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IT Solutions for Professional Services Firms

Microsolve provides managed IT, cyber security and IT governance for Australian professional services firms, including law, accounting, financial advice and consulting practices. We run your service desk, Microsoft 365, devices and network, protect client data and email records, and give partners a virtual CIO who owns the IT roadmap, budget and vendor accountability.

For partners and practice managers across NSW and the ACT who want clear accountability for systems, security and IT spend.

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IT solutions for professional services

The risks that keep partners awake at night

Professional services firms trade on reputation, responsiveness and confidentiality. When nobody owns IT decisions, cloud costs creep, vendors point at each other, and partners end up managing technology risk instead of client work.

🔶 Unclear IT ownership: nobody at partner level owns technology decisions, so they are made in a hurry and compliance is patchy.

🔶 Cloud spend creep: Microsoft 365 and practice software licences multiply without anyone checking what is used. Licence right-sizing usually pays for itself.

🔶 Vendor fatigue: practice management, document management, phones, internet and IT each sit with a different provider, and none of them is accountable for the outcome.

🔶 Email and records risk: advice, instructions and engagement terms live in individual mailboxes and can leave with the people who own them. Here is why email archiving and eDiscovery matter for professional services firms.

🔶 Cyber exposure: client trust makes firms a target. One compromised mailbox can redirect a payment or expose a client file before anyone notices. Read why trust alone is not a cyber defence.

See how a managed service provider should govern your cloud, not just host it: the role of the MSP in public cloud.

The Role of the MSP in Public Cloud

Different, Not Just Better

Microsolve partners with professional services firms as an extension of the leadership team, not as a background supplier. The Microsolve vCIO function brings structure to IT decisions, balancing risk, compliance and commercial outcomes, so your business partners can rely on a clear roadmap instead of a queue of issues.

Why Choose Microsolve?

Clear IT Governance for Professional Service Practices

Day‑to‑day, ‘different’ feels like everyone knowing who is responsible for what. Decisions about systems, security and IT spend follow a clear governance model, not ad hoc requests, so risk and cost are controlled.

Partners, practice managers and IT all work from the same, documented playbook, with roles, responsibilities and approval paths clearly set out.

Transparent Reporting for Partners

'Different’ also means partners see what is happening, not just hear about problems. Regular, plain‑English reporting shows risk, performance and spend in a way that supports informed decisions.

Instead of digging through tickets or asking for updates, partners receive clear summaries of key metrics, issues and progress, so they can focus on direction rather than chasing detail.

Support Model for Decentralised Teams

For decentralised teams, the support model is designed around how your people actually work. Whether they are in the office, at court, on‑site or at home, they access help in the same consistent way.

Flexible work is supported, not resisted. Standardised processes, remote support and secure access mean staff can move between locations without losing productivity or compromising security.

Our Approach to Professional Services IT

Innovation

Embrace creativity and forward-thinking to inspire customers

Integrity

Operate with honesty, transparency, and ethical standards in all dealings

Empathy

Demonstrate compassionate and genuine desire to support each other
Our mission

If it captures, moves, stores or processes data relied upon for delivering value to your clients we're all over it!

Governance and vCIO Services For Your Partners

What is a vCIO?

A virtual CIO (vCIO) is a senior IT adviser who works with your partners as part of the leadership team, without the cost of a full-time hire. They run a regular governance meeting, keep a one to three year IT roadmap and budget, and agree with you where to invest, what to fix and how to manage risk.

Find out how our vCIO services are structured and priced.

NSW vCIO strategic IT advisor
Discover a vCIO Framework that delivers Strategic Focus

Where a vCIO makes the Difference

An IT strategy and budget partners can sign off

A roadmap and budget tied to the firm's plans and reviewed each quarter, so spending is planned rather than a reaction to the next failure.

See how vCIO services work

One owner for practice software and vendors

The vCIO maps your practice management, document management, accounting and phone systems, coordinates the vendors behind them and holds each to what they promised.

Explore the vCIO service streams

Clear answers for clients and cyber insurers

When clients, insurers or lenders ask how you protect their information, the vCIO turns the question into a plan, using SMB1001 or the Essential Eight as the framework.

SMB1001 certification for your firm

Safe use of AI tools with client information

Staff are already trying AI tools. The vCIO sets a policy covering which tools are approved, what client data can go into them and who signs off, so the firm gets the benefit without the privacy risk.

Writing an AI policy for staff

Common IT problems in law, accounting and advisory firms

Client records that survive staff departures

When a lawyer, accountant or adviser leaves, their mailbox often holds the only record of advice and instructions. An immutable archive captures every message as it is sent or received, including mail sent to individual staff addresses, so the record stays complete and searchable.

Immutable email archiving and eDiscovery

eDiscovery without the scramble

When a dispute, complaint or regulator request arrives, you need the right emails quickly and in their original form. Archive search finds them by client, matter, sender or date, without restoring old mailboxes or PST files.

Email archiving and eDiscovery for professional services

Secure document sharing with clients

Email attachments and USB drives are hard to control once they leave the firm. Microsoft 365 sharing with access controls, expiry dates and sensitivity labels keeps client documents confidential while staff and clients work on them together.

Strategies for secure document management

Teams and SharePoint organised by client and matter

Unstructured Teams sites and file shares lose documents and blur who can see what. We build a structure around clients and matters, with permissions and retention set from the start.

Microsoft Modern Workplace

Payment redirection and email impersonation

Attackers target firms that hold client money or give financial advice. SPF, DKIM and DMARC, plus mailbox security monitoring, make your domain much harder to impersonate and your own email more likely to be delivered.

heck your email domain's reputation

Cyber security clients can see

Trust is not a defence. A recognised framework gives clients and insurers evidence of how you protect their information, and gives your staff a clear standard to work to.

Rethinking cyber security in law practices

New to email authentication? Start with email authentication basics for Australian SMEs.

Vendor Accountability with mProcure

Microsolve Procurement meeting

mProcure - The Managed Procurement and Licensing Layer that Sits Under Governance

The Microsolve mProcure service turns your procurement policies into day‑to‑day practice. Microsolve manages the lifecycle of your hardware, software, licences and subscriptions within agreed budgets, vendors and standards.

This end-to-end management provides the visibility and control within your practices that partners expect.

See How Proactive IT Procurement Improves Your Bottom Line

 

mProcure turns IT procurement from a scattered, vendor‑driven process into a single, governed function your firm can rely on. Instead of juggling multiple suppliers and unclear commitments, your team works through one accountable partner that manages contracts, licences and performance on your behalf. The services below show how this vendor accountability works in practice, every day for professional services firms.

Vendor Coordination and Ownership

Rather than calling different vendors for different issues, your firm has one point of contact who understands your environment and your priorities. That contact coordinates with all IT suppliers, tracks their actions and makes sure they meet the standards and timeframes your firm expects.

Service Review and Reporting

Performance is reviewed regularly, not only when something goes wrong. Structured service review packs and simple SLA reports give partners and practice managers clear visibility of response times, incident trends and upcoming renewals, so there are no surprises.

Escalation and Contract Review

When a vendor falls short, there is a defined escalation path instead of ad‑hoc emails and frustration. mProcure manages escalations, documents issues and, when needed, leads contract and SLA reviews to reset expectations or recommend changes that better protect your firm.

Other Services Include:

License and Subscription Management

Right‑size Microsoft 365 and other key applications so you pay only for what is used and needed

Delegated Purchase Plans

Microsolve executes purchases within pre‑approved budgets and vendor panels, with full audit trails.

Vendor SLA Management

We track response and resolution times, hold providers to their commitments and manage escalations on your behalf.

Cloud and WiFi Optimisation with mConsult

What is mConsult and How Can it Help My Business?

mConsult is the specialist arm that focuses on the foundations of your environment – the cloud, network and WiFi your people rely on every day – and how these elements are governed.

Cloud and WiFi optimisation for professional services offices
Explore How Consulting Works for You

Service Improvement Engagements

Targeted engagements to reduce incidents, streamline support and optimise cloud usage.

WiFi Architecture Design and Review

Design and validation of secure, high‑density WiFi for offices and meeting spaces, with documented topology and standards.

Cloud Optimisation

Tuning Microsoft 365 and other cloud services so performance and cost stay aligned with your firm’s current and future needs.

Proven Outcomes for Professional Firms

Woodward Finance, a commercial finance brokerage, needed a time-critical end of financial year campaign to reach more than 5,000 subscribers without putting its main email domain at risk. Microsolve achieved 99.7% delivery within 24 hours.

Case Studies

Woodward Finance managed email and reputation management services
Case Study - PABX Migration
Case Study - MultiSite WiFi

Services that support your partners, staff and clients

Device Support

Support of your IT infrastructure to agreed Service Levels - network, servers, desktops, laptops, thin clients and mobile devices.

Coverage options from 8x5 to 24x7.

Support Options

Cloud Migration, Hosting & Support

Mitigate the risk posed by onsite servers through migration to the leading cloud providers without the need to upskill your IT team or increase headcount.

Cloud Service Advantages

Cyber Security & Consulting

Integrate pragmatic, standards based Cyber Security practices across your Organisation using the SMB1001 and Essential Eight programs and Microsolve advisory services.

Cyber Security is my #1 Worry

Application Integration

Connect practice management, document management, accounting software and Microsoft 365, so information is entered once and reaches the people who need it.

Explore Integration

New Offices and Mergers

Bring a new office, merged practice or acquired firm onto your systems with a planned cut-over, user training and support, and minimal disruption to client work.

Successful Migrations

Infrastructure Design & Build

Office networks, firewalls and WiFi designed for client meeting rooms, hybrid staff and multiple offices.

Infrastructure Design
See how outsourced IT support works

Latest Technology Insights

Professional services IT: Frequently Asked Questions

What IT services does a professional services firm need?

Most firms need a reliable service desk, managed Microsoft 365, secure devices and networks, backed-up and archived email, and someone who owns IT strategy at partner level.

Microsolve covers all of this through outsourced IT support, with a virtual CIO for governance and planning.

How much do managed IT services cost for a professional services firm?

Usually a fixed monthly fee for core services such as the service desk, monitoring and patching, with projects and licensing scoped separately.

The fee depends on your users, devices, offices and complexity. Our guide explains what drives outsourced IT support costs.

How long should a professional services firm keep its emails?

Retention obligations for professional firms commonly run five to seven years, but the right period depends on your profession, your regulator and your professional indemnity insurer, so confirm it with them.

An archive lets you set retention by policy, rather than relying on staff to keep mailboxes. Read more on email archiving and eDiscovery for professional services.

What is the difference between email backup and email archiving?

A backup lets you restore mailboxes after a failure or deletion. An archive keeps an unchangeable, searchable copy of every message for the full retention period, which is what you need for disputes, complaints and eDiscovery. Most firms need both. Here is how email backups and archiving differ.

Do we need a vCIO if we already have an IT provider?

Often, yes.

A support provider fixes problems and keeps systems running.

A vCIO works with partners on the roadmap, budget, risk and vendor performance. Microsolve can provide the vCIO alongside your current provider, or as part of a full managed service.

Which cyber security framework suits a law or accounting firm?

For most small and mid-sized firms, SMB1001 is a practical starting point because it is tiered and can be certified.

The Essential Eight suits firms that work with government or need to show a specific maturity level.

A vCIO can help you choose and plan the uplift.

Do you support firms with more than one office?

Yes.

Microsolve supports firms across NSW and the ACT, with multi-site support Australia-wide.

Every office works to the same standards, security settings and support process, so staff get the same help wherever they work.