Annual Service Agreement Overview
Annual service agreements are intended for organizations that need ongoing technology administration, support, documentation, security coordination, account management, systems organization, or other recurring IT services throughout the year.
Every agreement is custom scoped. The contract is based on the environment that exists at the time of the review and the services the organization actually requests. The agreement identifies what J3 Systems Group LLC is responsible for, what the client is responsible for, what is included, what is excluded, and how changes are handled during the contract term.
Annual agreements are built around your actual environment.
J3 Systems Group does not use a one-size-fits-all contract. The supported users, devices, systems, locations, services, responsibilities, and exclusions are documented before the agreement is finalized.
Only services expressly identified as included are included. Services, systems, users, devices, locations, applications, projects, or responsibilities not expressly identified as included are outside the scope of the agreement unless added through a written amendment or separately approved scope of work.
Remote-Only Service Model
J3 Systems Group LLC provides annual IT services remotely only. On-site visits are not included or provided under annual service agreements.
What remote support may include
- Remote troubleshooting and user assistance
- Microsoft 365 or Google Workspace administration when included
- Account, access, licensing, and security administration
- Remote endpoint management when included
- Documentation, process, and policy support
- Remote vendor coordination
What remote-only means
- No on-site visits by J3 Systems Group personnel
- No physical cabling, rack installation, mounting, or equipment transport
- No hands-on hardware replacement at the client location
- No physical troubleshooting that requires J3 to be present
- Client may need to provide an employee or local third-party technician
- Third-party labor and vendor charges are separate
Physical access limitation
When a problem cannot be resolved remotely because physical access to equipment, power, cabling, networking hardware, facilities, or other on-site infrastructure is required, the client is responsible for providing an employee, local technician, or approved third-party vendor who can work with J3 Systems Group remotely.
Initial Video Consultation
A Zoom video meeting will be scheduled to discuss your needs, current environment, and goals. The consultation is conducted with cameras on to support a more personal, face-to-face conversation and allow us to review the recommended plan of action together.
The consultation is used for discovery and scope development. Pricing is not estimated during the meeting. The purpose is to understand what the organization needs, identify the systems and responsibilities involved, and determine what information must be inventoried before an annual proposal is prepared.
Environment Inventory and Scope Review
Before an annual service agreement is prepared, J3 Systems Group will review the organization’s users, devices, accounts, applications, infrastructure, locations, vendors, security controls, and anticipated support requirements. This allows the proposed agreement to accurately reflect the environment and services the organization requires.
Any systems, users, devices, locations, applications, or services not disclosed during the initial scope review may require an adjustment to the agreement if they materially change the level of support required.
People and access
- Employees, contractors, volunteers, and supported users
- Departments, managers, work locations, and employment status
- Microsoft 365 or Google Workspace accounts
- Administrator accounts and privileged access
- Shared mailboxes, groups, Teams, Shared Drives, and collaboration access
- MFA status, VPN access, and business application access
- Onboarding and offboarding volume
Devices and endpoints
- Desktops, laptops, Macs, Chromebooks, tablets, and company phones
- Shared workstations, kiosks, conference-room computers, and specialty devices
- Assigned user, manufacturer, model, serial number, and asset tag
- Operating system, age, warranty, encryption, endpoint protection, and patch status
- MDM or Intune enrollment when applicable
- BYOD devices that access company information
Cloud and business systems
- Microsoft 365, Entra ID, Intune, SharePoint, OneDrive, and Teams
- Google Workspace, Google Drive, Shared Drives, and Google Groups
- Email platforms, shared mailboxes, distribution groups, aliases, and forwarding
- Accounting, CRM, HR, payroll, scheduling, project, and industry-specific applications
- Domains, DNS, website hosting, cloud platforms, and administrative portals
- Licensing, renewals, vendor ownership, and business criticality
Infrastructure and vendors
- Internet providers, firewalls, routers, switches, access points, VPNs, and networks
- Servers, virtual systems, NAS devices, cloud servers, and backup platforms
- Printers, copiers, scanners, conference equipment, and related peripherals
- Technology vendors, telecom providers, copier vendors, software vendors, and support providers
- Physical locations, remote sites, and supported offices
- Current documentation, diagrams, contracts, and vendor contacts
Security and recovery
- MFA, password policies, administrator access, endpoint protection, and encryption
- Conditional Access, external sharing, guest users, remote access, and dormant accounts
- Backup coverage, retention, monitoring, restore testing, and recovery expectations
- Security incidents, known vulnerabilities, and outstanding remediation
- Cyber-insurance requirements and required security controls
Support workload and future changes
- Typical monthly support volume and common request types
- Expected response priorities and business-critical systems
- New-hire and termination frequency
- Planned migrations, office changes, deployments, or remediation projects
- Compliance, grant, insurance, or contractual technology requirements
- Anticipated growth in users, devices, locations, or applications
Custom-Scoped Pricing and Itemized Proposal
Annual service agreements do not use public fixed pricing or verbal estimates during the initial consultation. After the Zoom meeting and environment review, J3 Systems Group will prepare an itemized proposal based on the services and responsibilities requested.
No estimate during discovery
The initial consultation is used to understand the environment and determine scope. An estimated contract price is not provided during the meeting.
Itemized proposal after review
After discovery, J3 Systems Group prepares an itemized proposal showing the requested services, responsibilities, assumptions, exclusions, and associated pricing.
Agreement after approval
Once the proposal is approved, a formal annual service agreement is prepared for review and signature.
Invoice after signature
After the signed agreement is received, the applicable invoice and secure payment link are sent by email. Services begin according to the effective date and payment terms stated in the agreement.
What the Annual Agreement Defines
The signed agreement and its schedules are intended to make the service relationship specific enough that both parties know exactly what is covered.
| Area | What is documented |
|---|---|
| Covered services | The recurring services J3 is responsible for providing. |
| Supported users | The employees, contractors, or other users covered by the agreement. |
| Supported devices | The computers, mobile devices, servers, network devices, and other endpoints covered. |
| Supported locations | The offices, branches, or remote locations included in scope. |
| Supported systems | The Microsoft, Google, cloud, network, security, backup, and business systems J3 is expected to administer. |
| Service hours | Normal support hours, time zone, holidays, and any approved after-hours arrangements. |
| Response targets | How requests are prioritized and what response expectations apply. Response targets do not automatically guarantee resolution times. |
| Client responsibilities | Access, approvals, licensing, physical assistance, accurate inventory information, and other obligations required from the client. |
| Exclusions | Services and responsibilities that are specifically outside the agreement. |
| Pricing and payment | Contract pricing, billing schedule, payment terms, applicable fees, and suspension rights for nonpayment. |
| Change process | How additional users, devices, systems, projects, or support requirements are reviewed and added. |
| Termination and transition | Notice, final billing, documentation handoff, remote-tool removal, administrative-access removal, and transition responsibilities. |
Included Services, Exclusions, and Project Work
Routine support and project work are treated differently. Routine support means the recurring administration, troubleshooting, maintenance, documentation, and user assistance expressly included in the annual agreement.
Examples of separately scoped project work
- Large migrations or tenant-to-tenant migrations
- New-office or new-location deployments
- Major network redesigns
- Mass device replacement or large rollout projects
- Major security remediation initiatives
- Custom software development or application development
- Large automation projects
- Forensic investigations or specialist incident response
Common exclusions unless expressly included
- On-site services
- Physical cabling, electrical work, equipment mounting, or physical repair
- Hardware, shipping, warranties, licenses, and third-party subscriptions
- Third-party labor and vendor fees
- Legal, accounting, regulatory, or compliance certification advice
- Penetration testing, digital forensics, or data-recovery specialist work
- Support for unsupported, end-of-life, insecure, or improperly licensed systems
Additional Services During the Contract Term
The annual agreement covers only the services, users, devices, systems, applications, locations, and responsibilities expressly identified in the agreement and its incorporated schedules.
If additional services, projects, systems, users, devices, locations, applications, support requirements, or other material changes are requested or become necessary during the contract term, those items are not automatically included in the existing agreement.
Scope changes require review
Additional services will require a separate scope review and negotiation. J3 Systems Group LLC may, at its discretion, require a written amendment, revised service schedule, updated contract price, separate project quote, separate scope of work, advance payment, revised payment terms, or other revised terms before the additional work begins.
No additional service is considered included unless J3 Systems Group LLC expressly approves it in writing. J3 Systems Group LLC reserves the right to determine whether requested additional work can reasonably be incorporated into the existing agreement or must be handled under a separate quote, project agreement, or amended contract.
Client Responsibilities
An annual agreement depends on both parties fulfilling clearly defined responsibilities. Client responsibilities may include:
Access and authorization
- Provide required administrative access and permissions
- Designate authorized contacts and decision-makers
- Provide timely approvals for changes
- Maintain valid licenses and subscriptions
Environment changes
- Notify J3 of new hires, terminations, devices, applications, locations, and vendors
- Disclose material technology changes before expecting support
- Maintain accurate user and device information
Physical assistance
- Provide onsite personnel when physical access is required
- Coordinate local vendors when hands-on work is necessary
- Maintain power, connectivity, and facility access
Security cooperation
- Follow agreed security requirements
- Use supported systems and valid software
- Complete required MFA, device, and access actions
- Document any decision to decline recommended security controls
Support Boundaries and Responsibilities
The formal agreement will define operational boundaries in greater detail. Important areas typically include:
Third-party services
J3 may coordinate with approved vendors but is not responsible for third-party outages, delays, pricing, errors, failed repairs, policy changes, or service quality.
Connectivity and utilities
Remote support depends on working internet, power, equipment, and physical access. J3 is not responsible for delays caused by conditions outside its control.
Security limitations
No security program can guarantee prevention of every breach, phishing event, ransomware incident, malware infection, outage, or loss. Security controls reduce risk but do not eliminate it.
Unsupported technology
J3 may decline to support technology that is end-of-life, unsupported, materially insecure, improperly licensed, or unsuitable for reasonable business use until remediation occurs.
Backups and recovery
The agreement will state exactly which backup systems, monitoring, retention, restore assistance, and recovery responsibilities are included. Anything not assigned to J3 remains outside J3's responsibility.
Client-caused delays
J3 is not responsible for delays caused by missing approvals, unavailable client personnel, incomplete information, missing access, vendor delays, physical-access restrictions, or unpaid invoices.
Built to prevent assumptions
The purpose of the annual agreement is to document exactly what J3 Systems Group is responsible for, what the client is responsible for, and how changes are handled during the contract term.
Changes in Organization Size or Complexity
Pricing and scope are based on the environment documented when the agreement is executed. Material increases in users, devices, locations, systems, applications, infrastructure, compliance requirements, support volume, or technical complexity may trigger a scope and pricing review.
Undisclosed systems or requirements discovered after execution do not automatically become part of the agreement.
Authorized Requests and Change Approval
The agreement may identify specific people who are authorized to request administrative changes, approve new users, authorize terminations, approve purchases, change security settings, approve destructive actions, or authorize other sensitive work. J3 may require confirmation from an authorized contact before performing high-impact changes.
Onboarding and Offboarding
If employee onboarding or offboarding is included, the agreement will define the standard process, required notice, supported systems, approval requirements, and any limits on the number or complexity of onboarding and offboarding requests.
Hardware, Software, and Licensing
Unless expressly included, hardware purchases, replacement equipment, warranties, shipping, software subscriptions, cloud licenses, vendor fees, and third-party services are client expenses. J3 does not manufacture or warrant client hardware and does not assume responsibility for third-party manufacturer warranties.
Documentation, Data, Accounts, and Credentials
Client data, domains, tenants, business records, and client-owned accounts remain the property of the client. J3 may maintain documentation and delegated administrative access necessary to perform the contracted services. Credentials should be stored and shared using approved secure methods rather than ordinary unsecured documents or email whenever practical.
Service Hours, Priorities, and Response Targets
Normal service hours, support-request channels, priority definitions, response targets, holidays, and any approved after-hours arrangements will be documented in the agreement. A response target means the expected time for J3 to acknowledge or begin reviewing a request. It does not guarantee that every issue will be fully resolved within that same period.
Agreement Administration, Payment, Renewal, and Termination
The agreement will define the billing schedule, due dates, applicable taxes or expenses, nonpayment procedures, suspension rights, renewal process, annual scope review, termination notice, final billing, access removal, remote-tool removal, documentation handoff, and any transition assistance.
Legal provisions such as limitation of liability, indemnification, warranties, dispute resolution, governing law, and other enforceability terms belong in the signed agreement and should be reviewed by qualified legal counsel before the agreement is used with clients.
How the Annual Agreement Process Works
1. Submit a request
Tell J3 Systems Group what ongoing help your organization is looking for.
2. Meet by Zoom video
A cameras-on consultation is scheduled to discuss your needs, environment, goals, and expected support requirements.
3. Complete environment discovery
Users, devices, systems, applications, locations, vendors, security controls, support volume, and other relevant information are reviewed.
4. Receive an itemized proposal
J3 prepares a detailed proposal based on the services and responsibilities requested. No contract price is estimated during the initial consultation.
5. Approve the proposed scope
The proposed services, assumptions, exclusions, responsibilities, and pricing are reviewed before the agreement is prepared.
6. Review and sign the agreement
The formal annual service agreement and applicable schedules are provided for review and signature.
7. Receive the invoice and payment link
After the signed agreement is received, the applicable invoice and secure payment link are sent by email.
8. Begin service
Onboarding and contracted services begin according to the effective date, payment terms, prerequisites, and implementation plan stated in the agreement.
Frequently Asked Questions
Are annual service agreements remote only?
Yes. J3 Systems Group LLC provides annual IT services remotely. On-site visits are not included.
Will I receive a price estimate during the consultation?
No. The initial Zoom consultation is used for discovery and scope development. After the meeting and environment review, J3 Systems Group prepares an itemized proposal based on what you requested.
Are cameras required during the initial Zoom consultation?
Yes. The initial consultation is conducted by Zoom video with cameras on to support a more personal, face-to-face discussion of the environment, needs, goals, and recommended plan of action.
What happens if we add employees or devices during the year?
Material changes to users, devices, systems, applications, locations, support volume, or complexity may require a scope review and adjustment to the agreement or pricing.
What if we need a service that is not in the contract?
Additional services require review and may require negotiation, a written amendment, revised pricing, a separate project quote, or a separate statement of work at J3 Systems Group LLC's discretion.
Does the annual agreement include project work?
Only if the specific project is expressly identified as included. Larger migrations, deployments, redesigns, remediation initiatives, new locations, and similar project work may require a separate scope and quote.
Who handles physical problems if J3 is remote only?
The client is responsible for providing an employee, local technician, or approved third-party vendor when physical access or hands-on work is required. J3 can coordinate remotely when that coordination is within scope.
Does this webpage replace the signed contract?
No. This page explains the general annual-service process. The signed service agreement, incorporated schedules, amendments, and approved statements of work control the actual contractual relationship and scope.