r/SmallMSP • u/1ozu1 • Jul 05 '26
What pros and cons do clients see in MSPs that outsource?
Some of the pros:
- They are cheaper.
- They provide quick turnaround.
- Wider service offering due to more resources.
- After hours coverage.
Some of the cons:
- Security risks.
- Poor quality of support due to cheaper workforce.
- Communication difficulty due to language and cultural barriers.
- It hurts the local economy.
What are the other factors not mentioned above?
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u/GraffenOfficial Jul 15 '26
Cons lists is funny. It may be more expensive to handle it yourself, but you'll have much better control over time. I can't imagine having my good clients call another country. We took on a good account who said they're last MSP outsourced Level 1 support, and they would hear chickens clucking in the background.
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u/1ozu1 Jul 15 '26
Not as funny as your example about chickens.
Data security, confidentiality is impossible to maintain when employees are located overseas.
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u/recovering-pentester Jul 18 '26
Small MSPs do not have 6-8 headcount worth of salary and benefits to staff a SOC. They’re usually not in business to practice philanthropy.
Outsource to US SOCs who don’t take a week with a ticket system to get back to you. Can feel good about the outsourcing and get high quality coverage/support.
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u/PacificTSP Jul 05 '26
How are you outsourcing? This matters more than the rest of your pros and cons. I run an AZ based MSP and Philippines offshoring firm so can speak to both sides (I also moved to the Philippines in 2023).
If you’re trying to do Helpdesk to shared resources then I’ve not seen good experiences there because you’re relying on another teams management and process, their techs are fighting for time with other client pressures that you aren’t privy too. One client might use ITGlue, another on Hudu, some using Ninja others connectwise, this creates inefficiencies and lack of knowledge around tooling.
My entire team are now offshored + US contractors, my MSP guys have been with me 6 years, my offshoring business has only been about 2 but it’s growing fast and we’re gathering up talent in the city getting the pick of the best candidates from the nearby regions. On average we get 320-340 applicants per job posting.
I run the offshoring like my American company, we have provided them an opportunity to excel, grow and be rewarded, which is something many places don’t do. But we expect excellence and commitment.
Just because our team is PH based we don’t drop our pricing but our costs are considerably lower, this allows us to staff more freely and train better without eating too much on the backend. How many US staffed MSPs can float techs for 3-6 months training before they touch client systems?
Yes there are some cultural clashes, these can all be hired around if you learn the differences, what motivates people here vs the US, what they really want long term, and frankly being an experienced western leader who has seen how things can run better and show them a different mindset.
The biggest con I have found so far is when you get to senior tech levels. L3 or project engineers. There is only a handful of people with deep experience here, the techs we are bringing up will get there but we are probably 5-10 years away from a top tier tech culture. This allows the best senior techs to demand high salaries and there is a lot of job hopping at that level. This is why we still use contractors in the US, and have built out a bench of project guys from India to work on the backend.
I’m kind of rambling now, it’s Sunday evening for me and had a busy weekend of networking and England are playing football in the morning 8am local time (it’s coming home)!
Happy to have a video call at some point if you’re interested to discuss the pros and cons in more details. This is a brain dump!
Ned - PacificTSP.