Why Local MSPs Beat Big-Box IT (Most of the Time)

After the Hamilton ransomware story broke, I started getting the same comment from owners in Burlington and Oakville:

"Our IT is handled by a company somewhere in the GTA. I'm not even sure who I'd call if we had a serious problem."

That's the core issue.

What Big, Remote Providers Are Good At

Let's give credit where it's due. Larger MSPs and national providers can offer:

• 24/7 call centres
• Standardized tool stacks
• Lower prices on some licenses

For some businesses, that's fine. If you're a professional services firm with mostly cloud tools and no special systems, a remote team may be enough.

But if you've got:

• A warehouse on the QEW
• Trucks on the road
• Point-of-sale in multiple locations
• A mix of cloud and dusty old on-prem systems

…you're going to feel the difference when everything breaks at once.

Why Local Still Matters in 2025

Canadian guidance to small organizations has been pushing the same ideas for a while: know your assets, train your staff, plan for incidents, and get help where you're weak.

A local MSP is in a better spot to actually do those things with you, not just email you PDFs.

Here's where local teams quietly win:

Context

A Hamilton-based MSP understands:

• Your landlord just upgraded the building's internet
• The Escarpment Wi-Fi dead zones
• That half your staff lives in Stoney Creek and works remotely during snow days

On-site visits (a.k.a. showing up)

When your accounting server dies the same morning your internet drops, you don't need a ticket number—you need a face in the server room.

Custom over cookie-cutter

National providers love standard bundles. Local MSPs are more likely to accept "We can't change this line-of-business app; work around it."

Incident response with real skin in the game

If you suffer a breach, a local provider:

• Can help you walk through federal and provincial reporting expectations
• Knows which regulators or partners might care
• Cares about their reputation in the same business parks you're in

"But Their Proposal Is Cheaper…"

Sure. On paper.

Where big, remote providers save money:

• Less on-site work
• Fewer custom setups
• Heavier reliance on offshore labour

Where that cost shows up later:

• Longer outages because nobody will come on-site
• Misconfigured backups that only get noticed during a crisis
• Security controls that are technically on but not tuned for your environment

When KPMG and others looked at Canadian cyber incidents, they highlighted phishing, misconfigurations, and poor patching as repeat offenders. Those aren't solved by a cheaper helpdesk—they're solved by people who understand your specific mess.

What to Look For in a Local MSP

Whether you work with my shop or someone else in the Golden Horseshoe, here's what I'd demand:

• They can name your critical systems without checking your website
• They've been in your office or sites at least once

They can show you:

• Backup test results
• Patch compliance reports
• A simple incident response plan tailored to your business

They're willing to talk to your insurance broker. If they'll join a call to help you answer cyber insurance questions honestly, that's a good sign.

When a Big Provider Might Still Make Sense

I'll admit there are cases where a large, remote provider is fine:

• Fully cloud-native, low-risk environments
• Very tight budgets where you accept more downtime risk
• National franchises with centrally dictated IT

If that's you, just make sure someone is responsible for:

• MFA everywhere
• Solid backups
• Basic training
• A written response plan

The Simple Test

Ask yourself this:

"If our main system died at 10 a.m. on a Tuesday, who would I call, and would they actually pick up?"

If the answer is "a 1-800 number that puts me in a queue behind a dentist in Calgary," you might want to revisit the "local vs remote" decision before the next storm, power bump, or ransomware campaign.