because of the proven approach we take to your business. We’ve been serving businesses since 1995 and want to be your technology partner.

HelpdeskYOUR HELP DESK SUPPORT SERVICES:

  • Support for every device and platform including Mac®, PC, Windows, and Android & iOS tablets/smartphones
  • Calls answered by problem-solving technicians
  • United States – Minnesota-based
  • 24/7 phone support, 365 days a year
  • Fast remote and/or on-site diagnostics and repair

FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS

WHAT IS A SERVICE DESK?

A service desk is a centralized support center that provides users with customer service and technical support. The term “service desk” describes the team of people who work in the support center, as well as the software they use to track and manage support requests.

The service desk handles all customer service and technical support inquiries. In most organizations, the service desk is the single point of contact for all users, and it is responsible for routing support requests to the appropriate team or individual.

The service desk software used by the team may include a ticketing system, a knowledge base, and a self-service portal. The ticketing system is used to track and manage support requests, and the knowledge base is used to store information about common issues and solutions. The self-service portal allows users to access the knowledge base and submit new support requests.

The service desk team consists of customer service representatives and technical support specialists. The customer service representatives are responsible for handling all customer service inquiries, and the technical support specialists are responsible for providing technical support to users.

The service desk is a critical part of any organization and plays a vital role in the overall customer experience. A well-run service desk can help improve customer satisfaction and reduce support costs.

WHAT IS THE DIFFERENCE BETWEEN SUPPORT DESK, HELP DESK, AND SERVICE DESK?

The terms “support desk,” “help desk,” and “service desk” are often used interchangeably, but there is a difference between each type of team.
A support desk is responsible for providing technical support to users. A help desk is responsible for providing users with customer service and technical support. A service desk handles all customer service and technical support inquiries.

In most organizations, the service desk is the single point of contact for all users, and it is responsible for routing support requests to the appropriate team or individual.

WHAT ARE THE TYPES OF SERVICE DESKS?

There are three primary types of service desks:

  1. On-Premises: Hosted on the organization’s local servers.
  2. Cloud-based: Hosted on remote servers.
  3. Hybrid: A combination of on-premises and cloud-based solutions.
WHY DO YOU NEED SERVICE DESK SOFTWARE?

A well-run service desk can help improve customer satisfaction, minimize downtime and reduce support costs. It is responsible for delivering efficient and profitable services to customers, and can make the difference between success and failure. With the right software in place, the service desk can be a powerful tool for your organization.

HOW DOES AN IT TICKETING SYSTEM WORK?

An IT ticketing system is a software application that helps organizations track and manage support requests. The system is used to create, update, and resolve tickets. Tickets are typically created by users who need help with a problem or issue.

The ticketing system assigns each ticket a unique ID number and stores all information about the issue in the ticket. This information can include the problem description, steps to reproduce the issue, and any attachments.

When a ticket is created, it is typically assigned to a member of the support team. The team member can then update the ticket with information about the issue and its resolution. Once the issue is resolved, the ticket is closed.

KEY BENEFITS & CAPABILITIES OF IT SERVICE DESKS

IT service desks provide several benefits and capabilities to help organizations improve their support operations. Some of the key benefits and capabilities of IT service desks include:

IMPROVED TICKET MANAGEMENT

IT service desks can help organizations track and manage support requests more effectively. The software provides a central place for all tickets and offers features that allow team members to prioritize and resolve tickets more efficiently.

BETTER CUSTOMER SERVICE

Managed IT service desks can help organizations provide better customer service by offering self-service portals and knowledge bases. These features allow users to find answers to their questions without contacting the support team. This dramatically improves the overall user experience.

REDUCED SUPPORT COSTS

IT service desks can help organizations reduce their support costs by automating tasks and eliminating duplicate tickets.

IMPROVED TEAM COLLABORATION

IT service desks can help support teams collaborate more effectively by providing live chat and file sharing features. These features allow team members to communicate and share information more easily.

WHAT ARE THE COMPONENTS OF AN IT SERVICE DESK?

The components of an IT service desk vary depending on the organization’s specific needs. However, most IT service desks include the following components:

  • Ticketing system
  • Self-service portal
  • Knowledge base
  • Asset management
  • Contract management
  • Change management
ARE OUR HELP DESK SUPPORT SERVICES INCLUDED IN IT MANAGED SERVICES?

Our award-winning Help Desk services are included in our managed IT services offerings.

DO YOU USE A TICKETING SYSTEM TO TRACK SERVICE REQUESTS?

Yes, Solution Builders uses a state-of-the-art ticketing system to make your experience working with the Help Desk staff world-class.

HOW LONG DOES IT TAKE FOR A SUPPORT TECHNICIAN TO RESOLVE MY ISSUE?

Our internal goal is to resolve most service requests within four business hours, but we average closer to 90 minutes most days.

DO YOU TRACK CUSTOMER SERVICE RATINGS?

Yes, we track customer service ratings very closely and ask clients to submit feedback after each service ticket is closed.

WHAT IF I ALREADY HAVE AN IT DEPARTMENT? CAN I OUTSOURCE MY HELP DESK TO SOLUTION BUILDERS?

Yes, we offer our Help Desk support services to organizations who wish to retain IT staff but want the burden of Help Desk outsourcing.

BACKUPS MANAGEMENT

We manage your data backups to keep your company’s critical data safe and secure.

Backups management monitoring is probably the most critical service we perform for our clients, and we take it very seriously. Whether you still use legacy tapes, on-premise disk-based backups, or cloud solutions, we manage it all – and verify it works!

LEGACY BACKUPS

Sometimes, legacy backups just happen. Whether it is an older server with a tape drive or a previous vendor’s apprehension regarding cloud backups, it doesn’t matter to us – we manage it for you. Our proven process for managing data backups and recovery works every time, so even if the data backup solution your business is running on is a little bit older, we’ve got it covered.

CLOUD BACKUPS

Our cloud backup solutions are time-tested and proven to work. Cloud backups can mean different things to different people, so let’s address a few.

Managed cloud service backups are backups where we are backing up cloud services, such as Microsoft Azure or Office 365. To backup these services, you need special backup services, and we are familiar with and experienced in best-of-breed cloud service backup platforms. All of our cloud services backup solutions are fully managed according to our documented, proven process and best practices – so you can rest easy knowing your data is recoverable in the event a recovery is needed.

Cloud backups for on-premise servers are where we are backing up local servers and replicating the backup data to the cloud for offsite storage. Our cloud backups for on-premise server solutions are managed according to our documented, proven process and best practices. So you can rest easy knowing your data loss is recoverable if a recovery is needed.

SB360

Our Approach to IT Management and Managed IT Services

Solution Builders is committed to understanding your business and its technology, pain points, and unique opportunities. Through our SB360 process, we help you align your technology needs with your business strategy to create a comprehensive plan that helps your company meet its goals and improve overall productivity.

We work with you to develop your technology strategy, roadmap, and resource plan – then we communicate it in terms you understand. Solution Builders is a solution agnostic technology partner – from our depth of expertise, we bring the best solutions for your unique needs and fit within your budget.

We pride ourselves on being available when you need us – we’re here to help with technical support and advice whenever you need it. Our team of engineers and technicians are certified in the latest technologies and keep up with the latest trends so that you don’t have to.

Let us help you take your business to the next level with our SB360 process. Contact us today to get started.

OUR SB360 FIVE-STEP PROCESS

NETWORK HEALTH REVIEWS AND ALIGNMENT

We do periodic and extensive audits of your current technology, infrastructure, and networks to ensure you have the best technology at your disposal. This also allows us to have an in-depth conversation about how your current technology is working for you, where it may need improvement, and how it can be best aligned with your business goals.

CLIENT DISCUSSIONS AND LONG-TERM PLANNING

We work with you as your technology partner to answer all your questions and help you put together a long-term plan for your business’ technology, talking about the Network Health Reviews and how your infrastructure is doing – helping you plan for the future.

STABLE AND PREDICTABLE IT INFRASTRUCTURE

Understanding your organization and the technology you use results in delivering a stable and predictable IT infrastructure.

This is the platform on which your business runs, and we take that responsibility very seriously.

Our technicians are available 24x7x365 to ensure that your systems are always running smoothly and efficiently.

CLIENT SATISFACTION AND STABILITY

With a stable and consistent IT environment, you have one less thing to worry about. One of our company values is customer service, and we stay true to that mission, ensuring you and your business are in good hands at all times.

We work with you on an ongoing basis to ensure that your technology needs are always being met and that you’re happy with our services. Our ultimate goal is to provide you with peace of mind from knowing your business is supported by a reliable and trustworthy IT team.

Solution Builders is committed to being your technology partner and helping you navigate the ever-changing business technology landscape. Contact us today to learn more about our SB360 process and how we can help your business succeed.

Sb360

PROJECT MANAGEMENT

Our clients always comment that they love that Solution Builders include project management in managed IT services. It makes something they are unfamiliar with “easy” and “stress-free”. Delivering a trouble-free project management experience for our clients is a top priority for our project services team.

They utilize a proven process for managing IT projects that cover quoting through final end-user training. This allows your team to achieve their goals – all while reducing downtime and finishing the project on time and within budget.

The project management process starts well before the project is ever scheduled to be quoted.

How do we do this? By anticipating our client’s needs through our proven managed IT process called SB360. With SB360, we see into the future – your future – looking for outdated or no longer used technology and planning for its replacement. Your benefit is that each year, you know your IT budget upfront.

Our technology experts are passionate about managing your IT projects professionally. Contact us to learn more about our project management services.

WHAT IS INVOLVED IN IT PROJECT MANAGEMENT?

IT project management is the process of planning, executing, and monitoring IT projects. It encompasses all aspects of managing IT-related projects, from initial feasibility studies to implementation and post-project evaluation.

The main objectives of IT project management are to ensure that projects are delivered on time, within budget, and to the required quality standards. Other key objectives include minimizing risk, maximizing benefits, and ensuring stakeholder satisfaction.

Several different tools and techniques can be used to support IT project management. These include project management software development, which can be used to create project plans, track progress, and allocate resources, and change management tools, which can help you to manage and monitor changes to the project scope, schedule, and budget.

WHO IS INVOLVED IN AN IT PROJECT?

The project manager is the primary point of contact for all parties involved in an IT project. They are responsible for ensuring that the project is completed on time, within budget, and to the required quality standards.

Other key members of the project team include the business analyst, who is responsible for understanding the requirements of the project; the technical lead, who is responsible for overseeing the technical aspects of the project; and the testers, who are responsible for testing the software to ensure that it meets all the requirements.

In addition to the project team, several other stakeholders must be kept informed of the project’s progress. These include senior managers, who need to be kept up-to-date with the project’s status; end users, who will be using the software once it’s been implemented; and suppliers, who need to be kept informed of any changes that might affect them.

Contact Solution Builders Today For Managed It Services

Contact Solution Builders today if you are looking for managed IT services near me. We are a service company that can provide managed IT services for all-size businesses looking to grow and succeed. Call us today or fill out our online contact form to get started.