Industry Voice: Building a Resilient Business: Why MSPs Must Look Beyond Security

As an MSP serving small to medium-sized enterprises, your customers aren’t looking for someone to come in and sell them security tools, they’re looking for someone to ensure their businesses continue to function at the optimum level. In short, they’re looking for resilience and continuity. In our increasingly digital world, this means more than making sure they can withstand things like supply chain disruptions or server outages; it means ensuring they can withstand and recover from cyberattacks, protect their data, and maintain customer trust.

Cyberattacks are "potential extinction events" for businesses that fail to prioritise cybersecurity. This isn’t hyperbole; it’s the reality of operating in today’s threat landscape. Organisations need to treat cybersecurity as a critical part of their long-term strategy. Yet, for many businesses, cybersecurity is often seen as a necessary cost, but not a strategic investment. This view, however, is increasingly outdated. Businesses need to treat cybersecurity in the same way they would insurance, pipeline planning, or contingency planning for business-critical operations—it’s part of running a strong business. Failing to do this leaves businesses vulnerable to increasingly sophisticated cyberattacks that can bring operations to a grinding halt.

Ultimately, resilience is the end goal your customers are aiming for, and cybersecurity is the foundation on which this is built.

What It Takes to Achieve Resilience

A well-designed cybersecurity program protects businesses not just from immediate threats like malware or ransomware but also from long-term consequences like regulatory fines, reputational damage, and the loss of customer trust. In industries like healthcare, finance, and manufacturing—where data and operational continuity are critical—cybersecurity plays a vital role in ensuring that business operations can withstand external shocks. This level of resilience doesn’t come from a single tool or service; it requires a mindset shift. MSPs must adopt strategies that go beyond reacting to threats to proactively building frameworks that keep businesses operational in the face of attacks.

Here’s what it takes:

1. A Layered Security Approach
   Resilience begins with multiple layers of defence. Tools like Endpoint Detection and Response (EDR), firewalls, and Zero Trust Network Access (ZTNA) decrease single points of failure and ensure that each threat vector is protected to a greater degree. By having an MDR service on top of this you can get a view over all your customers’ layers of security, this can help lead to a better time to detection, investigation, and ultimately response so you can minimise damage.
2. Backup and Recovery
   Even with the best preventative measures, breaches can still happen. A solid backup and recovery plan ensures your customers can restore operations with minimal downtime. Downtime isn’t just an inconvenience—it’s a financial disaster. Every minute of downtime costs money and erodes trust.
3. Education and Awareness
   Resilience isn’t just about technology; it’s about people. Your customers’ employees are often the first line of defence. Training them to recognise phishing attempts and understand basic security protocols can drastically reduce risk.
4. Scalable Solutions
   MSPs need to offer solutions that grow with their customers. Small businesses may start with basic protection but need to scale to advanced threat detection as they expand. Tailoring your services to meet their evolving needs is critical.

Communicating the Value of Resilience

One of the challenges MSPs face is convincing customers to invest in the level of security necessary to meet the risk level associated with their individual business. This is why MSPs need to shift their focus from the tools to the outcomes, and helping customers understand that resilience protects not only their operations but also their reputation and bottom line.

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Consider the financial impact of downtime. For example, in 2017 a ransomware attack on global shipping giant Maersk reportedly halted operations for 10 days, costing an estimated $300 million. While your customers may not operate on that scale, even a few hours of downtime can have devastating financial and reputational consequences. On top of this, regulatory compliance is another critical area for businesses to consider. As I often say, “Compliance is regulatory bodies setting the bar for how tall you need to be to take this ride.” Ensuring your customers meet these standards isn’t just about avoiding fines; it’s about safeguarding their ability to operate.

Keeping Your Business Thriving

As an MSP, you’re the one helping your customers navigate regulatory compliance, deploy enterprise-grade security tools, and recover from potential disasters. At N-able we believe we’re uniquely placed now to help you provide these critical services to your customers, with the addition of XDR/MDR services to our robust RMM platforms – which has been further enhanced by our recent acquisition of Adlumin – and our partnership with SentinelOne for EDR.

By positioning cybersecurity as part of a broader resilience strategy and working with a strong partner to deliver the required toolset, you’re not just protecting your customers from threats; you’re ensuring their long-term success. Resilience is what keeps their businesses running—and what keeps your business thriving.

Find out more at N-able.

This article is sponsored by N-Able.