Directive Blogs

Do you ever feel at home in your business’ server room? That is, assuming you have a server room, and it’s more than just a stuffy closet in an isolated part of your office. If you’re not confident that you can provide your servers with the management, maintenance, and monitoring they need, we recommend you work with a managed IT company to ensure you get the most value you can from your server units.

The big thing in business computing is AI, or artificial intelligence, and businesses are implementing it to solve a lot of repetitive problems that free up their employees to serve other roles. One such area is for IT support. But is it worth it to chat with a robot when something as important as IT is on the line?

Any computer issue you have can be extremely frustrating, but when something happens you should know you’re not alone. There are a few things that anyone that uses a computer has dealt with. This month, we take a look at three extremely common technical problems people deal with and what to do about them.

Technology is a big part of how businesses run today, but that also makes them prime targets for cyberattacks. These attacks can shut down operations and steal sensitive data. Let’s look at five common cybersecurity issues businesses deal with:

Computer problems can be super frustrating, especially when they slow you down while working. Many times, it is something that can be fixed quickly, but then there are issues that an experienced IT professional has to address. Let’s take a look at some of the most common computer problems professionals run into.

Every business relies on technology to function. Some wouldn’t be able to deliver any value to their customers without it, while others would be severely hindered if they suffered a data breach. For this reason, cybersecurity has to be a priority. In today’s blog, we will discuss five issues that business owners run into that can muddle their cybersecurity efforts.

Nobody likes getting large support bills from technology companies—especially when they are unexpected. This is the case for both the business owners footing the bill and the employees who might be held responsible for racking up the bill in the first place. This puts SMBs in a bit of an impossible situation; either spend money to keep employees productive, or save money and suffer from productivity issues.

It’s natural for businesses to rely on their tools, like IT, to achieve success, but if you don’t take care of your systems, it could lead to downtime. You can bypass many of these challenges with the right approach to technology maintenance. We want to highlight some of the proactive methods you can use to keep downtime to a minimum.

Technology allows businesses to leverage high-impact practices, but only if that technology works the way it’s supposed to. Even simple issues with network connectivity problems, outdated technology, and cybersecurity can impact operations. The key to a successful technology deployment is understanding where potential disruptions could occur and taking measures to proactively address them ahead of time.

Most businesses rely on their technology. However, a failure to manage that technology can lead to significant financial waste and operational inefficiencies. One major way a business can waste money is through over-investment in unnecessary or overly complex IT infrastructure. Let’s briefly examine how companies waste their money on technology and how to identify if technology is working for your business. 

IT support is essential for businesses, but traditional on-site support can be expensive and inefficient.

Thankfully, remote IT support, such as that offered through managed services, is now available. This is a game-changer for small to medium-sized businesses. Let's explore the benefits of remote IT support.

Technology is a major pain point for just about all businesses, whether you’re a small mom-and-pop store or a medium-sized (and quickly growing) name in your community. You’ll always have the technology to upkeep, from computers and servers to software solutions or point-of-sale registers. This month, we want to discuss how managed IT solutions can help you maximize your resources by offering a simple, easy, and cost-effective alternative to hiring multiple in-house technicians.

Small and medium-sized businesses (SMBs) face the challenge of managing complex IT systems with very limited resources. Enter managed service providers, or MSPs, the guardians of IT that can help your business stay ahead of the game. An MSP's approach to IT support delivery offers many benefits that traditional IT support and even an in-house team might struggle to match.

Let's delve into three compelling reasons why our innovative approach is best for your IT support needs, especially if you want to scale up and streamline operations.

We love to highlight how technology helps businesses thrive, particularly small and medium-sized businesses with a lot of growth potential but limited by their budgets. This is why we provide SMBs with managed IT services specifically designed to drive business growth. If you have yet to consider outsourcing your IT needs, you could be missing out on a golden opportunity to alleviate many of the pain points your organization suffers from on a daily basis.

Among IT professionals, an acronym is sometimes used when discussing certain issues and challenges: “PEBKAC,” or Problem Exists Between Keyboard And Chair. In other words, user error. 

Do you have employees who struggle with their technology? Chances are that there will always be individuals who are not as proficient with it as you might expect, and without a dedicated IT resource to ask for assistance, they might get frustrated and disengage with their work. You need to provide the right support to your employees, and you’re in luck; we have just the right solution to your problems: a help desk!

The entire premise of managed IT services is that they can save your business money, but in what specific ways does working with us make your budget more predictable? It’s really quite simple, and it encompasses three primary pillars: an established level of service, proactive maintenance and management, and the reliability and access to expertise that might otherwise put a stopper on your business’ potential.

All organizations rely on their information systems to be consistently available when required, with some businesses being unable to function without them. When these systems undergo necessary maintenance, such as software patches, it can pose challenges for employees who rely on their continuous availability. In this discussion, we delve into the proactive approach to IT maintenance, exploring its strategic benefits in preventing downtime for businesses.

It’s an unfortunate fact that all businesses will inherently face some threats during their operations. That’s inescapable. From cyberattacks to natural disasters to good, old-fashioned accidents, you’re liable to face no small risk. This risk makes a process known as risk mitigation so critical for all businesses to undergo with some regularity.

Let’s review a few aspects of creating and maintaining a dependable risk mitigation strategy.

This goes out to all the business owners, managers, department heads, and other leaders in the workplace who have to field user complaints and issues.

Being in this position can be hard, because you often have to say no. No, we can’t change the timeline or increase the budget for this project. No, we can’t do XYZ that way because it would break compliance. No, we can’t get new hardware/software in until we get it approved in the budget. Repeat ad nauseam.