Computerware Blog

How does your business manage its technology solutions? If you’re like most small businesses, you likely have limited technology maintenance, and not necessarily due to any fault on your part. Small businesses have limited budgets and resources available to them, making technology maintenance less accessible. Thankfully, managed services are here to make sure that you never settle for less than what your organization needs.

IT support is one of the most important parts of any modern business simply because it’s just not feasible to run a business without any form of technology at its core. For example, most businesses rely on email and other forms of communication, whereas stores might require access to a point-of-sale software to sell their wares. Either way, it’s critical to the success of most businesses, and where there’s technology, there is bound to be someone who needs to manage and maintain it.

Every business will face a major technology problem at one time or another. Whether it is because your server just decided to quit on you, or you have received a not-so-friendly worded letter telling you to stop using a piece of software, managing technology for a whole organization is difficult. In cases like this, partnering with a managed service provider can be a real benefit. If you are going to choose to outsource some or all of your IT management to a provider, you will likely have to sign a service level agreement (SLA). Today, we look at the purpose of a SLA and how it works to benefit both parties of the agreement.

It’s not unheard of for organizations to experience immense technological trouble that brings future potential problems into question. Surprises like these can spell trouble for businesses that are unprepared, especially considering the major damage it could cause to your budget. This forces you to ask yourself if you know what your current plan for IT covers, and what you want your provider to do to eliminate unexpected billing surprises.

Does your organization have trouble managing and maintaining its technology? Usually, this responsibility falls to an IT department, but this assumes that you actually have one. Furthermore, it’s easy for an IT department to be so busy with maintaining the state of things that they don’t have time to innovate and improve operations. What’s a business owner to do?

When You’re Stuck Between a Rock and a Hard Place
Technology isn’t something that lasts forever. It either has to be replaced periodically, or repaired and upgraded to ensure functionality in the long run. Of course, this becomes borderline impossible if the people in charge of IT maintenance must continuously accept phone calls and support requests and constantly put out fires. Eventually, you’ll start to suffer from systems that are inadequate, which creates even more problems.

In the end, you’ll just wind up working around issues until they become too severe to avoid. You’ll be forced into two possible situations: 1) Upgrade regardless of what situation your IT budget is in, or 2) Limit your organization’s potential by using inefficient equipment. At this point, you can’t ignore it any longer and you’ll be forced to either upgrade your equipment, or sacrifice functionality.

Managed IT to the Rescue!
Thankfully, you can keep your technology from even getting to this point by implementing managed IT services. With a managed service provider (MSP), you can make sure that your IT budget never gets busted again by premature hardware failure or unexpected maintenance. MSPs are capable of either supplementing or acting as a fully functional IT department for your organization.

If you need IT support, look no further. MSPs can act as a help desk solution. Do you need to implement new hardware? MSPs cover that, too. Whether you want to create a roadmap to implement new solutions, or you want to make incremental monthly investments for preventative maintenance, MSPs can help you improve the way your organization handles IT-related troubles.

Furthermore, if you have an IT department that’s overburdened, Computerware can assist them with the needful. If it’s handling support requests or implementing new and innovative solutions, we can help. All you have to do is give us a call. We can work out a service level agreement that details exactly what your business needs, and the rest will be history--just like your IT troubles!

To learn more about managed IT services, reach out to us at (703) 821-8200.

Business owners have a lot to worry about. However, keeping workstations, server units, mobile devices, and various software solutions in good working order doesn’t have to be a concern--that is, if you outsource these responsibilities to the right IT professionals.

Does your business understand the importance of having a long-term IT budget? Your organization needs to be privy to the latest technology trends, which can change drastically depending on the year’s developments. Does your budget take into account the current value (or lack thereof) of your organization’s technology assets? Do you think about where you want to be in the future? If this sounds like too much to handle, the consulting service of an IT professional will provide you with an accurate plan.

Contrary to popular belief, small businesses are at just as much risk of experiencing technological problems as large enterprises. Naturally, the more technology that is implemented in an office, the more likely you are to experience hardware failure or compatibility issues. Data distribution can get more difficult, and accessibility can become a major pain point. How can you optimize the efficiency of your IT resources without exposing your business to risks?

One of the best ways you can manage your technology is through the use of outsourced IT services from Computerware. Our professional technicians are skilled in the management and maintenance of technology. Here are some of the major services that we offer, and what they can do for your organization.

Remote Monitoring and Maintenance
It’s a fact that most of the problems that happen with your technology can be resolved without waiting for a technician to arrive on-site. Managed IT allows your business to get the service that you need without going too out of your way for it. When you don’t have to worry about on-site visits, you’re more free to focus on other aspects of your business while IT is busy looking into the issue. We can apply patches and security updates remotely, and minimize downtime, so that you can focus on running your business.

Securing Your Network
One of the critical parts of managing sensitive and proprietary data is protecting it from data breaches and security threats. At this moment, there are countless threats on the Internet that can take advantage of the Internet of Things, along with ransomware, can put your business through the gauntlet. Thankfully, a comprehensive tool called a Unified Threat Management (UTM) solution can mitigate this threat by preventing infections in the first place.

Cloud Hosting
There’s no logical reason to host your data on-site when you can have us host it off-site. This is great for two reasons: 1) You won’t have to use precious time from your workday to maintain the hardware, and 2) You don’t have to add new salaries to your budget to get quality IT support. Chances are that you don’t have an in-house IT department, so knowing that your data is being managed by experienced technicians is more important than ever. Computerware can manage your organization’s data on our own servers so you don’t have to worry about it.

BDR (Backup and Disaster Recovery)
If you suddenly lost access to all of your data, or if it disappeared in an instant, what would you do? It could be next year, or next month, or even tomorrow. Whenever an untimely hardware failure or natural disaster strikes, you’ll want to be able to recover quickly. Downtime can drag your business down and have effects that persist for months, as you’ll need to replace hardware and recover critical data; a process that can take anywhere from a few hours to several days. With BDR, however, you can quickly and efficiently restore your data at a moment’s notice. Your business will be able to withstand data loss caused by natural disasters, user error, hacking attacks, and even hardware failure.

Is it time for a change in the way your business manages technology? If so, look no further than Computerware. To learn more, reach out to us at (703) 821-8200.

Think of your business technology like a car. Sure, it’s a great way from getting from one location to another, but if it breaks down, you’re in big trouble financially. Even worse, you’re stuck without a vehicle for a certain amount of time. Can you imagine purchasing new hardware and losing precious productivity due to downtime?

When it comes to making progress on your organization’s future, your IT budget presents your business with a major roadblock. We bet that it would feel great to eliminate the stress associated with your IT budget. Here are three ways that you can plan for your business’s future and keep that IT budget slimmed down.

Managed IT services have become a popular way for small businesses to manage their technology. Yet, there are still organizations that mistakenly think they have reasons to prefer the alternative, break-fix IT. In order to show why managed IT is superior, we want to address the top three reasons why a business would lean toward the break-fix model.

“I’ll save money by only fixing technology when it’s broken.”
While at first this seems to be like a common-sense response, look closer. Repairing broken technology when it’s not working as intended is a clear approach, but it’s also highly inefficient. Technology systems deal heavily with data, and as such, your business could be down for days while attempting to resolve problems and maintain systems. This results in wasteful downtime that can easily be prevented.

Plus, you also have to realize that technology costs much more to purchase outright than it does to repair it. Consider this scenario: you have to replace a server unit or a workstation, but the best hardware is quite expensive, and it’s hard on your budget to replace key components whenever they show the slightest hint of degradation. It makes the most sense to invest in quality hardware and maintain it properly, so as to avoid the costly expenses of purchasing new equipment. This is what managed IT seeks to accomplish, and where break-fix IT falls short.

“My technology doesn’t need maintenance regularly.”
Many organizations might still be under the impression that their technology isn’t used enough to warrant regular maintenance routines. They might say this because they only really use their productivity suite, or the Internet browser. The problem lies in the fact that even these applications need constant patches and updates to stay secure from a myriad of threats. When it comes to hacking attacks, you can’t take any risks. If you’ve never had to deal with a data breach, it can seem awfully tempting to dismiss the possibility of a hacking attack.

Herein lies the issue that constantly plagues businesses. More businesses than ever use the Internet, and nobody who uses it is guaranteed to be safe. Any information that’s stored on an Internet-connected computer can be stolen if you don’t take steps to protect it, like implementing a firewall and antivirus solution.

Furthermore, it becomes of critical importance that your team understand the best practices of cyber security. Does this sound like a lot? Managed services can remotely apply patches and security updates, as well as monitor for intrusions; this goes beyond what the typical break-fix IT company can provide.

“My employees and I can handle IT all by ourselves.”
One of the biggest problems that small businesses have is their limited staff. This leads them to cut corners whenever possible, particularly in the IT department. They might feel that employees can handle maintenance and management just fine, and that by allowing them to perform maintenance themselves, they’re saving money.

The problem here is that you have inexperienced users working with technology that they may, or may not, be familiar with. Doesn’t it make more sense to have seasoned professionals working with your technology? Managed IT lets you focus on your business, rather than your technology maintenance.

For more information about managed IT services, give us a call at (703) 821-8200.

Every business has crucial IT systems that are imperative to its continued functionality. Usually these systems are maintained by an internal IT department, but many small businesses don’t have this luxury. Therefore, they have traditionally relied on break-fix IT companies to handle their technology problems when they hinder operations.