What is a Service Level Agreement? The types of SLA

In a world where technology is the order of the day, companies in the UAE find it more convenient to contract IT companies for their needs. Although they can hire an expert in-house, it has been discovered that companies have better capabilities and tend to be a lot cheaper. Note that your IT needs differ depending on the type of business or company you are running. To agree with an IT company on a set of tasks a Service Level Agreement needs to be signed.

A Service Level Agreement (or SLA) is a formal agreement between an IT company and its clients and shows all the details of the agreement. This includes how many hours the IT Company will work, expected service goals, cost of service and more. It also provides instructions about the steps to be taken if the IT Company does not deliver as promised.

There are three types of SLA, namely:

  • Customer Service Level Agreement – This is an agreement between an IT company and an external client, for example, a new client or a regular client.
  • Internal Service Level Agreement – Involves an IT company and an internal client, for example, another organization already a client or a department in the same IT firm.
  • Vendor Service Level Agreement – An agreement between an IT company and other professionals or companies hired to supply services directly to clients or offer support service.

Usually, there are various metrics used for measuring the service being provided under the SLA. These metrics help both parties to keep track of the work being done and also motivate the service provider to hit their targets. Finding a way of measuring the service availability also helps in determining the cost of service. Note that there are different kind of metrics that IT companies use for measuring the amount of work and service availability.

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Benefits of Service Level Agreements

Since an IT company already knows what is expected of it, reaching the set targets remains the main focus. Remember that if an IT company fails to deliver what has specified in the agreement within the allocated time, a penalty can be implemented.

On top of that, an SLA makes it cheaper for companies in the UAE to provide their clients with quality services. For example, if a company owns a website that transacts lots of money per day, it will need full-time IT support services, which is common with many websites. So if the IT Company takes full responsibility of managing the client’s website every day, if there is any breakdown that causes the website to go down for days, the IT Company will be held accountable.

When it comes to cost, dealing with IT companies in the UAE is cheaper. That is because they offer their services to many companies and as such must practice fair pricing. In addition, they go the extra mile to ensure they serve their clients. For example, through a Vendor Service Level Agreement an IT company can contract another company or professional on behalf of a client.

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Finding the best IT support company in the UAE

If you are setting up a site or company in the UAE and you need reliable IT services, then you can start by considering the SLA being offered by available companies. Many IT companies usually have their SLA ready for clients. Try to make sure that you find a company that uses easy metrics and has a clear understanding of the services you expect.

You may want to find out if the IT Company is already offering the service you seek to a different client as this can give you a good perspective of what they can offer. You may not need to worry about the IT Company serving your competitor since the SLA is in control.

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In closing – Service Level Agreements

Technology is the backbone of almost every modern business and from software to hardware services, these companies are capable of making business much better for you. It is essential to consider the type of services you need when getting into an SLA. For example, if you are running an e-commerce website, you will want an IT support company expert in that field. On the other hand, if you are running an online gaming website, a specific kind of SLA catering to that is needed.

Notary Public Dubai can help with your SLA requirements. Feel free to contact us for more details or to book a consultation.