PSA stands for ‘Professional Services Automation’. The term describes the IT functions that manage teams. A PSA system is particularly necessary for the management of IT support departments or Managed Services Providers (MSPs).
In order to operate, an MSP needs two categories of software:
An RMM platform supports the IT team in its daily tasks to maintain client networks/workstations. This is a bundle of tools that presents a unified console to technicians. The RMM should also automate routine tasks that need to be carried out in order to keep a remote IT system operating without incident. These features include:
The PSA supports the management of an MSP to make sure that all employees are working to expectations in supporting the clients. Not only do team leaders need to make sure that all of the functions laid out in the contract with a client are being performed competently, they also need to ensure that all technicians are fully occupied so that the MSP can run its business profitably.
A comprehensive PSA should include:
Customer Relationship Management
Helpdesk Interface and Automatic Ticketing
Knowledge Base Both for User Access and Technician Guidance
Task Tracking
Contract management
People today are working in a very fast-paced environment, we’re multi-tasking and trying to eliminate the added work with as much automation as possible. For some that’s “Hey Siri,” for others it’s “Alexa,” and for the android lovers it’s “hey google.” For the MSP’s, it’s PSA (Professional Services Automation). It’s exactly as it sounds! A strong PSA allows an MSP to automate tasks, to build out their CRM (Customer Relationship Management), to communicate with their clients, to invoice and bill for services rendered, and much more. Don’t be fooled, while the invoicing and billing may not be relevant to Internal IT’s; MSP’s and Internal IT’s alike should be relying on a strong PSA to keep their business running!
The PSA’s main components can vary for MSPs and Internal IT’s but the basics are predominantly the same. Your PSA should carry a solution to best manage your customers’ information (contacts, attachments, contacts, passwords, devices, and more). Don’t get fooled by the “bells and whistles,” make sure the CRM is clean, and keeps you as organized as possible. In addition, you’ll want to communicate with your clients and for that, you need a strong ticketing system. The ticketing system should let you deal with today’s tasks while also managing future tasks (as Atera’s NEW Ticket Scheduling allows you to do). Above all, ensure you’re capable of setting Ticket Automation Rules, this will allow you to eliminate the added work of sending surveys, thank you e-mails, acknowledgments, and many more time-consuming tasks. Lastly, but certainly not least, ensure it’s got a strong invoicing and billing system. If you’re using an external accounting system, integration is a huge advantage!
A PSA system is meant to serve the MSP and Internal IT. It should allow them to eliminate the tedious tasks while keeping the technicians focused on what matters most, the tasks at hand, and the betterment of your businesses’ technological devices and solutions. While most PSA’s offer functionality well beyond what you’ll actually need, you’ll find that most of the time you’ll only use a small portion of the added solutions. A PSA should be user-friendly, to the point, and allow you to get-to-work without a cumbersome set-up process. Atera’s functionality offers everything your business needs and their 30-day trial is more than enough to get set up and begin running your business on a new all-encompassing solution.
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