ThinkTech IT Blog

Large organizations are not the only ones that need technology to compete in their respective markets. Companies of all sizes prioritize operational efficiency, but not all of them are equally equipped to sustain it. Small and medium-sized businesses (SMBs) may have limited IT resources and quickly fall behind in updates and network management, putting them at risk of an outage or breach.

Determine if ThinkTech IT is a Fit for Your Business

If your business is experiencing growth, you might find yourself at a turning point where you must decide whether to hire a full-time IT professional, expand departments, or turn to a managed services provider (MSP). Outsourcing your IT needs to ThinkTech IT lightens your load, slashes expense, and offers you numerous services that can range from round-the-clock monitoring to security to help desk support. Considering all these productivity-boosting features, you probably still want to know if you would get the value for your money. It all boils down to cost versus profit.

A common barrier to investing in a partnership with an MSP comes down to your internal IT staff who may worry about the security of their in-house tasks. In reality, few companies have the in-house bandwith to manage all the technology functions that ThinkTech IT could handle. For example, keeping up with compliance and regulatory demands could be challenging for SMBs because their focus is on driving down operational costs, strengthening customer relationships, and improving financial management.

One of the biggest challenges for businesses, however, is putting the right people and resources on value-adding projects. With the lack of available investment funds and resources, it becomes difficult to ensure that their talent is focused on core areas while optimizing productivity. The gap between managing their IT environment and business processes becomes bigger without proper and constant support.

The increasing dependence on automated systems and digital databases calls for a shift toward a more secure and efficient system, which we can provide. Other than achieving greater operational efficiencies, here are some financial benefits of our managed IT services:

1. Control IT costs

Outsourcing means your fixed IT costs will be converted to variable costs allowing you to budget effectively and allot resources efficiently. In other words, you’ll only pay for what you use when you need it.

We will also help you offset initial investments on technology costs that include expensive upfront hardware and software costs. And because you'll be paying a fixed monthly fee, you'll eliminate exorbitant capital expenditure. You’ll also get regular software updates, which keeps everything secure and up-to-date.

2. Quickly adapt and implement new technology

ThinkTech IT has the resources to help you start new projects right away. Handling the same projects in-house could take weeks or months, especially if you need to hire and train people and provide the support they need. ThinkTech IT has experts for every aspect of your IT needs, such as hardware, cloud databases, and cybersecurity.

We also bring years of experience, saving time and money. This includes web-based platforms like cloud computing and data backup systems that ensure better functionality and administration of your shareable content, and the maintenance of safe operations.

3. Reduce labor costs

Training IT staff can be costly. Additionally, temporary employees or interns don’t always live up to your expectations. With ThinkTech IT, you can focus your human resources where you need them most.

4. Increase efficiency and competitiveness

Maintaining a strictly in-house IT department can entail higher research, development, and implementation time. Furthermore, it makes it increasingly difficult for employees to focus on their primary tasks.

With ThinkTech IT, both technical and non-technical employees are able to manage their time better and work more efficiently, without being distracted by day-to-day tasks. We have the expertise and have a software and hardware stack that fits your needs. This eliminates the need to perform the research and development of a solution.

5. Improved vendor management

Our team can deal with vendors on your behalf, which means issues are escalated and resolved promptly. They will serve as your main point of contact for third parties, deal with problems, and track process with the appropriate vendor through to resolution. Having a single trusted IT partner streamlines operations and avoids burdening an employee with tasks that could be better dealt with by a subject matter expert.

How to get started

Our professional IT consultants will address your business’s short and long-term technical and operational pain points and will help you stay responsive and competitive. They’ll also proactively explore and identify trends and enhancements for improvement. Considering outsourcing your IT services? Contact us now and our technicians will walk you through your needs.

As a business owner today, you are now facing unprecedented challenges to help deal with the coronavirus pandemic. You are asked to self-isolate and practice social distancing to “flatten the curve.” You are asked to allow your employees to work from home to reduce possible exposure and slow the spread of COVID-19.

These are all reasonable requests. However, as a business owner you also need to maximize productivity, bring in revenue and try to grow your business in these demanding times. How can you accomplish these goals when your office is now a ghost town and productivity has fallen off a cliff?

The answer lies in setting up your office to function remotely. If you’ve never implemented a work-from-home policy before, it may seem like a whole different world. Managing an entirely remote workforce goes far beyond giving your employees a laptop and reminding them to check in every once in a while. After all, there are many factors most business owners haven’t ever had to consider, such as:

• What technologies do I need?
• How can my employees work from home without compromising the security of our network?
• How can I make this new work environment as easy, comfortable and productive as possible?

We understand these are unique times. We know that “business as usual” is going to be quite different for an undetermined amount of time. But together we can help you adjust to today’s new normal by giving you the tools, technologies and insights to create a secure and productive work-from-home business environment. Here are three important considerations to getting you set up and running a successful work-from-home business:

1. Don’t allow employees to use home computers or devices. Their mindset may be, “Well, I’m working from home so I may as well use my home computer.” This is a dangerous mistake. Our team works hard to ensure your company computers and network are secure and protected from malware, viruses and cyber-attacks. Their home computers and devices could be littered with tons of downloaded music, videos, images and more. Because it’s more exposed, it can invite malware into your network. Rather, provide a company-approved and secured computer/laptop for employees to use at home.

2. Secure their WiFi access point. Without a secure WiFi access point, you’re essentially leaving a back door open to hackers. That’s because WiFi signals are often broadcast far beyond your employees’ homes and out into streets. Yes, drive-by hacking is popular among cybercriminals today. A few tips for securing your employees’ WiFi access points:

• Use stronger encryption and a more complex password
• Hide your network name
• Use a firewall

These security measures are not difficult to set up. But if you have any questions or need assistance, we will be happy to help get your employees set up remotely.

3. Use a two-factor authentication VPN. VPN stands for virtual private network. It’s essentially a private, encrypted tunnel that goes direct to your IT network in your office. Ideally, you’ll want your VPN to support two-factor authentication. This means it’s doubly secure because your employees will need to call in to access the network. If you don’t have a VPN for your employees to use, you can consider other services, such as GoToMyPC or Zoho. While these products are not as secure, at least they keep your home network from being exposed.

As business owners ourselves, we too are having to pivot and work differently than we ever have before. However, because we have the technology and infrastructure in place, we are still surprisingly productive.

Our team wants to help your business survive and thrive during today’s unique environment. If you and your IT team need extra hands right now…or solutions to help your employees work SECURELY from home…we have software tools, expert staff and resources we’d like to offer you to keep your business as productive as possible.

Here’s a link to our booking page if you wish to book a quick 10- to 15-minute call to discuss: https://www.thinktechit.com/free-consultation 

Please know that this is not a sales call but simply an outreach to help a fellow business stay afloat.

In a matter of just a few short weeks, we have gone from living how we’ve always lived to changing just about everything we do. Schools are out for weeks if not months. Cruises have stopped sailing, and air transportation may be next. Bars and restaurants are closing, sporting events are nonexistent and so many people are now unemployed. If you watch the news or follow social media and see the number of infected keep rising, you can’t help but wonder when (or if) life will return to normal.

As a result of these unprecedented life changes in such a short amount of time, so many people today are frozen in fear. They don’t know what they can do and what they can’t do. They’re numb, fearful and questioning everything.

I believe that the accomplished and determined business owners in our world are facing a unique brand of fears: Will I lose sales and revenue due to the coronavirus? What if I have to lay people off? How can I keep my team and keep them working hard? How will I continue to provide for my family? How long will this last?

Here are five steps you can start taking now to stop being frozen in fear and move forward with your business, your family and living your life.

Step #1: Communicate Often.

You should make an effort to constantly communicate with all of your stakeholders. From your employees to your customers to your partners and vendors, stay in communication with them to share how your business is doing and how you can continue to serve them.

While in-person visits may not be ideal at this time, you can always resort to the good ol’ phone, e-mail, videos or webinars. You can bet that if your customers aren’t hearing from you, they are hearing from your competitors.

Step #2: Be a Valuable Resource.

While money is always important, now is the time to be a trusted resource and friend to your clients and prospects. People today need bold solutions. If you’re actively bringing solutions to your clients, you become a valuable resource. If they’re simply writing a check and never hearing from you – especially in today’s environment – you’ll be first on the chopping block when they have to cut expenses.

Step #3: Lean on People.

It’s ironic that the one time we need people more than ever before, we are supposed to socially distance ourselves and stay in our homes. Through video conferencing and web conferencing, work together with your team, your partners and your Accountability Groups to lean on one another. Because nobody has gone through anything like this before, nobody has all the answers. But as a collective group, you will find most every answer you need.

Step #4: Be MORE Than a Businessperson.

They may be your employees, your colleagues and your clients. But they are PEOPLE first. And just about everyone you interact with in your business world has endless stresses when the workday is done. Their kids are home from school all day getting into who knows what. They’re worried about going to the supermarket and if there will be meat and toilet paper. They’re concerned about keeping themselves and their family healthy.

When your clients and prospects start to see you not just as an IT services provider, but as a friend and someone who truly cares, that’s when they want to do business with you for life.

Step #5: Be Informed But Not Obsessed.

People were glued to their TVs for weeks after 9/11. As a result, although they were informed, they were also more stressed, depressed and fearful. Don’t do that to yourself. Yes, it’s prudent to know how to “flatten the curve” and protect your family, but watching too much news or social media right now can dominate your thinking and actions. That can negatively impact your business.

During this otherworldly pandemic, it’s good to have a little fear. To keep us safe. To keep us making good decisions. However, if you want to ensure your business is stable and growing, to help your family cope and get through this, you should take these steps to rise above the fear.

If you need immediate IT support or if you need help in setting your business up so your employees can work remotely from home, contact us today at 888-574-6365.

The world is slowing down during this COVID-19 pandemic. Wall Street is being hit hard. People are no longer going out. We’re told to quarantine or self-isolate and not engage in groups.

You can bet there’s one group that’s not slowing down at all. In fact, they’re probably working overtime while the rest of us have our lives turned upside down. Cybercriminals and hackers know there’s no better time to strike than during a global crisis. While you are distracted and spending your time trying to make sense of this new normal, they are finding new ways into your IT network so they can steal data and passwords, compromise your clients’ private information and even demand large ransoms.

Cybercrime is already on the rise and is expected to cause $6 TRILLION in damages by 2021! But, if history repeats itself, hackers will be out in full force throughout this coronavirus scare. We fully expect in the upcoming weeks that headlines will change from stories about COVID-19 to accounts of a frenzy of cyber-attacks on corporations and small businesses.

Here are solutions you can implement now to help protect your business data, money and productivity:

1. Be more suspicious of incoming e-mails.

Because people are scared and confused right now, it’s the perfect time for hackers to send e-mails with dangerous malware and viruses. At this moment, your in-box is probably filled with “COVID-19” subject lines and coronavirus-focused e-mails. Always carefully inspect the e-mail and make sure you know the sender. There’s a cdc-gov e-mail address out there now that’s not legitimate and is spamming in-boxes across the country.

Avoid clicking links in the e-mail unless it’s clear where they go. And you should never download an attachment unless you know who sent it and what it is. Communicate these safeguards to everyone on your team, especially if they are working from home.

2. Ensure your work-from-home computers are secure.

Another reason we expect a rise in cyber-attacks during this pandemic is the dramatic increase in employees working from home. Far too many employers won’t think about security as their team starts working at the kitchen table. That’s a dangerous precedent.

First, make sure your employees are not using their home computers or devices when working. Second, ensure your work-at-home computers have a firewall that’s turned on. Finally, your network and data are not truly secure unless your employees utilize a VPN (virtual private network). If you need help in arranging your new work-from-home environment, we would be happy to get your entire team set up.

3. Improve your password strategy.

During crises like the one we are all facing right now, your passwords could mean the difference between spending your time relearning how to grow your business and trying to recoup finances and private data that’s been hacked. Make a point now to reevaluate your passwords and direct your team to create stronger passwords.

Also, while it’s so convenient to save your passwords in your web browser, it also lessens your security. Because web browsers simply require their own password or PIN to access saved passwords, a skilled hacker can bypass this hurdle. Once they access your saved passwords, they can steal as much as they want – credit card information, customers’ private data and more!

Instead, you should consider a password manager to keep all of your passwords in one place. These password managers feature robust security. A few options are [LastPass, 1Password and Keeper Security Password Manager].

You, your team and your family have enough to concern yourselves with in regards to staying healthy, living a more isolated lifestyle and keeping your business strong. There’s no need to invite in more problems by letting your computer and network security slide during these times.

If you need additional security advice or would like to have a consultation to discuss how to keep your data safe, simply connect with us today! You can always reach us at 888-574-6365.

Working from home poses various risks to your company, its data, and its livelihood.  Although your employees may have the best of intentions, establishing a Work From Home Policy reduces these risks by providing them a clear set of guidelines and procedures.

You should consult with an IT expert, along with your HR attorney, to develop your Work From Home Policy.  At minimum, it should include these items:

• How remote workers are approved
• What physical security measures are necessary for at-home workspaces
• Requirements for maintaining online security, such as passwords and cloud file-sharing
• Use of a VPN to connect to company networks
• Acceptable Use Policy (AUP) of company devices
• Procedure for reporting incidents

Want more tips for setting up safe Work From Home networks? Check out our Free Tech Support Offer blog post or learn more at our Understanding IT Resource Center. 

Of course, if you have an immediate IT need, you can always reach us at 888-574-6365.