How Is Your MSP Managing Your Azure Workload

Clients rely on their managed service provider (MSP) to oversee critical workloads in Azure-yet few know how the providers work behind the scenes. When choosing an MSP, it is important to ask specific questions aimed at understanding adherence to best practices and frameworks followed in support of the underlying services.

As an Azure MSP Expert, Connection leverages the depth and expertise of Microsoft by aligning to the pillars of the Azure Well-Architected Framework (WAF). By following the framework, we demonstrate to clients how reliability, cost, security, performance, and overall operational excellence is fundamental to our program.

Get with the Program

With over 30 featured components in our program, Connection builds in support, operations, health monitoring and patching, security, compliance, performance, backup and resiliency, cloud management and reporting, and customer engagement. Each of the technical components align to Azure best practices. For example, ensuring cost management-such as right sizing both compute and storage-is reviewed on a periodic basis with clients, in addition to its daily visibility. For security, on-going proactive monitoring is paramount.

We also offer scheduled reviews to demonstrate the client's security posture while additionally making recommendations for improvement or remediation with particular focus to key business requirements (such as compliance). By aligning our program offerings to Azure best practices and architecture frameworks, clients understand the methodology implemented. Because Microsoft designed the framework, both the client and Connection have established and tested MSP-quality checks and balances.

Talk Is Cheap. Ask for A Review.

We practice WAF in our build and support model-and offer clients a WAF review. In a WAF review, Connection will guide you through the model and how it is applied to your managed Azure infrastructure. One of the best times to engage in a review is during your initial onboarding. From a service provider perspective, aligning best practices with the business goals of the client is paramount. When transitioning to a managed environment, a WAF review may reveal the architectural changes necessary to ensure optimal management, operational stability, and adherence to compliance requirements. Getting ahead of this early ensures success in support of your business while providing a solid architectural foundation to grow upon.

To assist your organization, Microsoft offers reference architectures on their Microsoft Learn training site-spanning from basic-but-well-architected landing zones to detailed designs for specific application and data use cases. Whether or not your MSP provides services at the application layer, or it is client managed, take a moment to peer into Microsoft's 10 design principles for Azure applications, offered as a way to make your application more scalable, resilient, and manageable. When you speak with your MSP, refer to the Microsoft Well-Architected Framework to ensure your company is covered by industry best practices. Ask questions and understand how your business is operating in an optimal cloud environment that is positioned to foster growth and support you. As always, remember operating your business in the cloud is a shared responsibility and understanding the delineation of your responsibilities and those of the MSP is critical.