A good operating agreement and a clear SLA means that you know exactly what your IT provider is responsible for, how quickly they must act when something goes wrong and what applies to backup, security and support. Without them, you depend on goodwill – with them, you have measurable promises to lean on. You must demand and understand this before you sign.

What is an operating agreement?

An operating agreement is the agreement that a supplier continuously takes care of and keeps your IT running - it can be your website, your servers, your e-mail or your systems. The agreement describes what is included: what the provider must monitor, update, back up and help with. Think of it as a service contract for the car, fixed for your technology: someone is responsible for keeping everything running and catching problems before they become big.

What is an SLA?

SLA stands for "service level agreement", in Swedish service level agreement. It is the part that setsmeasurable promiseson the service. Instead of vague formulations such as "we will help you quickly", it says concretely: how quickly the supplier must respond, how high availability is guaranteed and what happens if they do not measure up. The SLA is the difference between a hope and a promise you can hold the supplier to.

What does availability (uptime) mean?

Availability is the percentage of time the service must be up and running, usually expressed as a percentage. It's easy to be fooled by how little difference there appears to be:

  • 99%allowing approximately 3.5 days of downtime per year.
  • 99.9%allowing approximately 8.8 hours of downtime per year.
  • 99.99%allowing approximately 52 minutes of downtime per year.

An extra nine costs more but may be worth it if every hour down costs you money. Always ask the supplier to explain what their figure means in practice – and whether planned maintenance is excluded or not.

What is response time and action time?

Two different things that are often confused:

  • Response time (response time):how quickly the provider confirms they have received your case and starts looking at it.
  • Action time (solution time):how long it may take before the problem is actually solved.

Good SLAs also divide cases according to severity: a "the whole site is down" should have much shorter times than a "a button is the wrong color". Make sure the contract defines these levels so you're not waiting hours for something urgent.

What should I demand? A checklist

Please review this list before signing:

  • Clear accessibility:a percentage figure with an explanation of what it means.
  • Response and action times:divided according to the severity of the error.
  • Support hours:when can you reach them – office hours or 24/7? And how (phone, email, system)?
  • Backup and Restore:how often are backups taken, and how quickly can you be up and running again after a crash?
  • Security:how are updates, breaches and your sensitive data (GDPR) handled?
  • What is included – and not:so that you are not surprised by extra invoices.
  • What happens if they miss the targets:for example price reductions.
  • Termination and moving:how to cancel the contract and get your data if you want to change provider.

What happens if the supplier does not meet its SLA?

This is a point many people forget. An SLA without consistency is just a hope. Most commonly, the agreement gives you a price reduction (often called a "penalty" or a compensation) if the supplier does not reach its guaranteed levels for a month. The important thing is not to make money from the deduction - it is that the supplier has a real reason to keep his promises. Ask bluntly: "What do I get if you don't meet your SLA?"

How do I think about security and my data?

Your IT provider often handles sensitive information – customer data, finances, internal documents. Make sure the agreement regulates how your data is protected, who has access, how personal data is handled according to the GDPR (a special data protection agreement is often required), and that you get your data out if the collaboration ends. This is not a detail – it is the essence of trust.

Do you want an IT partner who dares to promise concretely?

An operating agreement should give you security, not hassle. At ZORC, and through our investment Swedish Cybersecurity, we offer operating agreements with clear service levels, honest communication about what is included and safety at the center - in pure Swedish, without technical talk you don't need. Do you want to know what you should demand in your particular case, or let us look at an agreement you already have? Get in touch and we'll go through it together.