Quick Tips for Replacing Technology

It's the time when businesses are finalizing their operating budgets for next year.  Planning for IT needs and equipment should be a part of this annual process.  In other words, don't wait until your equipment is obsolete and you can no longer order parts or worse; critical technology breaks down and interrupts your business operations for multiple days.

Here are some quick tips:

Assess Current and Future Needs - Build a three to-five-year plan, including employee and business requirements and compliance and productivity improvement needs.

Budget - Determine spending levels to support sufficient company needs and prioritize equipment replacement and devise backup plans in case revenue doesn't keep pace with expectations.

Performance - Can the equipment perform adequately now, with upgrades, or does it need to be replaced?

Installation and upgrades by a professional - Skilled consultants and employees make sure systems are properly set up, adding to improved operations and greater longevity.

Reputation - Ensure faster replacement of computers and systems that are customer- or client-facing. Consider the implications of failures or unprofessional appearance.

Disposal - Follow the rules for your state and consider extra costs and fees for planning purposes.

From upgrading your existing technology to purchasing new equpment and installing it properly, TeamLogicIT can help your company run more efficiently and increase its bottom line. For more information, contact Jon Simms at  MountainViewCA@TeamLogicIT.com or visit  www.teamlogicit.com/MountainViewCA.

Calling All Veterans: TeamLogic IT Waives Franchise Fee for Military Veterans in 2012

CompTIA’s Creating IT Futures Foundation to support new franchisees through its Apprentice Program

MISSION VIEJO, Calif.- November 9, 2011 - With veteran  unemployment rates higher than the national average and tens of thousands of service men and women returning from deployment in the coming months, TeamLogic IT is stepping up to award up to ten franchises to qualified military veterans by waiving  the $40,000 franchise fee to those who  join TeamLogic IT through the International Franchise Association's (IFA) VetFran program.

"This $400,000 investment demonstrates our commitment to supporting veterans through the VetFran program," said Chuck Lennon,president of TeamLogic IT, who is also the vice chairman of CompTIA, a non-profit trade association advancing the global interests of information technology (IT) professionals and companies. "The unemployment rate amongst veterans is already high and with so many more coming home TeamLogic IT is committed to providing opportunities to our nation's veterans to smoothly transition them into civilian life and the working world."

Focused on "veterans hiring veterans," this new program also includes a partnership with CompTIA and its Creating IT Futures Foundation to leverage its IT-Ready Apprentice Program, which will help franchisees in participating locations to find trained technicians who are also former military.  To help franchisees staff up, all of the costs associated with apprentice recruitment, training, certification, and online mentoring are subsidized by the foundation.

"In essence, the fundamental structure of the franchising industry and military is similar," added Lennon. "Franchisees must follow a proven business model to thrive  and military personnel are trained to follow standard systems to successfully complete a mission. The skills learned in  the military are completely transferable to the small business world - from logistics and operations to management and expertise, military veterans have the right framework to excel in the franchising industry."

Veterans have a proven track record of success in franchising.  According to a recent study based on U.S. Census data, there  are more than 66,000 veteran-owned franchise establishments in the United States, providing jobs directly for 815,000 Americans. In addition, more than 2,00 veterans have become  franchise business owners through the VetFran program, originally established in 1991. 

TeamLogic IT is a leading  national provider of comprehensive computer-based services for managing IT at today's small and medium-sized businesses, allowing the support of an IT department at a considerably lower  cost.

For further information regarding  TeamLogic IT or its  franchise opportunity, visit http://www.TeamLogicIT.com. For more  information about VetFran, visit http://www.vetfran.com.

10 Tips for Using Network Technology to Improve Efficiency

Published with permission from Cisco Systems

To keep pace in an increasingly competitive world, your business needs to run as efficiently as possible. "Sooner or later, any company not operating efficiently will be out of business," says Laurie McCabe, vice president of small and medium business insights and solutions for research firm AMI-Partners. Efficiency is even more important for small and medium-sized businesses, McCabe adds, because their resources are limited compared to large global companies.

Here are 10 tips for using network technology to help your business work more efficiently, cut costs, improve customer satisfaction, and stay ahead of the competition.

1. Give employees secure, consistent access to information. You have an advantage over larger competitors because you can react quickly to business changes. But you can quickly lose this edge if your company network is frequently down, sluggish, or unsecured. A secure, reliable network based on intelligent routers and switches lets your employees access the information and tools they need to keep ahead of competitors.

2. Deliver anytime, anywhere access to employees on the go. To stay productive on the move, your employees need to be able to reach the people and information they need—anywhere, anytime. With tools like virtual private networks (VPNs), your employees can work outside the office and still enjoy safe access to the business network.

3. Create effective business processes with partners. Some large companies make efficient, secure business processes a prerequisite for doing business with them. To meet the business needs of your partners, you need a secure, reliable network.

4. Make it easy to work together. Smooth collaboration between employees, partners, suppliers, and customers is a sure-fire way to boost efficiency while also reducing costs. An intelligent network lets your business take advantage of interactive calendaring, videoconferencing, unified communications, and other technologies for easy collaboration.

5. Enable employees to take their phone systems wherever they go. Missed calls create project delays, wasted opportunities, and lost revenues. With a networked voice and data solution, your employees can have one phone number that rings simultaneously on multiple devices, so customers reach the right person the first time. Your staff can access all their communications from anywhere, checking for e-mail, voicemail, and faxes from just one inbox.

6. Streamline customer communications. Delivering fast, knowledgeable service is the best way to keep customers satisfied. Linking your network phone system to a customer relationship management (CRM) solution is a great way to enhance customer communications. When a customer calls, a pop-up window with their records appears on an employee's IP phone screen, computer screen, or both.

7. Reduce unproductive travel time. All too often, time spent on the road is time lost. A networked phone solution that offers video calls and Web conferencing can help reduce the time and expense of traveling to offsite meetings and training sessions. Instead of spending time traveling, you can use the time to get work done with technology.

8. Employ a managed service provider. Is managing a network the best use of your employees' time? In some situations, it is advantageous to hire a managed service provider for network administration. Working with a managed service provider can free your IT staff to focus on other IT tasks and use their time more effectively.

9. Improve employee satisfaction. Aging phone systems and slow networks can frustrate your employees and annoy your customers. In some cases, an employee might become burned out and decide to move on. To help ensure that employees are productive and satisfied, your business needs a secure, reliable, and fast network.

10. Develop a long-term technology plan. The process of replacing obsolete hardware can interrupt your employees and bring the office to a standstill. You can minimize such disruptions by carefully determining short- and long-term business objectives and working with your network vendor to deploy technology that matches them.

When it comes to network technology, VoIP phone systems, and managing your technology, TeamLogicIT can help your company run more efficiently and increase its bottom line. For more information, contact Jon Simms at  MountainViewCA@TeamLogicIT.com or visit  www.teamlogicit.com/MountainViewCA.

Medical Assist Robots Are Coming Soon....

We are all familar with special purpose robots, like robo-vac, that do cute things to make out lives easier. However, up to this point, there has never been anything practical to hit the market that serves a function even close to something that people truly need... until now. Toyota is expected to be releasing a line of robots focused on health care assistance for an aging populations. The robots are expected to be on the market by 2013. By my calculations, that is about 1 and 1/2 years away. Click on the picture below to watch the video and learn more about how technology will be used to assist in health care.

At TeamLogic IT, we don't rely on robots to assist you with the health of your computers and networks.  We used highly trained, Microsoft Certified technicians.  Our managed services package starts with a sophisticated 24 x 7 monitoring and management infrastructure that allows us to protect your systems all day, every day.  We perform routine mainteneance around the clock.  This keeps your systems running at their highest levels of performance and availability and your business running efficiently.

Taking the worry out of your technology.

Call us today or email

650.204.3150

MountainViewCA@TeamLogicIT.com

www.TeamLogicIT.com/MountainViewCA

Protecting Your Business from Disaster

Article submitted by Jon Simms, President of TeamLogic IT of Mountain View

Every business needs a disaster recovery plan. Regardless of your industry or location, the danger of losing your organization’s critical data is a serious concern. While a degree of risk is involved in decisions made in business every day, the choices managers make typically don’t jeopardize the future of their business. Not many entrepreneurs would knowingly drop fire or liability coverage, yet many companies operate without a viable disaster recovery (DR) plan in place to protect one of their most valued assets—business data and information.

The likelihood of your company burning to the ground or being decimated by a tornado may be remote, but catastrophes do happen and a business has to be prepared for these events. Consider the implications if your critical financial and customer data was lost and could not be recovered, or the information loss required the business to close for several days. Without an effective data backup plan and properly designed systems, the interruption and lost productivity could be disastrous. It’s impossible to put a price on the information stored in your company's information systems but, with the right preparation you won’t have to.

A number of federal and state regulations require businesses to ensure proper information management procedures are implemented and that the steps are followed. Courts have little sympathy for companies that lose vital information pertaining to a legal proceding; it’s no longer a defense and could lead to substantial penalties and fees. These consumers and stockholders protections are intended to prevent improper business practices and your company could also be subject to regulations applying to your state, municipality or industry. For example, the Sarbanes-Oxley Act was enacted to ensure proper business record management processes were being followed by publicly held companies. Similar regulations affect specific industries or markets, such as HIPAA (Healthcare Insurance Portability and Accountability Act), which protects and regulates medical information.

Remote Site Backup - Your Security Blanket

DR plans not only ensure a timely retrieval of information, but the continuity of your company’s operations. In order to maximize its effectiveness, at least one data backup system should be located off-site; in a separate building or with a third-party information specialist. Having all your business’ backup systems in one facility can be devastating should a fire or natural disaster destroy your operation. The Federal Reserve instructs financial institutions to locate their backup systems (and their highly critical data) at least 200-300 miles from main facilities; a good distance to reference for other companies.

While some organizations choose to place their off-site backup systems in their own facilities to maximize control and safety, assumed cost and security benefits may not be realistic. Experienced DR professionals are typically held to higher compliance and security standards than individual businesses. In order to serve a variety of industries and markets, these providers have to meet a number of state and federal requirements—including regularly scheduled audits and system upgrades. Third-party DR services invest in enhanced systems to manage and store business data for a number of clients, and offer security and other protections that could be cost prohibitive for individual companies.

Remember the Role of On-Site Backup

An on-site data backup system complements an off-site plan, but it should not replace it. An on-site storage solution starts with each computer, including the hard disc drive, CDs/DVDs, and USB memory devices. We all store data needed for daily work on these devices and media—though each business file should also be backed-up to the main storage systems. External hard drives are a great complement to individual computers, with affordable systems approaching 2 TB (2,048 gigabytes) that can also be uploaded to a network-based solution.

A more comprehensive option for on-site information backup is a NAS (network attached storage), which connects a hardware device and specialized software to a business network. These systems have dropped in price in recent years, while their storage capacities have escalated. Even with the implementation and support costs for trained IT professionals, a NAS system is a cost-effective solution for most businesses. These backup systems map all network-connected file directories and then schedule backup sessions based on the needs of the individual organization.

Build an Effective Disaster Recovery Plan

A disaster recovery plan should include a complete list of the precautions your company must take to minimize the effects of a disaster on the organization, as well as a detailed process for bringing critical systems back online. Ultimately the responsibility of the management team, it typically involves each employee in the organization. Each individual’s duties should be outlined in the document, including a timeline for completing assigned tasks.

In many respects, the DR plan can be more important than the original business plan. For that reason, companies commonly retain the services of an experienced consultant to develop and implement the program and spend upwards of 25% of their annual technology budgets in this area. While that investment may be seem large, recognizing the importance of disaster recovery in your business and implementing a proper plan are invaluable.

Every business needs a disaster recovery plan. Regardless of your industry or location, the danger of losing your organization’s critical data is a serious concern. While a degree of risk is involved in decisions made in business every day, the choices managers make typically don’t jeopardize the future of their business. Not many entrepreneurs would knowingly drop fire or liability coverage, yet many companies operate without a viable disaster recovery (DR) plan in place to protect one of their most valued assets—business data and information.

The likelihood of your company burning to the ground or being decimated by a tornado may be remote, but catastrophes do happen and a business has to be prepared for these events. Consider the implications if your critical financial and customer data was lost and could not be recovered, or the information loss required the business to close for several days. Without an effective data backup plan and properly designed systems, the interruption and lost productivity could be disastrous. It’s impossible to put a price on the information stored in your company's information systems but, with the right preparation you won’t have to.

A number of federal and state regulations require businesses to ensure proper information management procedures are implemented and that the steps are followed. Courts have little sympathy for companies that lose vital information pertaining to a legal proceding; it’s no longer a defense and could lead to substantial penalties and fees. These consumers and stockholders protections are intended to prevent improper business practices and your company could also be subject to regulations applying to your state, municipality or industry. For example, the Sarbanes-Oxley Act was enacted to ensure proper business record management processes were being followed by publicly held companies. Similar regulations affect specific industries or markets, such as HIPAA (Healthcare Insurance Portability and Accountability Act), which protects and regulates medical information.



Don't wait until bad weather arrives or your office experiences an accidental flood.  The impact to your day-to-day business could be more severe if you don't have a trusted IT partner to assist you with your disasater recovery hardware and software needs.

TeamLogic IT of Mountain View, CA, is part of a nationwide network of computer consultation and managed services businesses providing outsourced IT services. Small- to medium-sized businesses rely on TeamLogic IT to handle a broad range of services from urgent computer repair and proactive maintenance to the installation of entire networks and more. For more information, contact Jon Simms at JSimms@TeamLogicIT.com or visit www.TeamLogicIT.com.