Can We Include Projects in Our Managed Services Plan?

Two Options for Handling Projects

Standard Managed IT Services Plan

The standard plan includes:

• ✅ Unlimited remote and onsite support for Incidents (service interruptions)
• ✅ Monthly allotment of hours for Moves, Adds, and Changes (MACs) like employee onboarding or application installations
• ✅ Comprehensive cybersecurity stack
• ✅ Strategic vCIO services and Strategic Business Reviews
• ✅ Proactive monitoring and maintenance

What's NOT Included in Standard:

• ❌ Larger projects (network upgrades, cloud migrations, multi-location deployments, system implementations) are scoped and quoted separately on a project-by-project basis

Enhanced Managed Services Plan

The Enhanced Plan includes everything in the Standard Plan, plus:

✅ Unlimited project work included in your monthly fee
✅ No separate project scoping or approval required for IT initiatives
✅ Simplified budgeting with predictable monthly costs
✅ Priority scheduling for major technology improvements

What Qualifies as a "Project"?

To understand what's included in the Enhanced Plan, it's important to know how Framework IT defines projects:

Projects are initiatives that:

• Take 8 hours or more to complete
• Involve project management from multiple Framework IT team members
• Include moves, additions, or changes to core infrastructure
• Impact more than one user or your overall technology environment

Examples of Projects:

• Replacing or installing new networking hardware
• Migrating from Google Workspace to Microsoft 365
• Moving servers to the cloud
• Building a SharePoint intranet
• Installing internet connections at new office locations
• Network upgrades and cloud migrations
• Software implementations
• Multi-location deployments

What's NOT a Project (these are MACs - covered in both plans):

• Employee onboarding/offboarding
• Installing approved software on a user's laptop
• Changing cybersecurity settings (like MFA or email forwarding rules)
• Physically relocating a workstation in the office
• Routine support for incidents (service interruptions)

Who Benefits from the Enhanced Managed Services Plan?

The Enhanced Plan is ideal for organizations that:

✅ Frequently implement new technology solutions or infrastructure changes
✅ Operate multiple locations requiring ongoing standardization and coordination
✅ Have aggressive growth plans requiring continuous IT expansion
✅ Prefer predictable monthly costs over variable project invoicing
✅ Want to eliminate the administrative overhead of approving individual project quotes

Cost Considerations

Enhanced Plan Pricing:

• The Enhanced Plan carries a higher monthly fee than the Standard Plan
• However, it eliminates variable project costs, which can be substantial

When Does the Enhanced Plan Make Financial Sense?

Your vCIO can help you evaluate whether the Enhanced Plan is cost-effective based on:

• Your anticipated project volume (number and size of projects per year)
• Your technology roadmap and strategic initiatives
• Your preference for budgeting (predictable monthly costs vs. variable project expenses)

Example Scenarios:

Scenario	Standard Plan	Enhanced Plan
Low Project Volume (1-2 small projects/year)	Lower total cost	Higher total cost
Moderate Project Volume (3-5 projects/year)	Comparable cost	Comparable cost, but more predictable
High Project Volume (6+ projects/year or multi-location growth)	Higher total cost with unpredictable spikes	Lower total cost with flat monthly fee

How the Enhanced Plan Works in Practice

No Separate Project Scoping or Approval Required

Under the Enhanced Plan:

• Your vCIO identifies technology needs during Strategic Business Reviews or ad-hoc discussions
• You approve the initiative and timeline (but not a separate project quote)
• Framework IT allocates resources and executes the project
• Your monthly fee remains unchanged

Priority Scheduling

Enhanced Plan clients receive priority scheduling for major technology improvements, ensuring:

• Faster project start times
• Dedicated resources allocated to your initiatives
• Less competition for project resources during busy periods

Strategic Planning Support

Your vCIO continues to provide:

• Technology roadmap development aligned with your Business Optimization Roadmap
• Timeline estimates and milestone planning
• Coordination with your internal stakeholders
• Change management and user training support

Real-World Example: Multi-Location Growth

Organization: Primary care provider opening 12 new locations this year

Challenge:

• Each location requires networking hardware, workstation deployments, ISP coordination, and pre-configuration
• Projects are time-sensitive—delays could prevent location openings
• Standard Plan would require 12 separate project quotes, approvals, and billing cycles

Solution: Enhanced Managed Services Plan

• All 12 location deployments covered under the monthly fee
• No separate project scoping or approval for each location
• Priority scheduling ensures Framework IT resources are allocated to meet opening deadlines
• Predictable monthly cost despite substantial project volume
• No administrative overhead managing multiple project quotes and invoices

Result:

• Technology never causes opening delays
• Standardized infrastructure across all locations
• Simplified budgeting and financial planning
• vCIO focuses on strategic planning rather than project scoping

How to Decide Between Standard and Enhanced Plans

Choose the Standard Plan if:

• Your technology environment is mature and stable
• You anticipate 1-2 small projects per year or less
• You prefer pay-as-you-go project billing
• You want to minimize base monthly costs

Choose the Enhanced Plan if:

• You're in a high-growth phase (new locations, significant headcount growth)
• You anticipate multiple projects per year
• You operate multiple locations requiring ongoing standardization
• You prefer predictable, flat monthly costs for budgeting simplicity
• You want to eliminate project quote approval overhead

Transitioning Between Plans

You can discuss transitioning from Standard to Enhanced (or vice versa) with your vCIO during Strategic Business Reviews or anytime your business needs change.

Important Notes:

• Plan changes may be subject to contract terms and vendor commitments
• Your vCIO can provide a cost-benefit analysis to help you decide
• Switching plans requires advance notice to ensure proper resource allocation

What's Still Separate from the Enhanced Plan?

Even with the Enhanced Plan, certain items may be quoted separately:

❌ Hardware procurement (servers, workstations, network equipment)
❌ Third-party software licensing (unless part of standard stack)
❌ Physical infrastructure (low-voltage cabling, access control systems)
❌ Specialized consulting outside Framework IT's core expertise

Your vCIO will always provide transparency about what's included vs. what requires separate approval.

How to Get Started

If you're interested in the Enhanced Managed Services Plan:

1. Schedule a discussion with your vCIO to review your technology roadmap and anticipated project volume
2. Request a cost-benefit analysis comparing Standard vs. Enhanced Plans based on your specific needs
3. Receive a detailed quote for the Enhanced Plan with clear pricing and scope
4. Transition to the Enhanced Plan once approved (typically at your contract renewal or with advance notice)

The Bottom Line

Yes, you can absolutely include projects in your managed services plan through Framework IT's Enhanced Managed Services Plan. This option provides:

✅ Unlimited project work included in your monthly fee
✅ Predictable monthly costs regardless of project volume
✅ Priority scheduling for technology initiatives
✅ Simplified budgeting and financial planning
✅ Elimination of project quote approval overhead

Your vCIO will help you determine whether the Enhanced Plan makes financial sense based on your technology roadmap, growth plans, and budgeting preferences.

The Framework IT team is here to help you make informed IT decisions and build a strategy that supports your business goals.

Call 312-564-5446 or book your FREE Initial Consult to connect with our team.