Best Practices for Working with an MSP: Building a Strong Partnership
Working with a Managed Service Provider (MSP), like Genieall, can be one of the smartest moves your business makes. Whether you’re aiming to boost security, streamline operations, or simply gain peace of mind, a great MSP can feel like an extension of your team. But like any partnership, success depends on how well you work together—which is why understanding the best practices for working with an MSP is key to getting the most out of the relationship.
Here are some friendly tips to help your organization get the most out of your MSP relationship:
🧭 1. Start with Clear Goals
Before diving into the tech talk, take a moment to share your business goals. Are you scaling up? Trying to reduce downtime? Want better cybersecurity? When your MSP understands your “why,” they can tailor their services to support your vision—not just your IT infrastructure.
📞 2. Keep the Lines of Communication Open
Regular check-ins (monthly or quarterly) go a long way. These aren’t just for troubleshooting—they’re a chance to review progress, plan ahead, and make sure everyone’s on the same page. Think of it like a coffee catch-up, but with fewer lattes and more uptime. Often these meetings are done in Teams, but we’re also happy to do it in Timmies.
👤 3. Appoint a Go-To Person
Having a single point of contact on your team makes everything smoother. This person doesn’t need to be a tech wizard—they just need to know who to call, what to ask, and how to keep things moving.
🧠 4. Help Your Team Understand the MSP’s Role
Your employees don’t need to know every detail, but a little awareness goes a long way. A quick intro to the MSP, how to submit support requests, and what to expect can reduce confusion and improve response times. At Genieall we offer materials to educate your team and to ensure they know how to reach us.
🔐 5. Take Cybersecurity Seriously
Your MSP will guide you on best practices like multi-factor authentication, backups, and password hygiene—but it’s up to you to follow through. Security is a team sport, and your business is the prize. Genieall is an ISO 27001 certified organization and to stay certified we are always working to stay on top of the latest best practices in cybersecurity.
📣 6. Share What’s Changing
Planning a new office? Hiring a bunch of new staff? Rolling out new software? Let your MSP know early. The more they understand your roadmap, the better they can support you.
📝 7. Know Your SLA (Service Level Agreement)
It’s not the most exciting read, but your SLA outlines what’s covered, how fast issues get resolved, and what to do if things go sideways. Knowing the basics helps you set realistic expectations and avoid surprises.
💬 8. Give Honest Feedback
If something’s working well—say so! If something’s not—say that too. MSPs want to improve, and your feedback helps them do just that. It’s all part of building a relationship based on trust and transparency. At Genieall we have a robust Quality Assurance program and client feedback is crucial for our constant improvement.
🌱 9. Think Long-Term
Your MSP isn’t just a vendor—they’re a strategic partner. Involve them in planning and budgeting conversations. They can offer insights that help you grow smarter, not just faster. Genieall has accumulated decades of experience at all levels, in many verticals – if we haven’t experienced it – we probably know someone that has and are happy to make connections.
Final Thoughts
Partnering with an MSP should feel like having a trusted advisor in your corner. By following the best practices for working with an MSP, you’ll build a relationship that’s not only productive—but truly collaborative.
If you want to learn more about what makes a great MSP have a look at one of our previous blog posts, or this Forbes article.
About Genieall
Incorporated in 2012, Genieall Corporation is a privately-owned Canadian IT Services and Consulting company. Being an ISO 27001 certified organization, Genieall provides managed and IT consulting services to companies in the Energy, Manufacturing, Construction, Health Care, and Finance verticals.
Genieall understands that IT infrastructure is fundamental to your business. For that reason, Genieall typically establishes trust with our clients by demonstrating our capabilities.
This is usually accomplished through a small engagement, urgent support requirement or consultation.
From there, our customers look to expand the support service to include both project and operational support using our Rightsourcing Model. (using the right balance of internal and external resources)
Throughout the process, Genieall’s culture of transparency, Customer-First approach along with our service model help us to establish and maintain trust.
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