FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS
What are managed IT services?
Managed services are certain outsourced processes and functions intended to improve business operations, reduce business risk and provide a predictable expense model for business technology.
What kind of companies can use managed IT services?
Companies of all sizes, from small (5 to 25 employees) to larger (75 or more employees) can benefit from engaging managed IT services. As your managed service provider, our focus is to keep your systems fully operational so that you can focus your efforts on the demands of growing your business, managing costs and increasing profitability.
What are some benefits of engaging a managed IT company?
Every month our clients receive a detailed report showing the overall health score of their network and updates to their antivirus, security settings, patches and other important network checks (like hard-drive space, backups, speed and performance, etc.).
We conduct quarterly review meetings to improve operations, lower costs, increase efficiencies and resolve problems. The goal is to help clients be more profitable, efficient and competitive.
We provide detailed invoices each month itemizing work that’s been done throughout the month. Invoices are double-checked for accuracy prior to mailing.
Do managed IT services include an IT security policy?
Yes, they do. We can provide a security audit of your business, which can give you a good idea of which security issues you need to focus on. We can also offer you some valuable tips on the industry’s best security practices.
What managed security services do you provide?
24/7 Security Operations Center (SOC) is included in our basic, standard and advanced service packages, and part of our secure remote access and turnkey IT desktop solution offerings.
Endpoint Protection is included in our basic, standard and advanced service packages, and part of our secure remote access and turnkey IT desktop solution offerings.
Security Information and Event Management (SIEM) is our real-time analysis of security alerts generated by applications and network hardware. Our SIEM solution can also include the following optional add-ons:
- Network Security Monitoring
- Log Security Monitoring
Email Protection is included with both our Standard and Advanced Managed IT Services, and as an option for any Microsoft 365 client.
Specialized Cybersecurity Professional Services are network security audits that we perform for our clients.
Cybersecurity Analysts are part of the team available to our clients.
Cybersecurity Sales Engineers and ours are actual Tier 3 engineers!
Cybersecurity Training Packages we provide a Breach Prevention Platform with our Advanced Managed IT Services or as a security add-on. Breach prevention includes employee security education, simulated phishing attacks and dark web scans.
Work From Home Cybersecurity Package is one of our offerings along with many other mobile working and secure work at home solutions.
Do you provide written network documentation detailing software licenses, critical passwords, user information, hardware inventory, etc.?
All clients receive written and electronic network documentation at no additional cost. We also update network documentation on a quarterly basis to be certain your organization have this information and knows how to use it, giving you complete control over your network.
Do clients have access to a service desk?
Yes, clients have access to our live 8 am to 5 pm service desk. Our technicians are trained to have the “heart of a teacher” taking time to answer your questions and respond in easy-to-understand terms. And since we keep detailed network documentation (a blueprint of your computer network) and updates for all of our clients, any of our technicians can support our clients’ accounts effectively. Additionally, we provide our own in-house service desk which is important for keeping your data secure.
What are the help desk hours?
We answer our phones and monitor service desk tickets live from 8:00 am to 5:00 pm. We also have off-hour monitoring of incoming service desk tickets and voice mails.
How often are customer systems checked for security issues?
We have a 24/7 monitoring center that proactively checks customer systems and acts quickly on discovered alerts.
What is the benefit of your Network Operation Center (NOC)?
Our remote network operation center’s monitoring system watches over your network constantly to identify developing problems, security issues and other problems BEFORE they turn into bigger problems. Any identified issues are addressed immediately.
What can I expect if a technician needs to be on-site?
Our technicians are true professionals. They show up on time and dress professionally. If a complication arises, we notify the client immediately.
Are the technicians familiar with (and can they support) unique line-of-business applications?
We own the problems with all line-of-business applications for our clients. That doesn’t mean we can fix faulty software, but we will be the liaison between you and your vendor to resolve problems and make sure applications run smoothly.
Are clients guaranteed complete, on-time and on-budget projects?
All projects are fixed-priced and guaranteed in writing to be completed on time. This is an important distinction as many others only quote “time and materials,” which can easily lead to scope-creep and additional billing.
For backup and disaster recovery, do provide off-site monitoring as well as on-site backup, or do you use tape backups?
We do not allow our clients to use tape backups because they are incredibly unreliable. We provide all of our clients with a backup system that includes a cloud-based copy of their data. Backups are the best protection against ransomware attacks.
Do you provide periodic test restores of client backups to be sure data is not corrupt and can be restored in the event of a disaster?
The worst time to “test” a backup is when you desperately need it. That’s why we perform “fire drills” and a test restore from backup for our clients to be certain their data can be recovered in the event of an emergency.
Do you have services in my area?
We provide services from coast-to-coast, with local services in these locations:
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Does you backup client networks before working on projects or performing upgrades?
Yes, we do; as a precaution in case a hardware failure or software glitch causes a major problem. And most providers do not have the ability to backup the settings of your network devices. We do.
What kind of certifications do your engineers hold?
Microsoft Gold Level Certification, zero touch certification and more.
Are managed IT services affordable?
They certainly can be! It’s important to know that managed IT services are not a “one size fits all” proposition, and our goal is to look at your own unique business situation to determine what services are needed. You can take into consideration the high cost of hardware and the need to hire qualified staff to handle specialized technologies. Also, don’t forget maintaining and upgrading your hardware. All of these issues can be handled by managed IT services so your staff can focus on growing your business.
Do I need managed IT services if I already have internal IT management?
Using managed IT services allows you to extend the reach of the technological skills that you need to run your business efficiently. For example, there are areas that you may need specialized help in, such as compliance or regulatory issues. Or, consider the issue of cybersecurity: you may need the services of a company that has knowledge beyond the capabilities of your internal IT staff.
Do you do break-fix services, or do I need a contract to get help with my IT?
There’s no escaping the fact that things can and will go wrong with your business technology. Our feeling is that managed IT services are a far more affordable and equitable way of dealing with problems when things go wrong. Companies everywhere are dealing with increased complexity in technology. When using a managed IT service provider, it is in their best interest to look beyond one thing going wrong and planning for your entire system to stay up and running.
Are you equipped to help with compliance-driven environments?
Yes, we can help. As many organizations face an increasingly complicated regulatory compliance environment, there are more penalties assessed for data breaches. We are happy to assist your organization with staying on top of industry mandates and governmental regulations.
Can you help me transition from my current managed services provider?
Absolutely! We will help you through the process to ensure that your transition is as smooth as possible. It’s in everyone’s best interest to make sure that all of the key areas are covered, including regular communication, a detailed service-level agreement (SLA) and personalized continuity planning and accessibility for your business.
When something goes wrong with a client’s Internet service, phone system, printers or other IT services, do you own the problem or do you say, “That’s not our problem to fix”?
We do own the problem for our clients, so they don’t have to resolve issues on their own – that’s just plain ol’ good service and something many other providers won’t do.