The Myth of the IT Quick Fix: Part 2

In Part 1 of this series, we saw how IT support staff and contractors play an important role, but typically focus on short-term measures. We also uncovered the hidden dangers of relying only on short term support. Today we learn how the quick fix sabotages our IT infrastructure when purchasing or upgrading systems.

Often, small- to mid-level business (SMB) IT systems (networks, servers, software) are purchased with the idea of solving a specific problem or set of problems. This is a tactical approach that focuses on specific short-term issues rather than supporting a long-term strategic vision. Rarely, if ever, at this level, do the experts that business owners and CEOs rely on to assist with such matters consider the bigger picture. Their job is simply to fulfill your request; not dig down into the inner workings of your business (even if you were willing to share that much detail) and provide you with an optimum solution.

By focusing only on short term objectives, your contractors and vendors are providing another quick fix for your business when they recommend new hardware or software. While these solutions may meet an immediate need, they often fall short when it comes to supporting the long term objectives of your business. As with support, the problems with this approach are: increased cost, lower productivity, and reduced efficiency. Over-time, it limits growth potential, diminishes the value of your business, and contributes to such seemingly unrelated issues as high employee turnover, low customer retention, and slow growth.

Eliminating this risk takes vision and intimate business knowledge. This level of detail is the domain of a C-level executive, but finding such expertise, at a cost that can be justified, is difficult if not impossible. Fortunately, for small- to mid-level business, this role can be filled by a trusted advisor. For many smaller businesses, this advisor can be a C-level executive working part time to take the technology burden from your shoulders, allowing you to focus once again on your business.

To be a trusted advisor, this individual must be willing to work under complete confidentiality, and have no direct ties to outside hardware, software, or support services. Their persona must be that of a full time C-level executive for your business; completely objective, knowledgeable, and supportive of your long term goals and objectives. Someone who speaks your language understands the business issues and offers creative long term solutions that add lasting value to your business rather than drain your budget.

www.techmgmtgroup.com

The Myth of the IT Quick Fix: Part 1

What is the IT quick fix? Sadly, Band-Aids and quick fixes are often status quo for the IT infrastructure of most small- to mid-level businesses. In colloquial terms, it is called bubble gum and bailing wire. It is constantly repairing technology problems without taking a good hard look at why these problems occurred in the first place. While it keeps you running short-term, it does not provide for a solid business strategy.

Does any of this sound familiar?

• Recurring problems that can’t be fixed by staff or contractors
• Routine slow-downs or crashes that impact your business
• Numerous repetitive manual processes
• Lost documents and missing information
• Growing or disproportionate IT support expense

All are some of the common symptoms of problems created by the IT quick fix.

In most cases, support staff or contractors are very good at their job. They fix the problem and quickly get your business going again. That seems like a good thing, but in reality it is a double edge sword. Often times, only the symptom is treated while the problem continues to crop up, again and again.

While your IT support team may be great at what they do, by definition, what they do is not necessarily good for your business long term. Consider that your support teams are the paramedics of technology. While they understand the issues and stabilize the situation, they don’t have the time or underlying knowledge of your business to diagnose and fix the root cause. Over time, without proper long-term care, the Band-Aid approach adds up and results in catastrophic failure.

This situation negatively impacts your bottom line through higher cost, lower productivity, and reduced efficiency. Over-time, it limits growth potential, diminishes the value of your business, and contributes to such seemingly unrelated issues as high employee turnover, low customer retention, and slow growth. Isn’t it time to make technology work for you rather than against you?

Rectify the problem by adopting a strategic approach to technology management. Strategic focus is how large business operates, why shouldn’t you? For about the same cost as an average employee, you can hire part-time C-level expertise and gain the competitive advantage of a sound, long-term technology strategy, including optimized cost, increased productivity, and a better bottom line.

In part 2 of this series, we will discover how a quick-fix approach sabotages your IT infrastructure.

http://www.techmgmtgroup.com/

Selling your business? Get your IT in order

Are you considering selling your business sometime in the next three years? Maybe you need to sell it immediately? Maybe you want to retire to the beach in a few years? Either way, there are basically two classes of buyers for businesses: those who are looking for a diamond in the rough, and those who are looking for a turn-key business.

Buyers in the market for a diamond in the rough are the largest segment of the market. They want to buy a business that is suffering from any number of “fixable” ailments, and then use their expertise to turn it around, perhaps selling it for a large profit in a few years. The other segment is looking for a business that they can purchase and carry forward many years into the future.

While these two buyers are at opposite ends of the spectrum, they have one thing in common; they are looking for a solid technology infrastructure. Individuals who purchase small business are experts at finance and business processes. Very rarely are they technologists. They realize that technology impacts, directly or indirectly, every component of the balance sheet, but they also know that fixing problems can be a huge can of worms. Buyers often factor into their offer, the current state of the technology infrastructure. And because broken technology is often fraught with hidden cost and surprises, that factor will not be in your favor if they see (or suspect) problems.

Before you sell, turn your IT liability into an asset. Fix the problems, update the tired old equipment, and clean out that rat’s nest of cables in the network closet. As long as the improvements are carefully architected to support the business today and provide solid leverage for the future, your investment will be sound. Your technology infrastructure will become a selling point that will elevate your business above the competition. As a result, your technology investment will add considerably more to the value of your business.

Cloud Computing: How Safe is your Cloud?

Part 2 -


In part one of our cloud computing series, we briefly outlined the benefits of cloud computing and explored how clouds can help your organization go green. Today, we continue the series by looking at the risks. Two of the most important are security and legal issues.

Let’s face it; many companies are not as concerned about security as they should be. Human beings tend to get complacent in the absence of credible threat. If your company has never been the victim of any substantial cyber threat, it is easy to overlook some of the more esoteric aspects of security. However, business as usual will not work in the cloud.

A firewall and virus scan utility, while better than nothing, is typically insufficient security under normal circumstances and certainly will not cut it in the cloud. In using the cloud, you are stripping away some of the natural insulation that separates your corporate data from the rest of the world. Replacing this insulation requires your company to work smarter, through education and policy, to maintain security in a distributed environment.

Countering security issues are three fold. The first is to make sure that your cloud service provider uses industry standard best practices to secure your data – most do, but verify to avoid surprises. Second, you need to ensure that your company has invested properly in network and internet security. Finally, company policy needs to reflect stricter security measures and every employee needs to be educated about electronic security. This training needs to be ongoing because security issues evolve over time.

More perplexing than security, the legal world has not yet caught up with cloud computing. Legally, your data may not have the same protection as data stored on premises, and jurisdiction issues may also be a concern. Additionally, you need to be sure that your service agreement clearly defines ownership of data stored in the cloud. If you are considering a move to cloud computing, consult your legal counsel first to get the latest information and advice on mitigating your legal risk.

Finally, be sure to have a plan-B. Your plan needs to address business continuity if your service provider goes out of business or if service is interrupted by a catastrophe. How will you retrieve and access your data? How will you get the data to a backup platform? How long will it take to get your business back on line? All of these issues and more need to be considered when selecting a cloud computing platform.

http://www.techmgmtgroup.com/

Cloud Computing: How Green is your Cloud?

Part 1 -
Cloud computing is one of the hottest trends in technology. Cloud computing provides software services to your business from computers located at a remote data center and accessed via the Internet. The benefits are compelling; universal access, platform independence, and increased efficiency.

A cloud can be public or private. Most of us are familiar with public clouds – free email accounts (such as Hotmail and Gmail), Facebook, and Twitter are all common examples of public cloud computing. But clouds can be private too, built using the same tools and principals as public cloud platforms, but for the private use of a single company, usually a very large company.

While most cloud computing platforms provide some degree of efficiency, not all of them are efficient enough to be considered “green”. If going green is part of your technology strategy, then you must do your homework before jumping into the cloud. Did you know that some platforms simply plug in another server every time they add a new client or service? With this approach, efficiency only extends as far as shared resources: power, network, and support. A far cry from what most would consider green computing.

Achieving real efficiency means sharing resources across all users. Servers, databases, network and data center resources all need to be shared to achieve the highest level of efficiency. If configured and managed properly, moving to a private or public cloud platform can translate to huge efficiency gains, reduced cost and increased productivity.

However, all of this does not come without some risk. Check back for part two of our cloud computing series when we examine the risks of cloud computing.

http://www.techmgmtgroup.com/