A managed service provider (MSP) is the IT department you would build yourself if you had the resources to do it. Simply put, an MSP is an IT department for hire. Reality is, very few businesses – and virtually no small- and medium-sized businesses – have the resources and expertise to create a world-class IT department. That’s why managed service providers exist. An MSP provides expertise, tools, and processes that most SMBs can’t match on their own. Whether the MSP does it all or works with an internal IT specialist, the MSP should deliver IT that is more stable and reliable than the client achieves by itself.