When everyone was working in the office behind firewalls, your greatest IT risks were most likely employees clicking on suspicious links and the occasional coffee spill.
But as our need to work remotely stretches on, you might find that you need better, more permanent IT plans for your Boise SMB. You need to manage your risk and ensure continuity, in a way that keeps you sane and doesn’t keep you up all night.
Earlier in the year, most employees took their PCs home and teams did the best they could to manage in the short term.
Now we are still working remotely, using different business apps and getting and sharing data, but no one's in the office. At the same time, new challenges seem to pop up daily.
You need to know who's managing the network at all times. Who's tracking what's being added and shared, who's monitoring network health and troubleshooting? You might be wondering, are we really protected from the latest threats?
If you’re like many in the community, the next logical question you’re asking yourself is: What should I be paying attention to, and how do I find out?
If you aren’t working with a Managed Service Provider, here are the three (3) main areas you should consider:
What does this have to do with your SMB? Now that so many more people are working from home, potential attack vectors have tripled, along with system vulnerabilities.
Think about it. With your employees accessing your VPN from home, every one of those connections—all those phones, tablets, kids' computers, Netflix, Xbox, and even your Smart lightbulbs and Alexa—are potential targets for hackers.
Be honest, we know that not all our employees are necessarily tech savvy. They may delay installing important updates, use weak passwords, or download suspect or unverified software or apps.
So, what's the solution? A Managed Service Provider (MSP) can help you implement 2-factor authentication and ensure that you always have updated anti-spam and anti-malware protection.
The death of the desktop? Isn’t that a little dramatic?
Not really.
One big reason is data sprawl, the huge amount of data that organizations produce daily, and where it's all kept. Is all your confidential data protected and stored in a central place? Or are employees saving proprietary data to their hard drives, where it can be easily lost—or at least not easily accessible to others who may need it?
In addition, there are common contingencies you may not have planned for:
It can be hard to anticipate all the possibilities. A reliable MSP will make sure that these issues are planned for and handled smoothly, with as little disruption to your business as possible.
Who's tracking and managing it all? Does your IT manager know that everyone has moved to Slack to collaborate and share files?
Cloud solutions aren't always necessarily cheaper, but they could definitely be smarter for your SMB.
Some examples of cloud apps that you might be considering or already using:
A MSP can help you decide what's the best route for your organization long term and help you implement and maintain the security you need for each application.
A MSP builds “hooks” into everything you're doing online. They know who's using what software and apps, how they all work together, and how to keep your systems updated and secure.
Regular audits are recommended for security every six (6) months. Audits can help you assure business continuity and make sure your solutions are agile and sustainable. Audits of your closet keep your business humming with regular server maintenance, Wi-Fi trouble shooting, and networking and computer setup.
Don’t settle for mediocre IT. A reliable MSP can be a partner that helps you sleep better at night. You’ll know that your IT needs are being anticipated and professionally managed, especially in light of today’s changing business demands.
Don't try to handle the growing SMB IT challenges yourself.
Download our guide, How to Evaluate if a MSP is right for your SMB, and then schedule your network audit.