Your business isn't the same as it was a year ago, or maybe even six months ago. You've hired more people, taken on larger clients, adopted new technologies, and maybe even expanded into new markets. But has your IT provider kept up?
Outgrowing your Managed Service Provider (MSP) is a common but often overlooked challenge for scaling businesses and the signs can sneak up on you.
What starts as minor frustrations, missed patches, slow response times, and vague cybersecurity coverage, can quickly turn into real operational risk.
To help you assess where you stand, we spoke with Matt Estes, Director of Sales at Intelligent Technical Solutions (ITS).
With decades of experience helping growing businesses navigate their IT strategy, Matt shares what business leaders should watch out for, and how to pivot without disruption.
Sign #1: Your Business Has Scaled, but Your MSP Hasn’t
Growth is good. But if your MSP can’t support that growth, it quickly becomes a bottleneck.
Matt gave the example of a client that grew from 15 to 88 employees in just a few years, but kept the same one-person IT support model.
“When they started, they had 15 employees. They had a guy working out of his home doing a great job with the basics...very break-fix,” Matt said. “But now, he’s outside his depth with some of the bigger items that come with company growth.”
These "bigger items" include things like 3rd party system patching, network infrastructure upgrades, and compliance with security frameworks. These are responsibilities that go far beyond resetting passwords or troubleshooting printers.
An MSP built for a small team may lack the tools, automation, and proactive service models needed to support midsize and enterprise operations. If your provider still operates in a reactive, break-fix mode, it’s time to re-evaluate.
Key questions to ask yourself:
- Has your business added locations, departments, or remote teams recently?
- Are critical IT issues slipping through the cracks?
- Are you getting strategic guidance, or just ticket resolutions?
Sign #2: You're Facing New Compliance Requirements Your MSP Can’t Meet
As your business grows, so do your regulatory obligations. New markets, acquisitions, or changes in industry laws can introduce requirements your current MSP simply isn’t equipped to handle.
Matt shared a previous conversation he had with someone whose organization was acquired by another company. He says that they suddenly needed way more cybersecurity than just Defender on Microsoft Exchange. “Their MSP admitted they couldn’t support the new scope,” he said.
If your provider’s idea of security is antivirus and a firewall, you may be dangerously under-protected, especially if you’re in industries like finance, healthcare, legal, or automotive, where FTC Safeguards, HIPAA, or CMMC compliance may apply.
Modern cybersecurity requirements demand:
- 24/7 threat detection and response
- Advanced endpoint protection
- Multi-factor authentication enforcement
- Regular vulnerability scans
- Secure backup and disaster recovery
- Documentation and policy support
If your provider isn't offering these, and guiding you through implementation, you’ve outgrown their capabilities.
Sign #3: You’re Thinking About the Future, But They’re Not
Your business is focused on growth, but is your MSP aligned with your future goals?
“80% of the people I’ve talked to have no idea what their IT strategy looks like year-over-year,” said Matt. “They don’t think about long-term issues. They’re just trying to manage the problem right in front of their face.”
Many MSPs are content to resolve tickets, but support isn't a strategy. A growth-minded business needs a partner who thinks ahead, anticipates risks, and builds a roadmap to support expansion and innovation.
At ITS, clients get access to fractional CIO services, helping them:
- Map out 1-to-3-year IT strategies
- Prepare for system upgrades like Windows 11 transitions
- Manage vendor relationships and license lifecycles
- Align IT investments with business goals
“We’re not just here to provide escalation support,” Matt explained. “We’re providing you with a true fractional CIO; Strategic leadership to ensure your IT environment is planned, predictable, and aligned with your business goals. End-of-life surprises, planning deficiencies, and reactive decisions are no longer acceptable in today’s landscape. With us, you’ll always have a roadmap, not a scramble.”
Sign #4: Your MSP Is Quietly Tapping Out
In some cases, your MSP might openly, or passively, admit they’re out of their depth.
“One MSP told one of our clients directly, ‘I can’t support you anymore,’” Matt recounted. “They were trying, but they knew they were in over their head.”
More often, though, the signals are subtle:
- You hear “we’ll look into it” more often than you hear solutions.
- Security updates are inconsistent or undocumented.
- Support times lag or tickets bounce between departments.
- They don’t show up to strategic planning meetings, or they weren’t invited to begin with.
If your MSP isn’t helping you grow or protect what you’ve built, then they’ve stopped being a strategic partner, and started becoming a liability.
What to Do If You’ve Outgrown Your MSP
The good news: you don’t have to rip and replace everything overnight.
“Switching MSPs is worse than moving,” Matt joked. “It’s pretty terrible. So, if they’re doing help desk stuff well, leave it. Let’s co-manage this thing.”
Matt often recommends a co-managed IT approach as a low-disruption entry point. This lets you:
- Keep your current provider for basic support
- Add ITS for cybersecurity, compliance, or strategic leadership
- Test capabilities and culture fit before expanding the relationship
“We come in as a strategic overlay,” Matt explained. “We fill in the gaps, build out a proof of concept, and it naturally progresses from there.”
This approach reduces risk, avoids downtime, and helps you gradually transition services to the right team at the right time.
What If Changing MSPs is Not a Priority?
Sometimes, business leaders recognize the risks but simply have bigger fires to put out.
Matt is realistic about that, too.
“If this isn’t in their top three, I don’t push. I’ll say: let’s reconnect in six months,” he said. “I’m not going to force a square peg into a round hole.”
But he also warns that waiting can be risky.
“I ask them: What if something happens between now and then? From an IT perspective, what happens if something breaks? One exec told me, ‘Honestly, I’m screwed.’”
If your provider isn’t even on your radar, and something goes wrong, there may be no one positioned to help.
Ready to Find a Strategic IT Partner that Grows with You?
If any of these signs resonate with you, it’s time to take a closer look at your MSP relationship. Because the longer you wait to address an IT mismatch, the greater the risk to your operations and growth.
The good news is you don’t have to overhaul everything overnight. With the right partner, you can start small, fill the gaps, and build toward a stronger, more strategic future.
You don’t have to make a massive change right away. Start with a conversation. At ITS, we specialize in helping growing businesses bridge the gap between where they are and where they need to be, without the chaos of a full rip-and-replace.
Schedule a meeting today and explore which solutions can make the difference for your business.
You can also check out the following resources for more information:
- Everything You Need to Know about Switching IT Providers [Video]
- What to Consider When Switching IT Service Providers
- Questions to Ask Before Partnering with a Co-managed IT Provider
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