Education Center

It’s a fact of life: we put off making decisions. Some of us are more decisive than others, but the fact remains, we all procrastinate from time-to-time.

Whether it’s in business or in our personal lives, we all do it. But why?

Let’s just be honest, switching vendors for almost any reason can be a distraction and a time snatcher. But sometimes it’s the right move for your company long term.

Changing IT vendors doesn’t have to be that hard if it’s planned out in advance.

Perhaps your contract is up, or you’re not getting what you need from your current arrangement. Either way, moving to a new IT provider should be about adding value to your company. But value can be lost in transition if your processes, needs, and expectations are not planned and communicated beforehand.

The transition might be the hardest part of your new IT services contract, but it doesn’t have to be.

This month has been significant in terms of the way business leaders have come to me for advice on getting the best technology results. 

As I reflect, I realize that there were two distinctly different ways in which people reached out to me.

The first was a business owner that was looking to advance his manufacturing system.

The epic battle of the brands is plagued with brand favoritism and personal feelings.

And yes, Dell and HP have risen to the top of the technology manufacturer food chain based on good reviews and quality product – but brand names are really nothing more than a sticker attached to a product.

Whether you call it a plan, template, checklist or strategy, your  disaster recovery document(s) is your key to success when disaster strikes. 

And no, a disaster recovery plan is not the same as your backup – think of it as your backup’s bodyguard.

The saying goes “When you fail to plan, you plan to fail.”  The same is true in any small business scenario. Life happens, and it always happens fast. Your system could be at the mercy of natural disaster, viruses, or even a fire. That’s where failover comes into play.

It’s time. You have out grown your server like an old pair of shoes. Or, perhaps your server has reached its end life, and you need to move on. No matter the scenario, getting a new server can be a MASSIVE undertaking.

Watch out one-time software purchases, you’re old news. While the now less-mysterious Cloud gains popularity in the business world, so does the booming “as-a-service” model. 

Honestly, the IT world is full of acronyms. People are talking XaaS this or that, and many of us are left scratching our heads, X-what? This particular acronym is the name of the now famous Internet-delivered service. This model is strictly internet based, opposed to local or on-site services.

Having "your head in the clouds" used to describe day dreamers. But now, it might describe someone working remotely or at a satellite office. Cloud computing is expanding the business world in a big way, and for the most part, it’s great. Between the mobility, low cost, and flexibility of scale, the Cloud is pretty much a small to mid-size business’s dream.

You’ve interviewed a couple of IT companies, and now you're ready to pick a service provider. Congratulations on narrowing your search to a top 3, but now what?

Staring at the contracts, they all look similar. And not just similar, but downright identical in some parts. So, how do you choose? Which is the best option for you? How do you really tell the difference between the contract options? Which one will be the best investment for your future?