How much information should an MSP need to provide an initial quote?
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VelvetMango42
I'm an IT manager at a UK school and currently handle most of the IT work, apart from first-line support, which is covered by a full-time technician. The school is considering whether to hire a replacement for me or outsource my responsibilities to a managed service provider while keeping the on-site technician.
I expected to provide enough information for a rough quote, along with hourly rates for projects and additional services. Instead, the MSP has requested detailed information covering our daily and seasonal workloads, infrastructure, systems, suppliers, contracts, licensing, documentation, access arrangements, risks, budgets, compliance, and future projects.
Some of this seems reasonable, particularly user and device counts, major systems, support requirements, and known risks. However, I'm uncomfortable handing over complete runbooks, internal documentation, detailed contracts, and extensive operational information before any agreement is in place. I'm also concerned that some of the supplier and licensing information could be used to generate additional sales opportunities.
Is this a normal level of detail for an initial estimate, or is it more appropriate for the discovery and onboarding stage after a contract is agreed? What information would be reasonable to provide at the quoting stage?
Answers
The best approach is to define the required service before handing over unlimited information. Give the decision-makers a concise, standardized summary that can be sent to several providers: staff and student numbers, device counts, sites, major systems, support expectations, current staffing, known risks, and planned changes.
Ask the MSP to separate its response into the recurring service price, transition or discovery costs, project rates, and any assumptions. If they need more detail to produce a firm proposal, they should explain exactly what is missing and why, rather than simply requesting every document you have.
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The request is partly justified because takeover costs can vary dramatically. An MSP needs to know whether it is inheriting a clean, documented environment or a collection of undocumented systems and technical debt. That can make a major difference to staffing, transition time, and the eventual price.
However, they should be able to produce an initial ballpark from summarized information. A detailed technical assessment can be handled as a separate discovery phase, either after selecting a provider or as a clearly defined paid engagement.
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The supplier and licensing section can be legitimate because contract terms, renewal dates, and existing commitments affect the scope and cost of a takeover. But it is also an area where a provider may identify resale or margin opportunities, so the school should decide what commercial information it is comfortable disclosing.
This should be treated as the school’s procurement and risk decision, not something you personally have to provide without boundaries. Make sure a senior decision-maker owns the disclosure process and that confidential material is covered by appropriate terms before sharing it.
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The workload and infrastructure sections are largely reasonable. An MSP needs to understand the number of users and devices, the systems involved, out-of-hours expectations, and the general complexity of the environment before pricing the service.
The full runbooks, detailed procedures, and complete documentation are more appropriate after an agreement or during a paid discovery exercise. You could provide a high-level inventory and a few redacted examples, but there’s no need to hand over your entire operational knowledge for free.
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For an initial quote, I would normally expect approximate user and endpoint counts, locations, major infrastructure, cloud platforms, critical applications, support hours, compliance requirements, and a summary of known problems or upcoming projects. A high-level list of contracts and renewal dates may also be useful.
Complete supplier details, licensing inventories, runbooks, network diagrams, credentials, and extensive process documentation are closer to onboarding material. Never send passwords or administrative credentials by email; provide access through a controlled process only after the commercial and security arrangements are in place.
QuartzLemon31: A few representative documents with sensitive information removed seem like a sensible compromise. They can show the state of the environment without exposing the school’s full internal documentation.
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VelvetMango42: That matches my concern. I’m comfortable providing an overview and some redacted samples, but not the complete documentation before there’s a formal agreement.