Posts by Todd Rochleau
What to Look For in an IT Company
A friend of mine told me a sad story I’ve heard many times before. Their last employer kept using an IT company to fix their problems, even though nothing stayed fixed for very long. Something would break. This company would fix it. And after a while, something would break again. Sometimes it was the thing…
Read MoreHow to Implement a Successful Security Awareness Program
It’s only been six months since a group of hackers breached Colonial Pipeline’s network and held it hostage. This crippled the energy supply for most of the East Coast until Colonial paid millions of dollars. Hackers also have breached LinkedIn and T-Mobile’s networks. Many other massive companies have been burned. But the attacks aren’t limited…
Read MoreHow to Recover from a Ransomware Attack
I have a friend whose business suffered a ransomware attack. Instead of rewarding the crooks with a big pay day, he told them to shove it. No ransom paid. No long-term damage done. How did he recover from a ransomware attack, bruised but not bloodied? I’ll tell you how. (Pay attention if you prefer not…
Read MoreYour Business Needs a Proactive Technology Planner, Not Merely a Repair Person
We recently evaluated technology needs for a company that was replacing its longtime IT repairman who was retiring. He had been “servicing” the company’s technology for more than 20 years. For him, service meant showing up when something broke, fixing it if possible, replacing it if not. For the company, that meant an…
Read MoreTechnology Options for the Post-Pandemic Workforce
One of our clients recently decided not to reopen its office which has been closed since the pandemic began. Instead, the company will allow employees to work from home. They’re not alone. Many businesses are radically changing how and where employees work. With those changes, businesses face new questions and challenges regarding…
Read MoreWhy We’ll Never Ask You to Sign a 23-Page Contract
A friend forwarded to me a one-year, binding contract that another technology company wanted him to sign. The agreement was 23 pages. 23 pages! Full of legalese, fine print, and a bunch of sales propaganda. My friend didn’t sign it. He took his business elsewhere. The idea of writing a…
Read MoreKeeping Your IT Staff Trained Will Keep Cracks Out of Your System — And Possibly Your Walls
A friend was telling me a story recently, about a business owner he knew… She was at her wits end after her one-and-only network administrator hit a wall… …literally. The guy was frustrated because he couldn’t fix a problem that had slowed the network to a crawl. After failing to get anywhere for hours, he…
Read MoreWhy We Keep Our Pricing Model Simple
I went shopping for light bulbs recently, and it made my head spin. I went to one of those big box stores where the bulbs are stacked on shelves that stretch from one end of the warehouse to another. They had had LED bulbs, tube bulbs, incandescent bulbs, halogen bulbs, smart bulbs, and dumb bulbs.…
Read MoreWhy Technical Documentation is Critical for Your Business
A business owner came to me recently in a panic. Her top tech guy quit on short notice, and her network was down. She needed help, and she needed it fast. When we stepped in to help, we discovered: None of the networks were mapped. None of the processes were documented. ALL of the knowledge…
Read MoreHow to Prevent Costly Tech Disasters So You Can Sleep Soundly at Night
We recently started with a new client who breathed a big sigh of relief when we successfully backed up his systems. “Thank, God,” he said. “If our system servers went down we would be screwed.” He got that right… …except for the big sigh of relief. I explained: Backups are critical, but they’re just the…
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