Co-Managed IT for Companies with 150 to 1,000 Users
Keep your internal IT team. Add ours behind them.
Your IT staff handles the help desk and computer setups. CIO Landing manages the tools, security, network and updates. We agree in writing on who owns what, and both teams work from the same tickets and the same documentation.
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What is co-managed IT? In co-managed IT, a company's internal IT team and an outside provider share the work. At CIO Landing, the internal team usually keeps level 1 support and device setup. We run the security stack, network, patching and the management tools, and add AI monitoring and AI governance on top. It's built for companies with 150 to 1,000 users that already have IT staff. Each split is agreed in writing at the start.
Who it's for
Our co-managed clients typically have 150 to 1,000 users and one or more IT people on staff. Your team knows your people, your offices and your business software. The pressure usually comes from what sits under them:
- Security tools, alerts and threats that change every week
- Firewalls, switches, Wi-Fi and the network between your sites
- Patching and updates on every server, laptop and application
- The cost and know-how of running enterprise management tools
- Shadow AI: employees using unapproved AI tools and pasting company data into public models
- AI tools like Microsoft 365 Copilot that can surface any file a user has access to, if permissions aren't locked down first
Each of these is a full-time job. We take them on so your team doesn't have to.
The usual split
The model below is where most clients start. You can change it at any time.
| Area | Your IT team | CIO Landing |
|---|---|---|
| Level 1 help desk (users, passwords, how-to) | Owns | Escalations from your team |
| Computer setup, onboarding and offboarding | Owns | Standard images, security agents and policies |
| Business applications (ERP, practice management, etc.) | Owns | Servers, network and access underneath |
| Security tools: endpoint protection, email filtering, SOC monitoring | Policy approval | Runs and monitors |
| Network: firewalls, switches, Wi-Fi, VPN | Visibility | Manages |
| Patching and updates (OS and third-party) | Approves maintenance windows | Runs and reports |
| Backups and recovery testing | Sets recovery goals | Monitors and tests |
| AI monitoring: shadow AI discovery, data uploads, Copilot and AI agent usage | Reviews flagged apps with department heads | Runs the tools and reports monthly |
| AI governance: data permissions, sensitivity labels, DLP | Names data owners and approves access | Audits, fixes and configures |
| AI acceptable use policy | Customizes with leadership and HR, and enforces | Policy templates and vendor AI risk reviews |
| Microsoft 365 / cloud administration | Shared | Shared |
| IT roadmap and budget | Leads | Technology Business Reviews and standards |
Your team keeps admin access. You see the tickets, alerts, patch reports and documentation we see. Nothing is hidden.
Every company splits it differently
The table is a starting point. We adjust it to fit you.
We take more
If your team is small or stretched, we can take level 1 overflow, cover vacations and leave, or run the help desk for a period.
We take less
If your team already runs the network, we can focus on security and patching.
Software through us (500+ users)
If you have 500 or more users and your team runs a product well, you can buy the license through CIO Landing. Learn more
The split is written down before onboarding starts. When it changes, we update it together.
What you get from CIO Landing
- Security operations: Endpoint protection, email filtering, SOC monitoring, vulnerability scans and incident response. See Cybersecurity Services.
- Network management: Firewalls, switches, Wi-Fi and remote access across your sites.
- Patching and updates: On a schedule, with patch reports your team can use.
- Management tools: RMM, endpoint security and backup, already licensed and configured. You don't have to buy or learn a separate stack.
- AI monitoring: Shadow AI discovery, data loss prevention tuned for AI tools, and usage reports for Copilot licenses and AI agents.
- AI governance: Data permission cleanup before AI is turned on, sensitivity labels, AI acceptable use policies and vendor AI risk reviews. See Secure AI Foundations.
- Senior escalation: When a ticket goes beyond your team, it comes to our engineers with its full history, so you never have to start over.
- CSM and TAM: A Client Success Manager and a Technology Alignment Manager, with regular Technology Business Reviews. See CSM & TAM.
- Fractional CIO (add-on): Executive IT strategy for your IT leader and leadership team. Quoted separately. See Fractional CIO.
Co-Managed IT, AI Monitoring and AI Governance
In the mid-market and commercial space, internal IT teams are often stretched thin keeping daily operations running, leaving them little bandwidth to police shadow AI, configure complex data boundaries, or monitor autonomous agents. Packaging Co-Managed IT, AI Monitoring, and AI Governance lets CIO Landing step in not as a replacement for internal IT, but as a specialized force multiplier and strategic guardrail.
1. Co-Managed IT (the operational foundation)
In a co-managed model, the internal IT team retains ownership of business-specific applications, on-site support, and vendor relationships, while CIO Landing takes over heavy infrastructure lifting and specialized tooling.
- Shared tooling and co-piloted platforms: Providing the internal team with enterprise-grade RMM, PSA, and documentation platforms configured with pre-built automation scripts and patch rings.
- Tiered escalation: Offloading noisy Tier 1 help desk queues (or handling Tier 3 infrastructure and cloud escalations) and covering PTO so the internal team avoids burnout.
- Security operations (SOC/MDR): Managing endpoint detection (EDR/MDR), SIEM ingestion, vulnerability scanning, and automated incident containment, areas that require constant monitoring an internal team rarely has.
- Cloud and identity architecture: Co-managing Microsoft Entra ID / Active Directory, Conditional Access policies, Intune device compliance, and cloud cost optimization (FinOps).
- Lifecycle and backup management: Running automated BCDR testing, immutable backup verification, and hardware and warranty lifecycle tracking.
2. AI Monitoring (visibility and observability)
Internal IT often can't see which employees are pasting proprietary data into public LLMs or which SaaS apps have quietly turned on AI features. CIO Landing delivers AI observability as a service.
- Shadow AI discovery: Using Cloud Access Security Brokers (CASB), DNS filtering, and browser and endpoint telemetry to detect unauthorized AI tools (personal ChatGPT accounts, unvetted Chrome extensions, rogue note-taking bots joining Teams or Zoom calls).
- Prompt and data egress monitoring: Data Loss Prevention (DLP) rules tuned for AI endpoints that alert on or block uploads of PII, source code, financial records, or client contracts into public models.
- AI agent and API telemetry: For clients running custom workflows, local models, or automated agents, monitoring API token consumption, cost spikes, latency, rate limits, and anomalous loop behavior.
- Identity and access anomaly detection: Watching what internal AI assistants (like Microsoft 365 Copilot) are querying, and flagging an account that suddenly uses AI to scrape and summarize sensitive HR or executive folders it shouldn't have access to.
- Utilization and ROI auditing: Tracking active usage of paid AI licenses (such as Copilot seats) to identify shelfware and reallocate licenses to high-adoption departments.
3. AI Governance (policy, guardrails and compliance)
AI is only as safe as the underlying data permissions. If a company's SharePoint or Google Drive is over-permissioned, deploying an internal AI tool instantly creates an internal data leak. CIO Landing acts as the governance architect. See also Secure AI Foundations.
- Data readiness and permission remediation: Auditing and locking down SharePoint, OneDrive, and file shares before AI tools are enabled: removing "Everyone" access groups, enforcing least-privilege access, and applying sensitivity labels.
- Acceptable use policies and guardrails: Drafting enforceable corporate AI policies that define approved and prohibited tools, rules for human-in-the-loop verification, and copyright and IP handling.
- Third-party vendor AI risk vetting: Reviewing your existing SaaS stack (CRM, ERP, HRIS) to audit how those vendors train their models on your data, and turning off data-sharing settings that are on by default.
- Framework alignment: Mapping your AI usage to established standards like the NIST AI Risk Management Framework (AI RMF) and ISO/IEC 42001, and generating audit-ready evidence.
- Safe sandboxing and tenant hardening: Configuring commercial data protection (such as Microsoft Purview for Copilot, or enterprise workspaces for Claude and OpenAI) so prompts and outputs are contractually and technically blocked from training public foundation models.
Co-managed responsibility matrix
A clear division of labor with your IT Director or VP of IT prevents turf wars and shows value from day one.
| Domain / function | CIO Landing | Your IT team | Deliverable / outcome |
|---|---|---|---|
| Shadow AI and app discovery | Deploys CASB/DNS sensors; generates monthly discovery reports | Reviews flagged apps with department heads to approve or block | Monthly Shadow AI Risk Report and blocked app list |
| Data permissions and DLP | Audits file shares, builds sensitivity labels, configures DLP rules | Defines business data owners and approves the access matrix | Zero-trust data boundaries for Microsoft 365 Copilot and LLMs |
| AI policy and compliance | Provides policy templates (NIST AI RMF) and conducts vendor AI audits | Customizes the policy with leadership and HR and enforces it internally | Signed Acceptable Use Policy and Vendor Risk Register |
| AI agent and workflow operations | Secures API gateways, monitors token costs, manages host infrastructure | Identifies business bottlenecks and champions user adoption | Controlled, cost-predictable automation pipeline |
| Core infrastructure and SOC | MDR, patching, backups, escalation support, shared RMM/PSA | On-site support, line-of-business apps, internal stakeholder alignment | Resilient baseline environment with a reduced ticket backlog |
How we start
- Discovery call: We learn your team, your sites and what's slowing you down.
- Written split: We agree on who owns what, using the table above as a starting point.
- Onboarding: We deploy our tools, connect to your ticketing and document your environment.
- Review: In the first Technology Business Review, we look at what's working and adjust the split.
Is co-managed IT the right fit?
A good fit if
- You have 150 to 1,000 users and at least one IT person
- Your team is strong on users and applications but stretched on security, network and updates
- You want enterprise tools without buying and running them yourself
- You're rolling out Copilot or other AI tools and need guardrails first
Other options
- No IT staff? Our fully managed plan is built for that. See IT Support and Pricing.
- 500+ users and only need software? Your IT department runs it, and we supply it. See Mid-Market & Midsize Business software.
- One-time project? Projects are quoted separately. See how we quote projects.
Co-managed IT: frequently asked questions
Will you replace our IT team?
No. Your team keeps the work it does best and keeps admin access. We take the work that needs specialized tools and constant monitoring.
Who decides who does what?
You do, with us. Before onboarding we agree in writing on who owns each area. Most clients start with the usual split and adjust it over time.
Can our IT team see your tools and tickets?
Yes. Your team sees the same tickets, alerts, patch reports and documentation we do.
Can we also buy software through you?
Yes, if you have 500 or more users. Your team runs the product, and we supply the license as a pass-through. See Mid-Market & Midsize Business software.
Can you help us control how employees use AI?
Yes. We monitor for shadow AI and risky data uploads, lock down data permissions before AI tools are turned on, and help you write and enforce an AI acceptable use policy. Your IT team decides which tools are approved.
How is co-managed IT priced?
It's quoted based on the users, systems and responsibilities we take on. You get a written quote after the discovery call.
What if our IT person leaves or goes on leave?
Because we already know your environment and documentation, we can take on more of the work until your team is back to full strength.
Your IT team, with ours behind them.
Tell us how your team works today, and we'll show you how we'd split it.