IT Support: When DIY Becomes DOA

By Tom McDonald | Nov 18, 2014 10:51:00 AM

Most entrepreneurs don’t start a business because they love to monkey around with IT Support.

And while there are some small businesses proprietors who are more intimate with technology, most business owners see technology as a “can’t live with it, can’t live without it” necessity that just keeps getting more and more costly.

When those costs start taking chomps out of profits, small business owners must decide whether to call in a professional for an assessment or try and get things under control with an in-house team.

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Is "Like Us on Facebook" Risky Business?

By Tom McDonald | Jun 6, 2014 9:35:00 AM

Connecticut computer company, NSI, shares this incredible TED Talk featuring Jennifer Golbeck.  Jennifer discusses how social media platforms like Facebook track us through our "Likes". 

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TEDTalk Touches on the Future of Managed Services

By Tom McDonald | Mar 28, 2014 12:01:00 PM

The idea of managed services is new to many, and the future of this technology has enormous potential.  Please take a few minutes to watch this TEDTalk by Marco Annunziata, entitled: Welcome to the age of the industrial internet.

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IT Support Provider's President Goes to Washington

By Tom McDonald | Sep 18, 2013 7:33:00 PM

Recently,  I spent a full day in Washington, D.C.  attending the sold out inaugural 2013 Datto Partner Conference.  The vibe was similar to the first VMware Partner conference I attend years ago. 

A keynote from CEO Austin McChord kicked off the event; he is completely unpolished, which is refreshing, as is the obvious fact that he is totally immersed in every detail of his business.  He rattles off facts, figures, and details.  Technical, business, and sales related data roll off his lips at a rapid-fire pace.  What did I learn? Here are some of the key things I took away from his talk:

  • Datto is exploding – 200+ employees; 112 of which were hired last year
  • Datto has 8000+ partners – wow!  Lots more Managed Service Providers (MSP) and IT Service Providers than I thought existed
  • The company is totally focused on the channel, particularly the MSP market
  • New MSP User Interface has been rolled out, making it easier for us to quickly setup and troubleshoot devices for our clients
  • Direct-2-Tech was introduced, this means when you escalate an issue, we go directly to the tech that can solve the problem – this is a great things for NSI, and NSI clients.
  • Tech support is 24/7/365, when clients need help, help is there.
  • Brand new software allows us to show our clients the incremental changes that are happening
  • HIPAA compliance  -  Datto is compliant and enables NSI to continue offering backup in regulated environments for clients needing this

The summary from Austin’s keynote for me was this – Datto gets it. They understand what we need to be the best possible ITsupport service provider to our clients.  Additionally, they enable us to offer enterprise class services to the smallest of businesses;  it is as simple as that.  Why that’s a big deal: 

According to the U.S. Census of 2010:

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What's that in the sky? It's The Cloud and it has all your documents

By Tom McDonald | Sep 18, 2013 10:05:00 AM

The Cloud.  It's the place to be.  Perhaps Sir Richard Branson will find a way for us to tour the cloud.  If anyone can find a way, it's him. 

We use the cloud when we put gas in our car.  We use the cloud to pay our bills (even if you are sending a paper check, funds are transferred through the cloud by the banks and corporations that process payments).  

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