Make vs. Buy

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If you’ve taken a class or read a book on business strategy, you’ve likely come across the “outsourcing decision”. In this decision, a business compares the costs and benefits of producing a part or service internally versus the costs and benefits of paying someone externally to do it. For this decision to be accurate, all the associated costs and benefits need to be factored in. One of the hardest variables is the opportunity cost – what new product or service can my business not develop because it’s busy working on something else? Read more

Halt 70% of Known Network Cyberattacks and Phishing Campaigns

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As the shelter-in-place (SIP) rages on within California, the Bay Area and its workers are forced to continue working remotely. At times, it feels like our world has drastically changed. Despite how mixed up everything may seem, it appears to be business as usual for robocalls, scammers, and hackers.

Known to the cybersecurity landscape as a “lateral movement” or “lateral attack,” the breach and move attack method has become a favorite for hackers today. These attacks will typically target business supply chains, in hopes of gaining access to their desired end target. One of the more famous lateral attacks was in 2013 when the department store Target was breached by hackers. The hackers were able to infiltrate Target’s HVAC System Software. From there they were able to travel within the network and steal credit card data from unknowing customers. Read more

3 Major Reasons Your Business Should Move to Office 2019

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Microsoft Office 2010 support is now reaching the final leg of its lifecycle. Extended support for Office 2010 will end on October 13th, 2020 and that means no more tech support, bug fixes, or security patches coming from Microsoft. Accompanying applications, Microsoft Exchange 2010, and SharePoint Server 2010, will also reach end of life. This will leave your business vulnerable to cyber-attacks and hackers if you do not update these applications.

Businesses are looking into their options: upgrading to the on-premise Office 2019 version for a one-time purchase or moving to the per-user cloud-based subscription of Office 365. Read more

Keeping Your IT Infrastructure Fresh, Reliable and Aligned with Business Needs 

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As the network evolves with a company, over time (configuration changes are made, new devices are added, some are completely forgotten) older devices become unstable and unsupported. This is a natural consequence due to competing priorities, staff turnover, and daily distractions. This ‘aging’ of the network can contribute to an unstable network and excessive time required to resolve issues if not properly maintained.

Left unchecked, the network can become convoluted due to server sprawl and ad hoc changes. This is a common situation for many companies and creates unnecessary IT support overhead, and inflates operating costs.

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New to Working From Anywhere? Tips to Keep You Productive and Efficient

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With so many businesses now encouraging, or even mandating employees to begin working from home amid the heath concerns of Coronavirus. Millions have already changed their daily routines, in turn changing the way many of us work today.

Not everyone has been made accustomed to working from home or getting work done can be an adjustment. The good news about working from home is the commute time has gone down. Many spending more time with family, and maybe you will get a few things done around the home. Some challenges can include loneliness, staying connected, heightened levels of distraction can significantly affect your productivity – so we are here to help!

Regardless of you working from a spare bedroom, or the lobby of your building, we have compiled some tips to help you set up, and limit the distractions while maintaining confidentiality and professionalism.

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