Suffolk Computer Consultants, Inc. Blog

If there’s one thing that’s true for any business, it’s this: variety is the enemy of stability. This is especially true in the world of technology, where complexity creates more problems for networks than it solves. If your aim for your operations is consistency, then it starts with a process called standardization.

It’s common for business owners to view technology costs as an annoying utility bill rather than money that could be the first step in a strategy to rapidly grow their business. There is a massive difference between spending money to tread water and spending money to swim faster, however. To determine if your current IT budget is a drain or a driver, there are some questions you will need to ask. Here are some:

This time of year is known for its traditions, from the foods we eat to the rituals we carry out, and the songs we sing. In light of this, we wanted to put together a managed IT-friendly version to get into the spirit.

Does your business view its IT as just another necessary expense? Many small businesses think of IT as a simple box to check, a cost center that eats into profits and breaks down too frequently to actually yield a return on investment. We have news for you; modern IT management gives you a means not only to maintain the status quo, but to grow into a business that remains competitive in the long term.

As a business owner, you understand the need for harmony and efficiency. Whether it's the smooth operation of your supply chain, the flow of customers through your store, or the synchronization of your sales and marketing teams, when everything works together, your business sings.

Now, apply that same principle to the invisible but vital engine of your modern company: Information Technology (IT).

Many organizations are fortunate enough to have an in-house IT department, but even the best teams can get overwhelmed. A small staff might be buried in daily maintenance, leaving little time to implement new, innovative solutions. If you're looking to upgrade your IT infrastructure, a great place to start is with a network audit. This is a detailed review that helps you identify what's working well and what needs to be improved.

When your business is operating the way it should, it can feel like a well-oiled machine. Unfortunately though, the second something goes wrong, it starts spitting and sputtering, and before you know it, operations are impacted to the point where you’re left wondering what to do next. If you’re constantly reacting to server crashes, downtime, and data loss, you’re not running a business—you’re prolonging the inevitable, and that’s not serving you or your customers the way they deserve.

The term data center might sound like something only large corporations need to worry about, but in reality, this is far from the truth. What exactly is a data center, and why is it increasingly vital for small and medium-sized businesses (SMBs) like yours?

You know what they say: “Don’t make a promise that you can’t keep.” Making promises to your clients and customers can be a sticky business, and we all know that IT can be a bit unpredictable, making promises difficult to manage. Still, we’re confident that we can promise the following three guarantees for your business.

Who makes the decisions related to technology for your business? If you’re the one calling the shots, can you honestly say you have all the knowledge necessary to make informed decisions regarding your technology infrastructure’s future? If the answer is “no,” we’ve got just the service for you: a virtual CIO.

Now that the holidays have passed and are winding down, you may need to phase out some of your old technology to make room for the new. Maybe you’re looking to the new year as an opportunity to upgrade some of the tech your business uses. In either case, it is essential to dispose of your old tools responsibly and sustainably.

One of the most challenging parts of running a modern business is securing it from today’s growing list of threats. If you don’t take cybersecurity seriously, there is a real risk that your business will be the next local or national headline about the dangers of cybersecurity issues. One of the easiest ways to prevent yourself from becoming another statistic is to hire a security consultant.

Nobody likes getting big, unexpected bills from tech companies—neither the business owners who have to pay them nor the employees who might feel responsible for causing them. Small businesses face a tough choice: spend money to keep employees productive or save money and deal with slowdowns.

By now, you know that every business needs to prioritize its entire security footprint, including technology. The security technology used in businesses today has a huge effect on the overall security of an organization. This means that you have to have a coordinated effort that allows your security initiatives to consider your business’ IT. In today’s blog, we’ll show you how effective organizations consolidate their security using IT.

One sure sign of a healthy business is that it is growing—possibly to the point that your office space seems less and less spacious. Time to move!

But not so fast: what about your IT infrastructure? Are you prepared to move it? How does one even begin to do that?

You might wonder how your business can possibly stand up to the countless cybersecurity threats out there, as even with training for your employees, it seems likely that something bad will happen eventually. This defeatist attitude isn’t necessarily productive, and it’s actually one that your team might embody if you don’t frame your training in the right way. Let’s look at some ways you should not bring up cybersecurity training and why you might be inadvertently sinking your successes.

When a business goes into action to improve itself, it typically goes into the process thinking that whatever changes it makes can significantly affect how it functions. Unfortunately, this isn’t always the case. Today, we’ll discuss how professional consultants provide a perspective that can revolutionize how your business operates.

Most of us know that Santa Claus lives at the North Pole, but fewer know that he’s specifically built his big castle and workshop someplace called the Laughing Valley. There, he and all the elves, sprites, pixies, and fairies that help him make his toys live and work to give the children of the world their presents each year.

All that being the case, even Santa and his team need a little help every once in a while.

Running a business is rarely easy. There are a lot of moving parts that require attention and there are only so many hours in the day to get everything done. As technology professionals, we often notice that small business owners can do themselves a disservice by not truly understanding their business—whether that be by having delusions of grandeur or by not having the proper perspective that would allow them to do more to build sustained and consistent prosperity. In this week’s blog we take a look at some of the ways that business owners hinder their chance of success.

We could (and usually do) talk about managed services all day long…and to be honest, it’s easy to do, just because there are so many ways that they benefit a business. Today, we wanted to focus our attention on one specific benefit that managed services offer: the inherent proactivity they feature.