Client PortalWhat is self-managed IT?
A model for businesses that look after their own computers and software, and want a professional standing behind the platform that runs the business.
Not every business needs a helpdesk. Some have capable internal staff, some owners prefer to manage their own machines, and some simply do not want to pay for a full managed IT service. Self-managed IT is the middle ground between doing everything yourself and handing everything over.
The short answer
Self-managed IT, defined
Self-managed IT is when a business looks after its own computers, software and everyday IT problems, and engages an IT provider for the parts that carry the most risk: the Microsoft 365 platform, user accounts and access, and cyber security.
Your staff keep local administrator rights on their machines. They install what they need and sort out the day-to-day themselves. Underneath that, the platform your business actually runs on is configured, monitored and secured by people who do it for a living.
You keep control. Someone else carries the part you cannot afford to get wrong.
You will also see this called co-managed IT. The two terms describe the same idea from different directions. Co-managed usually implies an internal IT person sharing the load with a provider. Self-managed is the version that suits a smaller business with no dedicated IT staff, where capable people handle their own issues and the provider owns the platform and security layer.
Where it sits
Three ways a business can run its IT
Most businesses are somewhere on this spectrum, whether they chose it deliberately or not.
Do it all yourself
Nobody outside the business is responsible for anything. Someone capable, often the owner or the most technical staff member, keeps things running between their actual job. Microsoft 365 gets set up once and rarely revisited. Security is whatever came switched on by default.
Self-managed, with a partner for the platform
You keep the devices, the software and the day-to-day. A provider takes responsibility for Microsoft 365, identity and user access, cyber security, and being the number you call when something is beyond you. No helpdesk, no overhead you do not need.
Fully managed IT
A provider takes the lot: the platform, security, devices, and a helpdesk your staff can ring when their printer stops or an application misbehaves. Your people go back to their actual jobs and technology becomes someone else's problem.
Honest fit
Is self-managed IT right for your business?
This model works well for some businesses and badly for others. It is worth being honest about which you are before you choose it.
It works when
- You have capable staff who are comfortable solving their own IT problems
- You are cloud-first, with no on-premises servers needing active management
- You want to keep local administrator access and control what gets installed
- Your interruptions are occasional rather than daily
- You still want the platform and cyber security handled to a professional standard
- You need to satisfy an insurer, a client or a security standard without a full managed service
It does not work when
- Your staff regularly need someone to call when technology stops
- You run servers or critical on-premises systems
- Nobody internally is confident with technology, so problems just sit unresolved
- Your team is losing hours a week to IT instead of doing their job
- You want one number for everything, including devices and applications
If most of the right-hand column sounds like your business, a self-managed service will frustrate you and we will say so rather than sell it to you. AgileMANAGED is the better fit.
The part you cannot skip
What self-managed still needs handled properly
Managing your own computers is reasonable. Managing your own Microsoft 365 tenant and cyber security, without doing it every day, is where most businesses come unstuck.
- The Microsoft 365 tenant. Configuration drifts. Licences get bought and forgotten. Sharing settings get loosened for one project and never tightened again. None of it is visible from the outside, and none of it announces itself.
- Identity and user access. This is where most account compromises actually begin: weak or missing multi-factor authentication, accounts with more access than the job needs, and logins for people who left months ago and were never removed.
- Cyber security as an ongoing thing. Security is not a product you switch on. Baselines have to be applied, kept in place, and checked against a recognised standard such as SMB1001 or the ASD Essential Eight, and someone has to be watching the alerts.
- Someone to call when it matters. Not for a jammed printer, but for the moment an account is compromised or an email lands that should not have. Self-managed does not have to mean on your own.
One honest caveat about local administrator access. If your staff can install anything, they can also switch off the protection that guards the business. That is a trade-off worth making with your eyes open, and it is the reason a self-managed arrangement should always come with a written split of who is responsible for what.
Being straight with you
Self-managed IT is not what we would call best practice
The arrangement we recommend for most businesses is a fully managed one, where the devices, the software and the people using them are looked after alongside the platform. That is not an upsell. Most of the problems we get called about start on a device or with a person, and those are exactly the parts a self-managed arrangement leaves with you.
We offer it anyway, because plenty of business owners genuinely do have the day-to-day under control, and asking them to pay for a helpdesk they will never ring makes no sense. What those businesses want is narrower and arguably more important: someone competent holding the Microsoft 365 platform and the security around it, and a number to call when something serious happens.
If that is you, this is a sensible way to buy IT, and AgileASSURE is built for it. If it is not, we will tell you and point you at AgileMANAGED instead. We would rather lose the sale than set you up to be disappointed.
How we do it
AgileASSURE, our self-managed IT service
Self-managed IT. Expertly managed Microsoft 365.
AgileASSURE is built for exactly this model. You manage your devices, your software and your day-to-day. We manage Microsoft 365, user access, and the cyber security that protects it, and we are the named contact when something goes beyond your team.
It is a standalone service, not a cut-down version of our managed offering, and it is deliberately not a helpdesk. There is no live support line, no device troubleshooting and no application support, which is what keeps it lean. Everything we do own is set out in a written Responsibility and Accountability Matrix, so the boundary is clear from day one.
Your IT. Our Assurance.
AgileASSURE
- Microsoft 365 administration and tenant management
- Identity, MFA and Conditional Access administration
- Managed cyber security, aligned to SMB1001
- Microsoft 365 data backup
- Automated service requests and self-service forms
- A named escalation contact and periodic review
Microsoft 365 management at $55 plus AgileSECURE at $44, together at 10% off. We do not sell one without the other.
View AgileASSURE →Common questions
Self-managed IT FAQs
What is self-managed IT?
Self-managed IT is when a business looks after its own computers, software and everyday IT problems, and engages an IT provider for the parts that carry the most risk: the Microsoft 365 platform, user accounts and access, and cyber security. Staff keep local administrator rights and handle their own installs and troubleshooting, while the platform underneath is professionally configured, monitored and secured.
Is self-managed IT the same as co-managed IT?
They describe the same idea from different directions. Co-managed IT usually means an internal IT person or team sharing the work with a provider. Self-managed IT is the version that suits smaller businesses with no dedicated IT staff, where capable people handle day-to-day issues themselves and the provider owns the platform and security layer.
What is the difference between self-managed IT and fully managed IT?
Fully managed IT includes a helpdesk your staff can call, device management and day-to-day support, on top of platform and security management. Self-managed covers the platform and security only, and your team absorbs the day-to-day, which is why it costs less. With us that is $89 per user per month ex GST for AgileASSURE, against $129 for the equivalent AgileREMOTE tier with security included.
Can we keep local administrator access on our computers?
Yes, that is a defining feature of the model. It is worth understanding the trade-off: a user with local administrator rights can disable security tools or install software that puts the business at risk, so responsibility for the device sits with you rather than with us. A written responsibility matrix sets that boundary out clearly before you start.
Do you recommend self-managed IT?
Not as best practice, no. For most businesses we recommend a fully managed arrangement, where the devices, the software and the people using them are looked after alongside the platform. Most of the problems we get called about start on a device or with a person, and those are exactly the parts self-managed leaves with you.
We offer it because plenty of business owners genuinely do have the day-to-day under control, and want platform and security assurance rather than a helpdesk they will never ring. If that is not you, we will say so and point you at AgileMANAGED.
Is self-managed IT cheaper than a managed service?
The monthly fee is lower because you are not paying for a support desk. The real cost depends on how much staff time goes into solving your own IT problems. If your team is capable and interruptions are rare, the saving is genuine. If people are losing hours to technology instead of doing their job, a fully managed service usually works out cheaper overall.
Does self-managed IT still include cyber security?
It should, and with us it always does. Most account compromises trace back to Microsoft 365 configuration and identity rather than to the device, so managing the platform without managing its security leaves the main risk untouched. AgileASSURE includes AgileSECURE and is not sold without it.
What does Agile IT offer for self-managed businesses?
AgileASSURE, a standalone service covering Microsoft 365 administration, identity and user management, managed cyber security, platform tooling, automated service requests and a named escalation contact. It is $89 per user per month ex GST and deliberately excludes helpdesk and device support.