What is Cloud Managed Service Providers: What SMBs Need to Know

What Is a Cloud MSP? 

A cloud managed service provider is a third-party partner that handles the ongoing management, security, and optimization of your cloud infrastructure.  

Instead of your team juggling AWS, Azure, or Google Cloud on top of everything else, an MSP owns the day-to-day business operations: monitoring systems, applying patches, managing backups, optimizing cloud costs, and responding to issues. 

Think of it like outsourcing your IT operations department. You get the expertise without the overhead, making cloud management for SMBs more efficient and scalable. 

Why Canadian SMBs Are Turning to Cloud MSPs 

If your business has 25–500 employees, you’re in the sweet spot where a cloud managed service provider typically adds the most value. Here’s why:

1. Cloud costs are spiraling

   Without active oversight, cloud bills can grow 30–50% year-over-year. MSPs apply financial governance—what’s called FinOps—to eliminate waste.

   They right-size instances, shut down unused resources, and negotiate better pricing. In practice, organizations waste roughly 32% of their cloud budget (Flexera 2024 State of the Cloud Report). An MSP recovers a portion of that through cost optimization and cloud solutions. According to Statistics Canada’s Digital Adoption Survey, over 60% of Canadian businesses adopted advanced digital technologies, highlighting the rise of cloud adoption.

    

2. Security gaps are real
   

   Small IT teams often miss critical controls: unpatched systems, weak identity management, missing backup tests. The 2024 CIRA Cybersecurity Report reveals that 44% of Canadian organizations experienced a cyberattack in the past year, underscoring these vulnerabilities.

   When an MSP comes in, they enforce best practices by default—multi-factor authentication (MFA), encryption, regular recovery drills, compliance logging. This significantly reduces breach risk while enhancing data protection and security and compliance.

    

3. Uptime matters

   Downtime isn’t just an inconvenience—it’s revenue loss. MSPs provide 24/7 monitoring and defined response times (SLAs). Issues are caught and fixed before they cascade into outages, ensuring high performance in your cloud computing environment.

    

4. Compliance is complex

   If you operate in Canada and handle personal data, you’re bound by PIPEDA. If you’re in healthcare, it’s PHIPA. If you’re in financial services, it’s OSFI’s B-10 guideline. MSPs that specialize in your industry know these requirements and build security and compliance support into your cloud architecture from day one. For Canadian SMBs, this means addressing data residency and privacy under laws like Quebec’s Law 25.

What an Cloud MSP Actually Does

1. Planning 

   Cloud consulting and roadmapping starts with discovering your current IT landscape, identifying which workloads belong in the public cloud, and designing a secure architecture aligned with best practices and your compliance needs.

    

2. Migration
   

   A structured cloud migration project moves your systems to the cloud with minimal disruption—planning pilots, testing thoroughly, and coordinating cutover events during off-hours.

    

3. Operations

   After go-live, your MSP runs your environment 24/7: monitoring and observability across infrastructure, responding to incidents, applying patches, and managing routine administration. 
   This includes managed it services  for your chosen platform (AWS, Azure, or Google Cloud. At Delvetek, we monitor 24/7 from our Mississauga SOC, providing real-time insights into your hybrid cloud  setup.

    

4. Security & Compliance 

   They implement controls (firewalls, access policies, encryption, backup verification) and provide audit evidence to prove you’re meeting regulatory requirements.  

   This includes identity management, multi cloud governance, and backup and disaster recovery. Delvetek ensures all data is retained in Canada under Law 25, strengthening your data protection strategy.

    

5. Optimization

   They continuously review your usage, eliminate waste, and recommend cost-saving opportunities.  

   Many MSPs deliver monthly reports showing optimizations made and savings realized, often leveraging data analytics for insights and optimizing cloud  performance. 

The Modern Cloud Stack 

Today’s MSPs typically manage several interconnected service areas: 

Cloud Infrastructure: Whether you’re running managed AWS infrastructure or Azure workloads, an MSP handles provisioning, scaling, and cost control.  

They ensure you’re using the right resources at the right tier—avoiding both over-provisioning and performance bottlenecks in multicloud deployments .

Workplace Productivity: Modern workplace services cover Microsoft 365, device management, and collaboration tools. When paired with identity governance, they create seamless, secure user experiences. 

Networking & Connectivity: For hybrid cloud environments (where some systems stay on-premises), SD-WAN solutions maintain reliability, security, and redundancy. 

Backup & Recovery: Every organization faces data loss risk. Backup and disaster recovery services define RPO/RTO targets, maintain backups across multiple regions, and conduct recovery drills to ensure resilience. 

How to Know If You Need an MSP 

Ask yourself these questions. If you answer “yes” to more than two, a cloud managed service provider could add immediate value: 

1. Your cloud bill keeps rising, and no one owns optimization. 
2. You’re unsure which apps to move to cloud services and which to keep on-premises. 
3. You haven’t tested recovery in 12+ months. 
4. MFA isn’t enforced for admins. 
5. Backups aren’t validated. 
6. Your team is firefighting instead of focusing on growth. 
7. You’re subject to Canadian compliance requirements and need security and compliance expertise. 

What to Look For in a Cloud MSP 

Not all MSPs are created equal. Here’s what separates strong partners from average ones:

1. Verified expertise 

   Check for AWS Certified Solutions Architect or Microsoft Solutions Partner credentials. These prove experience in cloud computing and platform governance.

    

2. Documented process 

   Ask how they plan, migrate, and operate cloud solutions. Mature MSPs have templates and playbooks, often providing managed services that span public cloud and on-prem. Ensure the MSP enforces MFA, logs events, and aligns with security and compliance frameworks.

    

3. 24/7 support with fast response times  

   Define SLA for critical incidents. Mission-critical workloads often require 24/7 support; SMBs may opt for business-hours coverage

    

4. Local presence and Canadian compliance knowledge 

   If you’re in Canada, working with an MSP that understands PIPEDA, provincial privacy laws, and OSFI guidelines is a major advantage. Compliance support should include evidence packs for audits and data residency options.  
   Data residency is also straightforward—AWS and Azure both have Canadian regions—but you need an MSP that defaults to keeping your data in Canada.

    

5. Transparent reporting 

   You should receive a monthly summary showing uptime metrics, incidents resolved, patches applied, cost optimizations made, and recommendations for next steps.  

   Monitoring and observability dashboards should give you real-time visibility into your environment. Vague “we’re keeping the lights on” updates aren’t enough. 

   Security by default. Ask specifically: Do you enforce MFA on all admin access? Do you log and monitor security events? How often do you test backups and recovery procedures? Do you help with compliance audits? A strong MSP says “yes” to all of these, and they integrate identity and access management controls across your entire infrastructure. 

Pricing: What Drives the Cost? 

Cloud MSP pricing typically depends on: 

1. Scale: More users, servers, and data = higher fees. Many MSPs price per user or per server. 
2. Support hours: 24/7 coverage costs more than 9–5 support. 
3. Compliance and security requirements: Heavily regulated environments (healthcare, finance) require extra documentation and controls, which increases cost. 
4. Backup and disaster recovery tier: Keeping daily backups for a year with hot standby failover costs more than weekly backups for 30 days. 
5. Tooling and add-ons: Advanced security tools, SIEM solutions, and specialized backup software add to the monthly fee. Delvetek clients see average cost savings of 30% via FinOps audits, making the investment in managed IT services worthwhile. 
6. Get a tailored quote: A good MSP will ask about your user count, compliance needs, support hours, and DR expectations before proposing a package. 

Getting Started: Delvetek Is Your Partner for Cloud Managed Services 

Your cloud shouldn’t be a constant guessing game of costs, outages, or security risks. With Delvetek, you can stop firefighting in AWS or Azure and start focusing on growth. 

We help Canadian small and medium-sized businesses modernize, secure, and manage their cloud infrastructure —so your team can focus on customers, innovation, and strategy instead of troubleshooting infrastructure.

Why Canadian SMBs Choose Delvetek for Cloud Management

End-to-End Cloud Management
From architecture design and migration to optimization and ongoing monitoring, Delvetek manages your cloud ecosystem under one roof—reducing complexity and freeing your team to focus on business outcomes.

24/7 Monitoring and Proactive Optimization
Our certified engineers monitor workloads around the clock, resolve incidents before they impact operations, and continuously optimize performance and cost.

Security and Compliance by Default
We implement controls that meet Canada’s data protection standards—PIPEDA, Law 25, PHIPA, and OSFI B-10—ensuring every workload stays secure, compliant, and auditable.

Data Protection and Business Continuity
Automated backups, redundancy, and disaster recovery planning keep your systems resilient and your data recoverable—no matter what happens.

Predictable Pricing, Scalable Support
Our service model provides transparent monthly pricing that scales with your business needs—no hidden costs, just clarity and control.

Built for Growing Canadian Businesses
You get enterprise-grade cloud expertise and 24/7 support—without the overhead of managing a full in-house IT team. 

Our Cloud Services Include 

• Cloud Consulting Services – Strategy, assessment, and roadmap development to align your IT goals with business outcomes. 

• Migration to Cloud – Secure, low-risk migrations from on-premises systems to AWS, Azure, or hybrid models. 

• Managed AWS Infrastructure Services – 24/7 monitoring, cost optimization, and performance management of your AWS workloads. 

• Modern Workplace and M365 Management – Cloud collaboration, device management, and license optimization. 

• Compliance and Governance Support – Security and privacy measures aligned with Canadian regulatory frameworks. 

The right MSP partnership isn’t just about keeping systems running—it’s about turning cloud infrastructure from a cost center into a strategic, secure, and predictable part of your business.