Executive summary
What leaders need to know
A fair evaluation uses a fixed scorecard. Comfort with a technician is not the same as organizational risk management.
Section 01
Definition
MSP evaluation is a structured review of whether your managed provider meets agreed outcomes for support, security, continuity, and executive communication.
Section 02
Why it matters to the business
Leaders should care because the issue shows up as cost, risk, or lost capacity, not as a technical curiosity.
- Weak providers hide risk until an incident
- Strong providers bring evidence and a roadmap
- You need criteria before you renegotiate or replace
Framework
What to do next
- 1
Collect evidence
SLAs, open risks, backup tests, security tooling coverage.
- 2
Score dimensions
Security, continuity, support quality, reporting, commercial terms.
- 3
Share results
Ask for a 90-day remediation plan or start a competitive process.
Answers
Common Questions About This Topic
How often should we evaluate our MSP?
At least annually, with a lighter quarterly check on risk and service trends.
What if scores are mixed?
Renegotiate scope and reporting first if trust remains. Replace when critical gaps are denied or ignored.
Library connections
- Readers of articles/what-to-expect-switching-msp often continue here for Evaluation before switch.