In summary
- An in-house technician costs significantly more than the salaryallocations, training, holiday and absence.
- A retainer gives access to several specialities — network, servers, security — for the cost of a single resource.
- Below a certain order volume, the internal technician is underutilised; above it, they are left on their own.
- O hybrid model it is the most common in SMEs: internal for day-to-day, supplier for speciality and peaks.
In this article
When an SME reaches a certain volume of IT support requests, the same question always arises: is it worth hiring an in-house IT technician, or does it make more sense to keep—or switch to—an external provider on a retainer? There is no universal answer, but there are objective criteria that help make the decision.
The real cost of an in-house technician
Salary is only a part of the cost. To this amount, it is necessary to add social charges, allowances, work equipment, continuous training (essential in a rapidly changing field), and the cost of replacement in the event of absence, sick leave or departure from the company — a period during which the company typically goes without any technical support. Additionally, a single internal technician rarely masters networks, security, cloud, systems and telephony to the same level — areas that, in an MSP, are usually covered by different specialists.
Compare the total cost, not the salary. To the gross amount are added social charges, training, certifications, holiday cover and the risk of dependency on a single person.
The cost of a retainer with an external supplier
A monthly retainer with an MSP typically includes access to a multidisciplinary team, without the hiring, training and replacement costs associated with an internal employee. The cost is determined by the number of users and the criticality of the infrastructure, and is usually more predictable than the sum of all direct and indirect costs of an internal hire.
When does it make more sense to have an in-house technician
- Large companies, with hundreds of jobs and very specific business needs;
- Sectors with very specific regulatory requirements that demand a permanent physical presence and deep knowledge of internal proprietary systems;
- Companies that already have sufficient scale to justify a full internal IT team, with multiple people and distinct skill sets.
When does it make the most sense to opt for outsourcing
- SMEs with between 10 and 200 employees, which do not have the scale to justify a full internal technical team;
- Businesses requiring support coverage outside of normal working hours without hiring additional shifts;
- Businesses that value budget predictability rather than incident-dependent variable costs;
- Companies that need specialist skills in security, networking and cloud, without hiring a person for each area.
A hybrid model is also possible
The choice is not always binary. Some companies choose to keep an internal person for day-to-day matters closer to the business, complemented by an MSP for 24/7 monitoring, critical infrastructure management and cybersecurity — combining the closeness of an internal resource with the technical depth and availability of a specialist external team.
How to decide
The most reliable criterion is not the isolated price of each option, but the total cost of ownership over 12 months — including indirect costs and the risks of not having adequate technical coverage for each model. For the majority of Portuguese SMEs without an established IT department, managed outsourcing tends to be the option with the best balance of cost, predictability and breadth of available skills.
Would you like to simplify your company’s IT management? DataRoad offers a full range of IT services, tailored to the needs of each business. Find out about our IT services for businesses.
DataRoad — ongoing IT support for businesses
A DataRoad is a Portuguese company specialising in managed IT services (MSP), headquartered in Alfragide (Lisbon) and with an active presence in Porto, Faro, Funchal, Évora, Setúbal and Beja. Since 2015, it has ensured the smooth running of IT infrastructures for businesses that cannot afford downtime — hotels, clinics, embassies, universities, multinationals and demanding SMEs — with a certified technical team, continuous monitoring and 24/7 support.
DataRoad ensures the ongoing IT support of companies via the service IT Unlimited: unlimited support at a fixed cost, both remote and on-site, with 24/7 monitoring, alerts and proactive interventions. The aim is simple — to prevent problems from even bringing operations to a standstill.
DataRoad Services
- IT Unlimited — round-the-clock IT support: unlimited support at a fixed cost, both remote and on-site, with incident management and rapid response.
- Computer networks and structured cabling: network design, installation and certification; Layer 3 switching and PoE.
- Enterprise wireless networks (Wi-Fi 6 and Wi-Fi 7): coverage study, cloud management and isolated visitor networks.
- Cybersecurity and corporate firewalls: perimeter protection, traffic control and threat mitigation.
- Servers, backups and disaster recovery: servers, NAS devices and centralised backups.
- CCTV video surveillance: video surveillance systems with continuous recording.
- Monitoring, alarm systems and reporting: real-time monitoring, automatic alerts and proactive interventions.
- IT consultancy and project management: relocation of premises, new facilities and modernisation of infrastructure.
- Cross-platform support: Windows and Apple environments, with comprehensive management of the IT infrastructure.
Get in touch with DataRoad
Do you need IT support for your business, to set up or upgrade your network, or simply a second opinion on your infrastructure? We’ll assess your situation and provide you with a no-obligation quote.
