Thinking of Switching IT Providers? Here’s What to Know First
Most Perth businesses stay with an underperforming IT provider far longer than they should — because switching feels complicated. It is not. This guide explains exactly what is involved.
Signs Your Current IT Provider Is Not Doing Enough
These are the most common reasons Perth businesses contact DM1. If more than one of these sounds familiar, the relationship is probably not working.
You only hear from them when something breaks
A good IT provider is proactive — identifying and fixing problems before they affect your business. If your provider only appears when you log a support ticket, your systems are being managed reactively. By the time you notice a problem, it has usually been there for a while.
You do not know what you are paying for
Your invoice arrives every month but you cannot explain what is included. You are not sure whether your backups are working, whether your security is up to date, or whether your Microsoft 365 licences are correctly configured. This is not normal — and it is not your fault for not knowing.
Response times are slow or inconsistent
When something goes wrong, you wait hours for a response — or longer. Staff are sitting idle while a ticket sits in a queue. Your IT provider is not treating your business’s downtime as a priority, and there is no clear expectation about when you will hear back.
They speak in technical language you cannot follow
Every conversation involves acronyms and terminology that means nothing to you. You leave calls more confused than before. A good IT provider translates technical issues into plain English so you can make informed decisions — not just approve work you do not understand.
Your security has never been properly reviewed
Nobody has ever sat down with you and reviewed who has access to what, whether your backups are working, or whether your staff accounts are properly protected. If you cannot remember the last time this happened, it probably has not.
You feel like you cannot leave
You are not sure who owns your domain name. Your provider holds credentials you do not have. You worry that switching will cause disruption and that your current provider will be uncooperative. This is a common tactic — and it is not how a professional IT relationship should work.
What You Own — and What Your Provider Must Hand Over
Many Perth businesses do not realise they already own the things their IT provider appears to control. These belong to you — not to your provider.
Your domain name
The domain your business operates on — for example, yourbusiness.com.au — is registered in a name. That name should be yours or your business’s, not your IT provider’s. If your provider registered it on your behalf in their own name, they are obligated to transfer it to you on request.
Your Microsoft 365 tenant
Your Microsoft 365 environment — including all your emails, SharePoint files, Teams content, and user accounts — belongs to your business. Your IT provider manages it on your behalf as a CSP partner, but the tenancy is yours. You are entitled to full global admin access at any time.
Your DNS settings
DNS records control where your emails go, which services are connected to your domain, and how your website resolves. These settings are held at your domain registrar and should be accessible to you. Your provider should not be the sole gatekeeper to your own DNS.
Your website and hosting
If your provider hosts your website, the website files, the database, and the hosting account should either be owned by you or transferable to you without penalty. A provider who refuses to hand over your website on request is withholding your property.
All passwords and credentials
Every password your provider holds for your systems — admin accounts, router credentials, firewall logins — belongs to your business. A professional provider documents and hands these over as part of an orderly offboarding process.
Your licence and subscription records
You are entitled to a full list of every software licence, Microsoft 365 subscription, and third-party service your business is paying for — including the cost, the renewal date, and what it covers. If you do not have this, ask for it.
How the Switching Process Actually Works
Switching IT providers is more straightforward than most business owners expect. DM1 manages the entire process and handles communication with your outgoing provider so you do not have to.
1
Initial review
DM1 meets with you to understand your current setup, your pain points, and what you need from a new provider. We document what you have, what is working, and what is not. No obligation at this stage.
2
Credential and asset audit
DM1 identifies everything your current provider holds on your behalf — domain registrations, admin credentials, DNS access, hosting accounts, and licence records. We establish what needs to be transferred and in what order.
3
Formal notice to your current provider
DM1 assists you in giving formal notice to your outgoing provider and requests the return of all credentials and documentation your business is entitled to. DM1 handles the back-and-forth if the provider is uncooperative.
4
Security review and baseline
Once DM1 has access to your environment, we run our standard security review — checking account access, reviewing backup status, auditing device security settings, and identifying anything that needs immediate attention.
5
Transfer and configuration
Domain names, DNS settings, and any third-party services are transferred into DM1’s management. Microsoft 365 CSP transfer is completed. All admin credentials are updated and documented in DM1’s secure systems.
6
Handover and ongoing management
Once the transition is complete, DM1 provides a plain English summary of your environment, what was found, and what has been fixed. From this point your business is under DM1’s managed services agreement.
What About My Contract With My Current Provider?
This is the question DM1 is asked most often. The answer depends on what your contract says — but in most cases it is less of a barrier than you think. Most SMB IT provider agreements are month-to-month or have a short notice period. If your agreement has a longer term, DM1 can review it with you and help you understand your options. In some cases, the ongoing cost of staying with an underperforming provider — in lost productivity, security risk, and staff frustration — exceeds the cost of any early exit fee. DM1 will give you an honest assessment.
What DM1 Does Differently
DM1 works exclusively with Perth SMBs. Every service DM1 provides is built around the reality of running a small or medium business — not the needs of a large enterprise.
You always know what you are paying for
DM1 provides a clear, itemised service agreement. Every licence, every service, and every cost is documented and explained in plain English. There are no hidden fees and no surprises on the invoice. If something changes, DM1 tells you before it appears on a bill.
You own everything
DM1 never registers domain names, Microsoft tenancies, or any other assets in DM1’s name on your behalf. Everything is registered in your business’s name. You have full admin access to your own environment at all times. If you ever choose to leave, DM1 provides a full credential handover.
Proactive, not reactive
DM1 monitors your environment continuously and addresses issues before they become problems. You receive regular plain English updates on the state of your IT — not silence followed by an emergency call. Security reviews, licence audits, and backup verification happen on a schedule, not when something breaks.
Microsoft CSP partner
As a Microsoft Cloud Solution Provider, DM1 manages Microsoft 365 licences directly across all client tenants. This means faster licence changes, direct access to Microsoft support escalation paths, and a single point of contact for everything in your Microsoft environment.
What We Found on Day One
These are real findings from DM1’s standard onboarding checks — discovered when Perth businesses switched to DM1 and we reviewed what their previous provider had left behind.
Discovered during DM1 new client onboarding
The domain name was registered in the IT provider’s name — not the business’s
When a Perth retail business moved to DM1, our standard onboarding checks found that the business’s primary domain name had been registered by their previous IT provider in the provider’s own company name. The business had been trading under that domain for four years and had no idea. Their previous provider had never disclosed this. DM1 initiated a formal transfer request, documented the situation for the business owner, and completed the domain transfer to the client’s name within two weeks.
Discovered during DM1 new client onboarding
Global admin access had been removed from the business owner — the provider was the only admin
When a Perth professional services firm moved to DM1, our onboarding review found that the business owner had been removed as a global administrator on their own Microsoft 365 tenancy at some point in the previous twelve months. The outgoing IT provider was the sole global admin. The business owner had no independent access to their own email environment, user accounts, or licence management. DM1 restored admin access, audited all accounts, and documented the full environment before the provider relationship was terminated.
Discovered during DM1 new client onboarding
Three years of invoices for software licences the business was no longer using
When a Perth manufacturing business moved to DM1, our standard licence audit found the business had been paying monthly for six Microsoft 365 licences assigned to staff who had left the business, two licences for a software product that had been replaced eighteen months earlier, and a third-party security product that was not installed on any device. Their previous IT provider had never conducted a licence review. DM1 removed the redundant licences immediately, saving the business over $400 per month.
Why Perth Businesses Choose DM1
DM1 is a Perth-based managed IT provider working exclusively with small and medium businesses. We are a Microsoft CSP partner, which means we manage Microsoft 365 licences and configurations directly — and we handle the full transition when a business moves to us, including dealing with the outgoing provider on your behalf.
We handle the transition for you
DM1 manages the entire switching process — from the initial audit of your current setup through to handover of all credentials, domain ownership, and configurations. You do not need to coordinate between your old provider and your new one. DM1 does that.
One point of contact for everything IT
DM1 manages your Microsoft 365 licences, your devices, your email, your security, your connectivity, and your backup — all from one place. One number. One provider. No more wondering which vendor is responsible for which problem.
Ready to Make the Switch?
Talk to DM1 about your current IT setup. We’ll tell you honestly what we find, what switching would involve, and whether it makes sense for your business. No obligation, no pressure. (08) 6202 6012