Should You Hire In-House IT, Outsource It, or Do Both?

Written by Russell Craig | May 12, 2026 6:46:58 PM

The quick answer: It depends

Whether to hire in-house IT, outsource, or use a co-managed model depends on your company size and how central IT is to your operations. Businesses under 25 employees usually do better outsourcing fully. Companies between 25 and 100 employees often find co-managed IT is the best fit. Larger organizations typically need an internal team supported by an external partner for security and overflow. Jump to How To Decide.

If you're posting a job for an IT role, you're at a fork in the road. Here's how to make the right call for your business, not just the obvious one.

A question most businesses ask too late

The moment a business decides to hire an IT professional is usually the moment something broke, or almost did. A security incident, a key employee who "handled all the tech stuff" leaving, or a compliance requirement that suddenly needs attention.

It's a reactive moment that leads to a reactive decision: post a job, hire someone, problem solved. But for most growing businesses, that's not actually the whole picture.

Before you write that job description, or if you already posted one and you're not sure it's the right move, here's a framework to help you decide.

Option 1: Hire in-house IT

A dedicated internal IT person or team means someone who knows your systems deeply, is available when you need them, and is invested in your business. For the right company, it's the right move.

Works well when...

You have 50+ employees with complex, interdependent systems
Your industry requires specific compliance (HIPAA, PCI, etc.)
IT is core to your product or service delivery
You need someone on-site daily

Watch out for...

One person can't cover every specialty: security, help desk, and infrastructure are all different skill sets
Turnover leaves you exposed overnight
Salary, benefits, and tools add up fast
Coverage gaps on nights, weekends, and PTO

Option 2: Outsource entirely

A managed IT service provider (MSP) takes on your IT function entirely, covering monitoring, helpdesk, security, and strategy. You get a full team for roughly the cost of one salary.

Works well when...

You're under 50 employees and don't need IT full-time
Predictable, fixed-cost IT matters for your budget
You want access to specialists without hiring them all
You need 24/7 monitoring without paying for it around the clock

Watch out for...

Response times vary by provider, so ask about SLAs upfront
Less context on your specific business day-to-day
Not every provider does cybersecurity well
Quality varies widely, so vet carefully

Option 3: Co-managed IT (often the overlooked answer)

Here's the option most businesses don't know exists: keep your internal IT person, or hire the person you were already planning to, and layer a managed provider alongside them.

Co-managed IT means your internal hire focuses on what they do best (day-to-day support, internal projects, knowing your team), while an external partner fills the gaps: helpdesk, 24/7 monitoring, security operations, specialized expertise, strategy, and backup coverage when your person is out.

Think of it less like outsourcing and more like giving your IT hire a team behind them, without adding headcount.

Works well when...

You're hiring your first IT person and don't want them to be a single point of failure
Your current IT team is stretched thin
You need cybersecurity depth your hire doesn't have
You want internal context plus external coverage

Watch out for...

Requires clear role definition to avoid overlap
Not every MSP offers a true co-managed model
Your internal hire needs to be collaborative, not territorial

How to decide

Fewer than 25 employees Outsource fully. You don't need IT full-time yet.	25 to 100 employees Co-managed is usually the sweet spot.	100+ employees Internal team, plus external for security and overflow.
Hiring your first IT person Consider co-managed so they're not alone.	Had a security incident Add external security monitoring immediately.	Compliance requirements An external partner with compliance expertise is essential.

The bottom line

There's no universally right answer, but there is a right answer for your business. The companies that get this wrong usually do so by defaulting to what feels familiar (hire someone) without asking whether it actually solves the problem.

If you're at that decision point right now, we're happy to talk through what makes sense for your size, industry, and goals. No pitch, just a conversation. Get in touch with edgefi.

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