There are numerous factors that business owners or managers of a given organization might be thinking about with regard to their IT support services, from reliability to threat prevention and more. One element that sometimes doesn't get the attention it deserves, but which is extremely important for many entities: Speed.
At Onward Technology, speed is an important quality we're proud to maintain across all our IT support services, from our 24/7 on-demand support team to numerous individual areas your company may require from us. Why is speed important in this realm, and what are some of the value-add areas you'll see from working with support services like ours where speed is a priority? Here's a brief rundown.
One major area where a fast, effective IT support service is key is in the deployment of new technology. Any business looking to keep up with the latest trends and offerings needs to be able to move quickly, and our team can help make that happen.
Whether you need a new server installed and configured, software rolled out to your workforce or any other technical task completed, we're ready to go - fast. This agility can be a huge advantage in today's business world.
Many IT support teams provide 24/7 monitoring and related threat response services. The faster these professionals can act, the less likely you are to experience a data breach or other costly incident.
Onward Technology's team is always on call, and we pride ourselves on our quick response times. In many cases, we're able to thwart an incident before it causes serious damage. This can save your business time and money in the long run.
Another major area where fast, responsive IT support can pay dividends is in the realm of labor. When something goes wrong with your technology, it can often lead to lost productivity as workers scramble to try and fix things.
If you're working with a team that provides quick turnaround times, however, much of this burden is lifted. Workers can focus on their jobs rather than wasting time trying to solve tech issues, and you can get back to business as usual more quickly.
Maintenance of various IT systems and applications is another area where a fast support team can be invaluable. Issues that might otherwise take hours or days to resolve can often be handled much more swiftly with the help of an experienced team.
This can lead to less downtime for your systems and a smoother overall operation. In some cases, it can even help you avoid costly hardware or software upgrades.
When it comes to IT support, speed is key. Our team at Onward Technology understands this and is always ready to help you get the most out of your technology investments. Contact us today to learn more about our services!
With technology and IT services taking on greater importance with each passing year in the business world, more and more businesses are looking for quality IT support services. When you're on this search, it's vital to prioritize the right things in the IT support partner you choose.
At Onward Technology, we're happy to assist clients with a huge range of IT support and managed IT services, from network design and other setup needs through security, cloud storage and numerous other areas. We welcome comparisons of our services to other IT support entities -- both because we want all clients to get the very best solutions for their needs, but also because we're confident that we're the ones to provide them. When you're evaluating prospective IT support agencies, what are the top variables to consider? Here are several.
First and foremost, you don't want to waste your time with an IT support partner that doesn't have a stellar track record and good reputation. Do your research on the company and see what others have had to say about their services. References are always a great way to start, but also take the time to read online reviews and investigate the company's social media presence.
Any partner you're considering should have an extensive track record in the IT space and a portfolio of satisfied clients. They should also have a strong online presence, with positive reviews and social media followers.
Down similar lines, you need to confirm that your IT support agency is fully qualified and up to date on industry certifications. In order to ensure that your data is always safe and compliant with relevant regulations, you'll want to partner with an agency that has regular audits and stays up to date on the latest best practices.
Your prospective IT support partner should have regular audits and be up-to-date on industry certifications. Ask for a copy of their SOC2 report, or of related audit findings.
Naturally, you'll want to confirm that your IT support partner has the requisite technical expertise in order to handle your specific needs. All too often, we see businesses partnering with an agency that is great for certain areas but not so much for others. When you're vetting agencies, ask about their areas of expertise and make sure they line up with your own needs.
You should also ask about the team's experience in supporting your specific software and hardware. Do they have experience working with your particular platforms? What about your company's unique needs? Is the agency prepared to support them?
In addition, there are several benefits to partnering with an IT support agency that shares your company's values and organizational qualities. For one, you'll likely have an easier time communicating with one another and collaborating on projects. Additionally, the team at your IT support partner will better understand your culture and how things work at your company.
Another similar theme to consider is an IT support agency that matches some of your organization's qualities. For instance, if you're a large corporation, you likely want to be working with a large agency. If you're a small business, partnering with a small agency might make more sense.
As you're getting into the technical side of things with a prospective IT partner, one vital area to focus on is their performance benchmarks. You'll want to make sure that they can consistently meet or exceed your performance goals and expectations. Ask about their past results and see what kind of guarantees they can offer you with regards to meeting your targets.
One specific area that's important within this realm is the presence of a service level agreement, or SLA. This document outlines specific performance metrics and expectations from your IT support partner, plus digs into remedies or penalties that will be levied if agreed-upon targets are not hit.
The SLA is a vital tool to ensure that your IT support partner is performing up to par and meeting your expectations.
What good is an IT support partner if they're not there when you need them? Response time is key, and you'll want to make sure that your prospective partner has a solid track record of responding quickly to requests. Ask about their average response time and compare it to your own needs.
Furthermore, you should also be prepared for any potential emergencies. Make sure that your IT support partner has a robust emergency response plan in place, and that their team is available around the clock to help you out in a jam.
As your business grows moving forward, will your IT support partner be able to scale with you? This is an important question to ask, as you'll want to make sure that your agency can handle your expanding needs. Ask about their past experience in supporting businesses of a similar size and scope to your own.
Additionally, you should inquire about their ability to offer remote support. In many cases, agencies will be able to help you out without having to send a team member on-site. This is a valuable option to have, especially if your company is located remotely or has multiple offices across the globe.
Finally, you want to know that you'll be able to communicate effectively with your IT support partner. This includes everything from having regular status meetings to ensuring that the team is responsive and easy to get in touch with. Make sure that their communication style matches your own and that you feel comfortable working with them.
For more on the qualities to evaluate in a prospective IT support partner, or to learn about any of our IT services or managed IT services in Utah, speak to the staff at Onward Technology today.
There are a few different areas of cybersecurity or related practices where businesses may find vulnerabilities they need to protect, and one of these is within the realm of endpoints. The use of endpoint devices among company employees has only increased since the onset of COVID-19, and ensuring that such devices are used safely and with the proper protections for both employees and the company is vital.
At Onward Technology, we're proud to offer a variety of managed IT and tech support services to clients throughout Utah, from many school-based clients to a wide range of others. What do we mean when we talk about endpoints and the need to secure them, and what are several ways we'll assist you with such endpoint protection for your business and its employees? Here's a primer.
When we talk about endpoints for the realm of IT, we're referring to any end-user device that's utilized for business, such as desktop computers, laptops, smartphones and tablets. These devices are used for email usage through a company's Exchange Server (or perhaps even Android for Work), file sharing and storage in network drives like OneDrive or Google Drive, and for all other forms of communication within the organization.
If your employees routinely utilize their own personal devices for work, then they are endpoints, too. Behind the scenes of these devices can be activities that hackers or malware creators can potentially take advantage of, so it's vital to have endpoint protection in place for your organization. With an endpoint management service through Onward Technology, you'll have all manner of assistance related to securing your company's IT endpoints.
Our next several sections will go over some of the top recommendations we typically make to clients when it comes to protecting both themselves and their employees via securing endpoints.
Employees need to be outfitted with a few basic tools to help protect their endpoints, especially if they're using their own devices for any part of the job. Such tools may include:
Beyond these actual programs or services, it's important to help employees understand just how important endpoint security is. They must be made aware that even minor slip-ups in the usage of their devices could potentially get the entire company into trouble -- and may even impact their own personal data if they're using their own machine for work.
Data minimization should be another major consideration for endpoint security, as employees may have access to some sensitive information on their devices that is no longer needed. This is a best practice throughout any industry that relies on IT infrastructure, and decreases the risk of data loss or exposure of such information.
Employees need to know what data is never deleted and why, as well as which files can safely be removed and when. This way, they'll consistently engage in the best practices regarding the deletion of sensitive information from their devices.
There are many parts of this realm that fall under the guise of compliance and regulatory standards, as well. For instance, anti-virus software must be updated regularly to ensure that it is still effective, and the act of updating may even involve repatching malware.
There are also issues of licensing and service agreements, and these must be addressed as well.
One of the endpoint types that tends to be among the largest struggles for businesses today is mobile devices. Even if you're supplying employees with the proper support tools, they may find themselves tempted to use their own phones or tablets for work purposes. While this is great for both convenience and morale, it also creates an extra layer of risk that must be addressed.
One way to do so is by using third-party location services like Google Location Services. This service will allow you to track your employees' mobile devices if they have been lost or stolen, which is a great way for protecting company data in the event of such an incident.
Otherwise, you may need to resort to enforcing a BYOD policy that prohibits employees from bringing their own devices into work for work purposes. While this may seem counter-productive, it does largely reduce the risk of data loss or exposure.
In today's technological landscape, endpoint security is a vital aspect of protecting an organization from potential threats. Even small mistakes from employees regarding their devices may have large implications for the company as a whole if they don't take care to ensure they are properly secured.
For more on how we'll assist you in this area, or to learn about any of our managed IT or other IT services in Utah, speak to the staff at Onward Technology today.
There are numerous benefits that businesses achieve when they hire quality managed IT professionals, from data protection and security to process efficiency and much more. One broad area that sometimes gets forgotten when we're listing all these wide-ranging benefits, but is of paramount importance: Managed IT services save your business money in multiple direct ways.
At Onward Technology, we're proud to provide the very best managed IT services to clients in numerous industries, and of varying sizes. We manage your entire realm of tech support needs, ensuring your business's data is always protected while covering several other important themes. Here are some of the direct ways that utilizing quality managed IT services will help you improve your bottom line.
In many ways, managed IT services serve as alternatives to hiring specific employees for the purpose of tech support. When you, as a small or medium-sized business owner, call your managed IT service provider with an issue that needs solving, you're tapping into the knowledge base and experience of multiple employees who are constantly enriching their skillsets for just this reason.
On the flip side, hiring multiple part-time or full-time employees requires a large commitment of resources on your part, including the associated cost of benefits packages and more. On top of that, you're now faced with managing multiple employees, rather than focusing your attention on maximizing your company's bottom line.
Due to the above, your employee turnover will be limited to just the unavoidable turnover that's experienced in any company of your size. This, in turn, means you won't have to worry about constantly training new employees on your specific systems and business processes. You can be confident that your hourly workers are equipped with the knowledge necessary to handle various tasks, which allows them to work more efficiently even when they're in a new role in the company.
Having your managed services team triage and fix your various IT issues also reduces business disruption caused by problems with technology, allowing you to focus on getting things done instead of waiting for a computer issue to be resolved. This helps reduce turnover even further, as employees are happier when they don't have to spend half their day waiting for a computer problem to be solved.
In addition to reduced business disruption due to IT issues, your employees will experience less downtime as a result of those issues. They no longer have to spend an hour or two trying to solve simple problems on their own, which could lead them to spending that time getting caught up on their other work or taking care of various personal tasks.
This naturally means that your business will experience less downtime, since there are fewer computer problems to take up employee time and attention. This, in turn, reduces the number of employees you have to pay for while they're not working. It all adds up to reduced costs, reduced downtime, and increased productivity for your business.
At Onward Technology, we're proud to provide managed IT services that help businesses of all sizes achieve these goals. If you've been thinking about outsourcing your various tech support needs, or are simply looking to determine if managed services are the best option for your company, get in touch with our team today.
In a number of fields that involve the outsourcing of outside vendors, including IT and tech support areas, the use of what's known as an SLA, or service-level agreement, is common. An SLA lays out all the expectations of the vendor, including any metrics that will define their performance, plus what will happen if these expectations are not met in the proper ways.
At Onward Technology, we're proud to offer a wide range of managed IT and support services to our clients throughout Utah, with programs provided to schools and numerous other organizations. We regularly utilize SLAs as part of our agreements with clients, ensuring you're protected and have legal documentation of our partnership. What are the elements of an SLA our clients should be aware of, and what are some common metrics often included in them? Here's a basic primer.
Typically, there are four sections to a standard SLA:
As we noted above, an SLA will include certain metrics that help track the performance of the provider. Within the world of IT support and managed IT, here are some of the important metrics to consider including:
When determining the specific metrics and KPIs (key performance indicators) to include in an SLA, it's important to be as specific as possible -- without creating confusion regarding what you expect. For example, if you state "time-to-repair will always be less than four hours," what is the basis for that measurement? If we're tracking time from when a user calls in and then gets an answer on their support ticket, that's three different metrics: time to open a case, time to resolve a case, and time to first response.
The goal is always to link back specific SLA performance metrics to the areas of value they're creating within the business. Over time, you should be able to link back your SLAs to these specific benefits, making them invaluable for both you and your provider.
The primary driver of whether your SLA process will be smooth and simple or perhaps more arduous: The vendor you're working with. A quality vendor with a good reputation and a long track record in the industry will allow for a nice, easy process, where you can work together to determine the metrics and KPIs most important to your business.
A provider that has little experience in the IT industry or doesn't have an understanding of what is specific to your organization may not be able to meet that need with ease. If you're experiencing troubles with your current SLA process, it's likely due to issues with the company or entity you're working with -- and you should consider upgrading.
For more on service-level agreements within the IT and tech support world, or to learn about any of our managed IT solutions, speak to the staff at Onward Technology today.
