We’ve all lived this moment: a long-term client hires their first internal IT person. Overnight, the relationship changes and pretending it hasn’t only creates confusion and frustration.
Instead of resisting the shift, embrace it. A well-executed transition can turn this new hire into one of your strongest allies and transform the account into a high-value, long-term co-managed engagement.
Here’s the process we follow at our MSP to make that transition smooth and successful.
1. Formalize the Change
Don’t tiptoe around it. Officially update the client’s status to Co-Managed IT. This sets the stage for new expectations and avoids the “who owns what?” confusion.
2. Intro Meeting
We hold a kickoff meeting with the new IT person to:
Explain the co-managed model
Review services, scope, and responsibilities
Set expectations on how we work together
3. Technical Deep-Dive
Next, we walk through the environment:
Infrastructure
Security stack
Backups
Documentation
This helps them understand what they’re getting into and reinforces your expertise.
4. Roadmap Review
We revisit the 3-year IT roadmap and budget:
Align priorities
Reconfirm upcoming projects
5. Tool Access & Training
We empower the internal IT person by giving them access to:
Documentation platform
Credential vault
PSA / RMM
Monitoring and ticketing tools
Then train them. This builds trust immediately.
6. Process Orientation
We walk through key operational processes:
Emergency response
Change management
Projects and escalations
Clear processes prevent friction later.
7. Assign a Technical Point of Contact
We assign a dedicated operational contact on our team and schedule recurring meetings (weekly or bi-weekly at first) until the relationship hits its stride.
8. Invest in the Relationship
Finally, we intentionally build rapport:
Lunch or dinner
Introductions to technology partners
Conferences
Internal IT should feel supported, not threatened.
Embrace the Opportunity
When handled well, co-managed clients stay longer, spend more strategically, and rely heavily on your leadership. You only get one shot at a first impression with their new IT hire so make it count.
Want to master co-managed success? Watch our Co-Managed vCIO Webinar On-Demand.
Simon is the President of S3 Technologies, a leading Canadian MSP he co-founded in 2003. He built and scaled the vCIO team which eventually lead to him co-founding Propel Your MSP in 2018 to help MSPs with their vCIO services.
