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Had Enough? If your business seems to be caught in a never-ending cycle of computer problems and complaints, perhaps you have been focusing on the symptoms rather than the source of the problem. The underlying cause is most likely a lack of professional IT management. At White Mountain, we take responsibility for the operation, management, and support of your IT infrastructure. Don’t settle for the IT systems cycle of torture, there is a better way, give White Mountain a call today. Why wait? If you think it may be time for a change, give us a call today to schedule a free consultation. We are experts at providing discreet and confidential advice on how to protect your business and avoid problems and disruptions when replacing your IT support provider. There is no reason to put up with a never-ending cycle of problems and frustrations, give White Mountain a call and let us help you make things right! Call today and give your business the White Mountain advantage!
As the deadline (almost literally) knocks on the door, we thought we?d review, once more, what this means to users and what their options are. It is important to understand that it isn?t as though you won?t be able to use the software once the support date passes – it?s that you won?t be able to use it securely. Since your software will no longer receive the updates and patches that it depends on, its functionality will decrease over time. Worse, its lack of security means that the computer running it will have a security vulnerability, which in turn means that any network that the computer is connected to will also be insecure. While there are some means of protecting your network – like isolating your Windows 7 machines so you can still use a certain line-of-business application – you will not be able to completely protect yourself from vulnerabilities without taking these systems entirely offline. With these risks in mind, retiring these systems to protect your business becomes a no-brainer. You Have a Few Options Even with the deadline so close, you still have a few options to avoid serious issues. These options include: Upgrading to Windows 10 While many may be loyal to Windows 7, there is no denying that Windows 10 is the better solution – even if you only consider the security benefits to the switch. Fortunately, Windows 10 doesn?t really need much more to run than Windows 7 does. Here are the minimum specifications your computer should have to properly run Windows 10: Processor – 1 GHZ or faster RAM – 1 GB for 32-bit or 2 GB for 64-bit Hard disk space – 16 GB for 32-bit or 20 GB for 64-bit Graphics card – DirectX 9 or later with WDDM 1.0 driver Display – 800 x 600 resolution Now, as these are the minimum specifications, this configuration wouldn?t give you the best performance. We recommend that, instead of following this list precisely, you upgrade to a 2 GHz dual-core processor, between 4-and-8 GB of RAM, and at least a 160 GB hard drive. Replace Your Hardware Systems While this is far and away the most expensive option, it is possibly the simplest to exercise considering how little time is left. New hardware comes with Windows 10 installed and includes regular updates to Windows 10, but there is the fact that configuring this new hardware to play nicely with your line-of-business applications could take some time. Consider ChromeOS Many businesses are electing to use Chromebooks rather than the more traditional Windows workstations. While this may be a more cost-effective option, it can be a hassle in other ways. All of your line-of-business applications would need to be virtualized, and the need for Internet access could create productivity hang-ups. While this approach might ultimately work got your business and IT alike, it isn?t a cheap approach to implement. Speaking of Virtualization, Use a Thin Client This is very similar to the Chromebook option. However, instead of purchasing new hardware, you are repurposing your old hardware to operate as a thin client. While virtualization has proven itself to be a solid option for businesses, it may not be practicable with so little time left to put it in action. However, there is a service that could […]
Email Email has been and will continue to be a work staple. But it shouldn’t be the primary mode of written communication between internal employees, anymore. The format pushes for inertia and thinking twice: there are intros, polite greetings, splintering email threads, and a dozen rereads that become part of the process, no matter how trivial the content. Instead, switch internal communications to instant message tools. Slack channels give plenty of space for different groups to carry on a conversation or announce something to the whole group. Embedded chat tools in Salesforce keep the focus clear and the chain of communication public. Save emails for official matters, rare communications that cross your company’s usual teams or groups, and formal notices. Also, email should be a go-to part of how you communicate with clients and leads. Work Outside of the Office Working from home is here to stay. You’re going to have lots of employees you’ll never meet in person, and you’ll have office regulars who need to work at home for a day because their kid is sick. Set up your team’s workflows and tasks so everything can be done outside of the office. Also, build procedures to make it a regular option: offering flexibility gets you more applicants than even bumping up the salary. On the flip side, you have to have a clear work culture. Some of your employees will take advantage of the freedom to do as little as possible. But many more of your employees will overdo their work, either by worrying that they need to “prove” their work from home status or because they’re out of touch with everyone else’s progress. Maintaining an Online Connection Wifi is everywhere, and that’s good news for regularly traveling employees. The cloud can also be everywhere, which means you can allow tiered access to all of your company files from around the country. That would have been impossible even just ten years ago when remote employees had to have a desktop computer and hardline Internet connection. At the same time, that ever-present access means hackers and automated malware can reach into your employees’ devices. Even unlikely areas and seemingly safe locations are a risk. Make sure everyone has a VPN, no excuses. Information Is the Product Information has always been the product, but the Internet made that truer than ever before. The damage that can be done with mishandled data is also greater than ever before (and that’s before you even consider Facebook’s expected $5 billion fine). Universal internet access means your company is gathering a lot of data about your leads, visitors, and customers. Every site that your employees visit is doing the same thing, and that matters if your company has a BYOD policy or loans out work devices. Get that VPN (we mention it twice because it matters too much to ignore it) and have a network administrator that can clear out the devices before disaster strikes. Business communications aren’t just the information you mean to send. It’s also the information your network and the sites your employees visit pick up along the way. Contact us to learn more about how to modernize your approach to wifi and the cloud.
Every business has different needs for their printers. Your office might have a low-end consumer-based printer on a few desks, or you have a centralized network printer/copier/scanner that everyone can use. Some businesses might have several of these printers, and others might have gone paperless to free themselves from the expense of paper and toner. Regardless of your situation, if you have printers, you should have them managed and controlled. You Can Manage and Control the Expenses Tied to Printing Printer ink and toner isn?t cheap. Unnecessary printing can really add up over time. That?s why some businesses have opted to go paperless with digital documentation solutions (among other reasons; it?s easier to store, search, share, and backup digital data compared to printed documentation too). A business that normally prints a few thousand documents a year will feel the cost savings after they eliminate printing altogether. Reducing the amount that your users print can really make a difference over time. For example, enforcing users to only print in black and white unless color is necessary, and enforcing double-sided printing are a few small policies that will reduce your costs. In a recent survey by Xerox, it was found that 64 percent of small businesses aren?t tracking their printer usage costs. The report also revealed that 47 percent of businesses felt that employees just printing out emails was a big part of their printer usage. There is clearly some waste happening here. Printer Management is Worth Investing In A small business can deploy tools to control, report on, and restrict printer usage throughout an office environment. As mentioned before, every business is going to have different requirements and needs, but simply establishing the policies that prevent users from wasting resources by printing out their emails will lead to savings over time. Another often ignored aspect of owning a printer (or multiple printers) is that, like any device on your network, they are another endpoint. This means they need to be kept updated, maintained, and secure. There have been many cases over the last couple years where cybercriminals have utilized office printers as an entry-point for spreading malware or breaching data. These types of exploits can cost your business a lot more than another ream of paper or toner cartridge. Consider Going Paperless This might not always be an easy option for some businesses who rely on printed documents, but taking steps to reduce the amount of printing your business does can help reduce costs and actually make it easier to share, protect, and back up documents. Going fully digital means that documents can be searched, copied, organized, and shared securely, and backed up without requiring paper, toner, or bulky filing cabinets. Today, even contracts can be shared and signed digitally without a single sheet of paper being used. If you want to learn more about how we can help your business cut costs and reduce the amount of resources you use, give us a call at (603) 889-0800.
Technology #1 – Blockchain Blockchain is a technology that has been emerging for the past several years. People?s first exposure to blockchain was as the core technology that made cryptocurrency possible, but nowadays there are several app developers using the inherent strengths of blockchain technology to improve the security and transparency of their software. Some blockchain applications fit in better than others do. Blockchain is a distributed ledger system where individual transactions are encrypted and aren?t able to be altered. So, every new transaction, even if it is altering an already established transaction, will create its own block. Any business can start using blockchain to boost the security of their accounts receivable process, contract transparency, and their supply chain management systems to ensure they are getting exactly what they are paying for – and that?s just a brief sample of its capabilities. Technology #2 – Business Process Automation As businesses look for more efficient ways to operate, one strategy is to leverage automation where they can. With technologies such as the Internet of Things (IoT) and artificial intelligence (AI), automated systems are becoming much more viable for many different business-grade technologies, Business Process Automation (BPA) is improving and becoming a driving force for businesses looking for technologies to help with revenue growth. BPA is a key system that ensures that the information that is needed by the workers is shared between every department, and usable when it is received. Driven by AI, Machine Learning, and strategically placed smart technologies, businesses are able to do more, improve operational efficiency, and control how data is used throughout their entire business. Technology #3 – Powerful Collaboration Tools Technology has made collaboration a much more important part of the modern workplace, and there are several options on how to improve organizational collaboration. For departmental collaboration, there are productivity suites like Microsoft Office 365 and Google?s G Suite, collaboration/messaging apps like Slack, and conferencing tools that provide each member of your staff the resources to get the job done. On the other hand, expanding on the BPA strategy we listed above, interdepartmental collaboration tools that include customer resource management (CRM) tools and other business management software can allow your business to operate smarter and much more effectively through the use of efficient access to information. If your business is looking to take a step forward in 2020, integrating some of these emerging tools will go a long way toward creating the efficient operations you are seeking. Call our technology professionals today at (603) 889-0800 to start working with White Mountain IT Services.
