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Does Remote Network Monitoring Go Far Enough?

Posted by Sean Kline on Thu, Feb 28, 2013 @ 02:34 PM

A client shared with me something that happened to him while he was on vacation in the Mayan ruins of Mexico. He received a call from his remote network monitoring agency while he was in the middle of those ruins, because one of his servers was down. He looked at this from the point of view that this call was awesome, because now he could get it fixed and his network monitoring provider was able to reach him wherever he was. Or he could have taken a step back and thought to himself: “Why did I even have to get called in the first place?”

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Topics: small business it support, Remote Network Monitoring, proactive problem solving

IT Strategy - Improving Efficiency in the New Year

Posted by Shadra Bruce on Wed, Feb 06, 2013 @ 07:57 AM

How do your employees communicate and collaborate? Is the level of functionality in your office working so that everyone's best talents are put to use, especially yours? Although most small business owners are initially successful because (by being clever and intrepid) they can 'do everything', it also means that owners tend to take on all the responsibilities, working tirelessly to increase profits by whatever means necessary. This usually results in long days, as you struggle to pull yourself ahead while your true talents for networking, leadership and sales get pushed aside. Needless to say, this isn't the most efficient way to use your time.

Encourage Individual Strengths

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Topics: small business it support, small business solutions, IT infrastructure, Security, IT Strategy

4 Tips to Improve Small Business IT Support Services

Posted by Sean Kline on Wed, Jan 30, 2013 @ 10:01 AM

In order for any small business to thrive, it needs to have an IT process that is capable of being both proactive and adaptable. Asset Management, Backup and Disaster Recovery, Proactive Process and a Security Process are some areas that can greatly reduce potential risks, lost productivity and improve return on capital investment. These are just a few examples of processes that need to be executed to generate results.

Asset Management

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Topics: small business it support, Online Backup, Disaster Recovery, IT Security, Asset Management, IT best practices, IT infrastructure

Small Business IT Support Services: Why You Need an IT Process

Posted by Sean Kline on Thu, Jan 17, 2013 @ 11:15 AM

As a small to medium business (SMB), your IT infrastructure plays a critical role in your overall strategy. The least expensive way to run technology is through process, but the problem is that it is difficult for the average small and medium business to develop an effective IT process, because of the extensive skills, tools and resources required.  It takes a village - one that can be amortized across a broad customer base to gain sufficient economies of scale to make it cost-effective.

There are a dozen different technology areas in which an organization needs expertise in order to effectively execute a technology process for a small business, so it is very difficult for an SMB to have a dedicated IT person with all of these skills. An IT process is not simply a static list of to-dos that, once-completed, is shelved. The firm you choose to help you develop and implement your IT process should understand that the process is a living, breathing, dynamic outline of your approach to IT, ensuring that your IT infrastructure is aligned with your business goals, that you are proactively addressing the challenges of your business using best practices, and that you have a clear idea about the true cost of IT. Your IT process has to be dynamic and changing because technology and your business are always changing.

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Topics: Small Business IT Resources, small business it support, small business solutions, true IT costs, small business IT infrastructure, IT infrastructure

Small Business Solutions: Making the Pain End

Posted by Sean Kline on Fri, Nov 30, 2012 @ 08:36 AM

When you have a headache, you might just take some aspirin and be confident that it will go away. But what happens when you keep getting the same headache over and over? Do you keep taking an aspirin, or do you try to find out what is causing the headaches and solve the root cause of your problems?

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Topics: small business it support, small business solutions, IT infrastructure investment

Small Business IT Management: What Your IT Person Could Be Doing

Posted by Sean Kline on Tue, Oct 30, 2012 @ 09:03 AM

As the needs of your small business evolve, your employees within your company are often required to evolve as well – even if that means doing jobs within the company that they were not hired to do or trained to do – like performing IT functions. How would your small business benefit if your IT people were doing what they were trained to do instead of managing IT and putting out IT-related fires? 

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Topics: Small Business IT Resources, small business it support, small business IT infrastructure, IT best practices

Small Business IT Solutions: The Fundamental Flaw of an SLA

Posted by Sean Kline on Tue, Sep 18, 2012 @ 07:49 AM

Leading IT managed service providers are proactive solutions providers who partner with your business to implement IT best practices as a function of meeting your business goals. What sets leading IT managed service providers apart is their ability to be more than ingredient providers. Ingredient providers offer a specific component to meet a particular need often in a reactive manner. They may focus on fixing problems as they arise, akin to functioning as a fire fighter armed with nothing more than a fire extinguisher. Leading IT managed service providers operate under the assumption that IT is a tool leveraged by the business to meet its goals. Rather than waiting for a fire, they install a sprinkler system overhead to minimize any potential issues in the form of IT best practices.

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Topics: Small Business IT Resources, small business it support, IT Managed Services, small business IT infrastructure

It’s Not about IT Management but about Implementing Best Practices

Posted by Sean Kline on Fri, Aug 17, 2012 @ 11:21 AM

There are a number of IT services that offer to audit your business and identify your IT issues. You should be careful about jumping in to do an IT audit without understanding its purpose. The issues an audit identifies  – antivirus issues, spam issues, server issues, security risks – are symptoms of an IT infrastructure that is out of alignment. The natural reaction for any business owner will be to fix those issues. However, implementing an IT process that aligns IT to the business at the lowest overall cost solves not only the symptoms but the underlying cause: taking a reactive vs. proactive approach to IT management.

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Topics: small business it support, Managed IT Services, IT best practices, IT infrastructure investment

Improve Small Business IT Infrastructure to Reduce Downtime

Posted by Sean Kline on Sat, Jun 23, 2012 @ 03:26 PM

How many business owners are familiar with the intricacies of small business IT infrastructure? Many business owners understand the results they want, but they don't have the time to properly analyze their IT infrastructure. They set their focus on business growth and relationship development, often ignoring the risks associated with having poor IT services.

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Topics: Small Business IT Resources, small business it support, IT Managed Services, small business IT infrastructure

The Benefits of IT Managed Services

Posted by Sean Kline on Fri, Jun 08, 2012 @ 12:44 PM

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Topics: small business it support, Managed IT Services, IT Managed Services, IT best practices

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