How MSPs can reduce costs and minimise risk with storage optimisation

Data is now the currency with which the world operates – and organisations are creating a lot of it. To be exact, we’re creating 402.74 million terabytes of data each day, according to Exploding Topics. The explosion of data has led to a laundry list of new business challenges, including rising operational costs, data management complexities and increased data security risks, all of which can hinder productivity and drain resources. And, as more organisations use AI, it’s become more important than ever to ‘clean house.’

MSPs play an invaluable role in helping organisations, particularly SMBs, digitise and overcome these new challenges – which involves managing critical data. For MSPs, now is the perfect time to step in and offer a new service enabling clients to optimise their storage and improve data management. By doing this, MSPs can build successful service practices to increase revenue and attract more clients.

A data mindset shift

By 2025, over 200 ZetaBytes of data are expected to be stored in cloud infrastructure, and while ‘space’ in the cloud might seem infinite, the cost to store data is rapidly increasing. In January 2024, IBM hiked its data centre fees by up to 7.5%. More recently, Microsoft placed limits on previously free and unlimited storage offerings for the education sector as of August 1st this year.

MSPs need to work with end-customers to shift their mindset regarding data. Rather than viewing data as a problem of storage capacity or costs, organisations should see data as a strategic asset. Managing this asset requires active effort—an ongoing process of organising, archiving, and, when necessary, eliminating what’s no longer needed.

Get rid of the ROT

Firstly, MSPs need to work with their clients to get rid of the dark and ROT-ing data. Recent studies revealed that more than half of the information currently stored and processed by organisations around the world is considered ‘dark’ data, which means its value is unknown. Additionally, over a third of data is considered redundant, obsolete, or trivial (ROT) data and is known to be useless.

Organisations should start by understanding what data they have and where it’s stored. Aside from increased storage costs, holding on to information that is no longer useful to the business can actually create more risk than deletion and open organisations up to major risk - just think back to the Optus and Medibank hacks. Getting rid of ROT data requires regular processes for data cleanup and lifecycle management. This not only prepares the data for AI but also keeps costs and risk down by reducing unnecessary storage.

Take data governance seriously

Secondly, MSPs should ensure their clients have strong data governance in place. This means establishing clear rules for what data is stored, how long it’s kept, and who has access. Strong governance frameworks ensure that data remains clean and usable over time, as well as making it AI-ready.

It’s also important to make sure the data deletion and destruction processes are defensible. If records are destroyed improperly or if there’s any appearance of “spoliation” (the deliberate spoiling of potential evidence in litigation), the organisation could face allegations of attempted obstruction. Operational issues can also arise when critical records are inadvertently destroyed. Make sure clients have information lifecycle processes and policies in place to ensure the decision to destroy is not subjective, ad hoc, or left up to an individual employee—it should be guided by already-established policies and records retention schedules.

By eliminating ROT data, implementing data lifecycle management and establishing strong data governance, MSPs can ensure they are setting up their clients to succeed in their digitisation journeys, particularly when it comes to AI, whilst also reducing costs and risk.

Unlock new revenue streams with AvePoint

AvePoint’s Storage Optimisation Campaign in a Box Kit provides AvePoint partners with customised, best-practice tools and resources to enhance their storage solutions. The kit provides MSPs with a step-by-step framework for building a successful storage optimisation practice, customisable marketing materials, and sales enablement tools, making it easy to start, develop their practice, and drive revenue growth.

Get in touch to learn more about how AvePoint is helping MSPs drive value for themselves and their clients through storage optimisation.