News Release

Desktop & System Management is key to a smooth-running business

By Ken Hershberger, President - KC3 IT Services

Norfolk, Virginia, June 25, 2009 -- Maintaining control over your small-business PC environment is getting tougher every month because of the lightening speed of technology, ever-better software, the amount of viruses and hackers trying to bring you down, and the fact that most employees have their own company PC (and agenda).

However, creating and sustaining a smooth-running Desktop and System Management environment can be done -- and affordably.

Chances are your business has gradually grown over the years and you now find yourself with a piecemeal IT network of barely compatible software, hardware, security systems and antivirus software. As you already know, this IT situation is costing you much in money, effort and man hours.

I would wager that if you did an analysis of businesses in Virginia Beach, Norfolk, Chesapeake, Portsmouth, and Suffolk, you'd find that a majority of businesses which steadily move forward and consistently make money put an emphasis on IT.

That doesn't mean you have to hire an IT department or a full-time IT employee. Our IT consulting company serves as the IT outsourcing experts for many small businesses throughout Hampton Roads.

Whether you're business uses 25 computers or 250, Desktop & System Management has moved to the forefront of things to pay attention to because IT problems are an easy way to lose ground. Factor in your employees who have remote access, laptops, and multiple offices and you can see where Desktop and System Management can become a negative instead of a positive.

Following are six keys to effective and affordable Desktop & System Management:

Focus
• Every small business has different needs. The hardware and software you buy or license should easily integrate into your day-to-day operations and move the ball forward. Many a budget has been blown up by unnecessary items. Our IT company is available to conduct an IT Audit that explains exactly what you need and why. Before starting KC3 IT Services, I succeeded for more than 20 years in a variety of IT technician and leadership positions, often leading large IT departments with budgets ranging from $20 - $35 million. Knowing how it all fits together from the top down is important -- whether you employ 5 people or 500.

Consistency
• Expecting employees to know which update to install or not install is not reasonable.

• Making their lives easier with an automatic patch management system will keep your Desktop and System Management up to date and reduce employee frustration by eliminating the need to figure out what patches to apply in what order.

Security
• Virus settings in antivirus software throughout your small business are often not current and can render your antivirus software ineffective.

• These PCs typically become the source of a virus attack on a company’s network.

• Every day, your computer network is pinged hundreds of times a day by automated programs trying to get into your system.

• If you are using software that is controlled individually by each computer user, rather than centrally managed, I suspect you are either experiencing IT headaches or are inching closer each day.

Remote Backups
• I know of a small business where the president spends close to three hours each night backing up the day's work to CD.

• I also know of many small businesses (our clients) who use our remote backup services to store all their day's work remotely overnight. Their information is securely stored on several servers in multiple, geographically-separate locations. If the unimaginable happens, they can be back in business within a day or two. I've taken years off business owners' lives with this service.

• A remote backup strategy is smart because the next lightning strike could be one storm away.

• Remote backups that are automated instead of relying of each individual employee will improve the probability of data recovery when the inevitable system crash occurs.

Compliance
• Lack of compliance with license terms can invite large fines from various auditing agencies. Current Copyright Laws have a maximum penalty of $250,000 fine and up to five years in federal prison for each license. For five licenses, you could be looking at a $1.25 million fine and 25 years in a federal prison.

• Our IT services company will typically ask you for your license information before we install it on your PCs so we can assist you in making sure you are compliant.

Keep it simple
• The optimum Desktop and System Management scenario is the ability to manage all of your company computers from one management console. This saves considerable time and money over remotely logging into hundreds of desktops and laptops. A single, well-designed management console provides the kind of IT that sets companies apart.

How much time and money could you save if an IT expert logged into an employee's troubled PC, fixed the problem remotely, and kept your employee productive instead of frustrated and falling behind?

How much time and money could you save if you and your employees never had to worry about distributing and managing critical patches, virus setting, software license terms, hardware and software compatibility, and remote backups?

I have a ballpark figure, and would gladly conduct and IT Audit to see if your IT is helping or hampering your business.

To schedule a no-cost phone consultation, please contact us at (757) 301-6200 or fill out this form.

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