Your IT team knows your business. Co-managed IT gives them the security operations, compliance expertise and extra hands that are hard to build in-house.
As companies grow past about 50 people, a single IT manager or a small IT team gets stretched thin: tickets pile up, security alerts arrive around the clock, auditors and insurers ask for evidence, and there's little time left for planning. Co-managed IT adds the capacity and specialized skills your team needs, while your team stays in charge.
What co-managed IT is
Co-managed IT is a shared arrangement: your internal IT staff keeps responsibility for the areas it knows best, and HUFF DATA SYSTEMS takes on the work that is hardest to staff in-house. The split is agreed in writing before the engagement starts, which is what CISA guidance for managed service provider customers recommends.
What we can add to your team
- 24/7 security monitoring: endpoint detection and response watched by a security operations center that is independently audited under the AICPA SOC 2 framework, with a five-minute average response.
- Business email compromise protection: impersonation filtering, Microsoft 365 conditional access and strong multi-factor authentication, and monitoring for account takeover.
- Help-desk capacity: our own Texas-based help desk, where callers reach a person in under a minute.
- Backup and recovery: immutable backups of servers, computers and Microsoft 365 with automated restore testing.
- Governance, risk and compliance: risk assessments, written security policies, vendor risk reviews and compliance evidence for HIPAA, the FTC Safeguards Rule, CIS and NIST.
- Incident readiness: a written incident response plan, plus a review of your cyber insurance application against the controls in place.
- Security training: security awareness training and phishing tests for employees.
- CTO-level planning: a technology roadmap, an IT budget and quarterly reviews in plain language.
An example of how responsibilities can be split
Every company is different. This is an example, not a template:
| Area | Your IT team | HUFF DATA SYSTEMS |
|---|---|---|
| Day-to-day user support | First call for employees | Overflow and specialized issues |
| Security monitoring | Informed of incidents that affect the business | 24/7 monitoring and response through the security operations center |
| Line-of-business applications | Owner and primary contact | Support and vendor coordination when needed |
| Compliance and insurance | Business decisions and approvals | Risk assessments, policies, evidence and application reviews |
| Planning and budget | Business priorities | Roadmap, budget and quarterly reviews with leadership |
When co-managed IT makes sense
- Your IT manager or team can't cover security monitoring around the clock.
- Auditors, regulators or your cyber insurer are asking for controls and evidence your team doesn't have time to produce.
- A major project, migration or new location is coming and your team is already at capacity.
- You need coverage when your IT staff is on vacation or out sick.
- The company has grown past about 50 employees, and IT has grown with it.
Comparing options? Our IT Buyer's Guide explains how co-managed and fully managed IT differ, and our article on what your MSP contract really says covers what to put in writing.
Common questions
Will co-managed IT replace our IT staff?
No. Co-managed IT is built to support your IT team, not replace it. Your team keeps its role, and we add the capacity and specialized skills it needs.
How do we decide who does what?
Before the engagement starts, we agree in writing which tasks your team owns, which we own and which we share, so nothing falls through the cracks.
Do you work with in-house IT teams in Victoria and Houston?
Yes. We serve companies within about 60 miles of Victoria and Houston.
How is co-managed IT priced?
Co-managed engagements are scoped to the services your team needs. You'll see the price and the split of responsibilities in writing before you sign.