What Questions to Ask

A strong IT purchase begins with discovery. If a provider is willing to quote a full solution without learning how your business operates, you’re already at risk. Great vendors and partners will welcome questions because good work is easier when expectations are clear.

Questions for Networks (Switches, Firewalls, Cabling, “The Foundation”)

Ask these to understand whether the provider is designing for stability and security—not just “getting it working”:

• What problem are we solving? (performance, security, reliability, growth, compliance)

• What’s included in the design and what assumptions are you making?

• How will you segment the network? (guest Wi-Fi, staff devices, printers/IoT, servers)

• What’s the plan for redundancy and failure? (internet failover, core switch, power/UPS)

• How will the network be documented and handed off? (diagrams, inventory, admin runbook)

• What ongoing maintenance is expected and who owns it?

A good provider should be able to explain these items without making you feel out of your depth. You’re not asking for engineering diagrams—you’re asking for operational confidence.

Questions for Wi-Fi (The Most Common “It Should Just Work” Pain)

Wi-Fi is where many projects fail because the plan is based on guesswork. Instead, ask:

• Are you doing a site survey or predictive heat map? If not, why?

• How many devices will we realistically support at peak times?

• What coverage and performance targets are you designing to?

• What’s the approach for high-interference areas and dense spaces?

• How will guest access be handled safely?

• How will we measure success after install?

If the answer is simply “we’ll add access points until it’s fine,” you’re buying trial-and-error.

Questions for Managed Services (MSP / “We Support You Ongoing”)

Managed services can be a great fit—if roles and expectations are clear. Ask:

• What’s included in the monthly fee and what’s not?

• What are response and resolution targets, and how are they measured?

• Who monitors what—and what happens when an alert triggers?

• How do you handle patching, backups, and security updates?

• What’s your offboarding plan if we ever change providers?

• Will we have visibility into our assets, licenses, and security status?

A trustworthy managed provider doesn’t hide behind “we’ve got it.” They give you transparency without forcing you into technical details.

What “Good” Looks Like (So You Can Compare Apples to Apples)

A high-quality IT engagement feels structured. Even if you don’t know the technical details, you can recognize the operating maturity.

What Good Network Work Looks Like

You’ll see clarity and documentation, not just hardware lists. “Good” includes:

• A design that matches business needs (growth, security, uptime)

• Clean segmentation (guest vs internal vs sensitive systems)

• Secure remote access and controlled vendor access

• Proper power/UPS planning and labeling

• As-built documentation and a clear handoff
  
  

What Good Wi-Fi Looks Like

You’ll see measurable targets and validation, not “we installed more access points.” “Good” includes:

• Site survey or predictive model (and a reasoned access point plan)

• Roaming that works as people move through the building

• Guest network isolated from internal resources

• Post-install validation (speed, coverage checks, interference mitigation)

• Central management for updates and visibility
  
  

What Good Managed Services Looks Like

You’ll see transparency, process, and shared ownership. “Good” includes:

• A service catalog that defines what’s included

• Clear SLAs/SLOs and reporting

• Routine maintenance (patching, backups, account hygiene)

• Security baseline (MFA, endpoint protection, access control)

• Clean offboarding process and data portability

• A predictable cadence (monthly review, quarterly roadmap)
  
  

A good provider helps you make fewer emergency decisions because the environment is proactively managed.