A service level agreement (SLA) is a provider's contractual commitment to meet measurable standards such as availability or response time. It also sets the remedies that apply when those standards are missed.
A service level objective (SLO) is an internal reliability target for a service, such as the share of requests that must succeed quickly. It defines what good enough looks like for users over a rolling window.
Managed services is an engagement where an outside provider runs a system or function, such as cloud infrastructure or support, against agreed service levels. The client buys an ongoing outcome rather than paying for individual people or hours.
A master services agreement (MSA) is a framework contract setting the general legal and commercial terms between a client and a provider. Individual projects are then added through shorter statements of work.
Post-launch support is the work of keeping software running, secure and improving after release. It covers bug fixes, monitoring, updates, user help and small enhancements.
Staff augmentation supplies engineers who work under your direction; managed services hands an ongoing function to a provider bound by service levels. One buys capacity, the other buys a running outcome with defined accountability.
Vendor management is selecting, contracting, monitoring and reviewing outside suppliers so they deliver what was agreed at acceptable cost and risk. For technology buyers it spans staffing providers, development partners, and cloud and software vendors.
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