Best practices Archives - NuTech Services LLC

Oct, 2022

When Talking to an IT Service Provider, Ask These 3 Questions

There is an inherent value associated with outsourcing the management of your technology to a managed service provider, or MSP. With your team taking a more hands-off approach to technology, they can instead focus on being more productive. If you’re still on the fence about this approach to technology and business, then we have some questions you should consider asking if you are thinking about learning more about MSPs and what they do.

What Services Does Your MSP Offer?

It is important to know what services your MSP offers and what they do not offer. This helps you while you are making the decision about who to go with for your support needs. It can also help influence your decision down the road, as your business might grow and evolve over time to encompass goods or services which you might not see at the moment. For example, a growing business will likely want to take advantage of a cloud platform, including hosting and migration.

How Experienced Are Your MSP’s Technicians?

The level of expertise of your MSP’s staff will also factor into your decision-making. You want a team of seasoned and well-practiced technicians on your side, which will affect your company’s ability to resolve problems, streamline processes, and ensure optimal operations. Furthermore, you want MSPs who can take complex problems and distill them into easier-to-understand statements and language that you can share with management or your staff. When everyone can understand the problems and challenges at hand, they are more likely to be patient and resolve them effectively.

What is Your MSP’s Service Level Agreement?

An SLA is essentially what you can expect to receive from your managed service provider for their goods and services in exchange for your payment. It might include information on how much you pay them, what services they offer, and what kind of turnaround time you can expect for requests. It establishes the expectations you have for each other, in the most basic terms possible.

We Can Help You Today!

If you’re unsure if managed services are for you, then let NuTech Services help you make the choice. We can resolve any shortcomings in technology management that your company suffers from with our team of dedicated technicians.

If you do have an internal IT staff, they can benefit from you outsourcing some of their tasks to a managed service provider. This will help them stay on top of their workload and it can improve your operations.

To learn more about what NuTech Services and our managed services can do for your business, call us today at 810.230.9455.

Sep, 2022

Technology Can Fuel a Much More Productive Business

Would you describe your business as “productive?” Without setting a specific standard for productivity, you can’t answer this question. A basic way to measure productivity for your business is how effectively your employees use the tools at their disposal in conjunction with each individual’s capacity to get work done. Let’s take a look at some technology built specifically for your employees to be more productive throughout the workday.

The Different Levels of Business Technology

The technology solutions your business implements all have various uses that directly tie into its levels of productivity. Here are three notable categories for any kind of digital transformation you implement for your business:

Operational – This includes all business management applications, productivity, and communications.
Supply Chain – This technology improves business through data collection based on your business’ procurement, processing, and distribution processes.
Digital Platforms – This technology is implemented to promote or sell goods and services and provides a lot of actionable information.

Let’s examine how each of these contributes to a productive business environment.

Operational Technology

Your workforce will be more productive if they are using effective technology. You’ll likely have to add new technology to your infrastructure in the process, and with careful planning and consideration, you can use it to improve productivity. Solutions like customer relationship management (CRM) software can help you keep track of tasks, time, progress, and customer interactions, while communication tools like VoIP, email, and video conferencing all go a long way to help your team collaborate. Productivity tools like Microsoft Office and Google Workspace can also provide exceptional productivity apps with built-in communication tools. There are even specialized collaboration suites that you can use to give your team all the tools they need in one effective package.

Supply Chain Technology

Your business’ supply chain will undoubtedly remain an important part of its operations and productivity. Whether your organization provides products or components or not, there is no question that your company is at the mercy of the supply chain—even when it comes to procuring new equipment for your own business’ operational needs. Technology brings transparency to the supply chain, whether it’s through inventory management, Internet of Things devices, shipping and management of goods, etc. These interconnected systems give businesses the ability to be more productive and transparent with their resources.

Digital Platform Technology

Doing business involves an online presence in most, if not all circumstances. Most businesses have implemented online applications that allow their team and their customers to do business more efficiently, whether it’s through a CRM, file sharing, digital collaboration platforms, or even something as simple as a webpage or social media presence. All of these digital platforms give businesses the ability to be more productive, provided they are used appropriately.

How does your business handle technology solutions? Could you use a hand with the management and upkeep of your IT systems? Outsourcing this responsibility is one big way you can improve operations and productivity for your organization. To learn more, contact us today at 810.230.9455.

Sep, 2022

Burnout Needs to Be Addressed Seriously…4 Essential Steps

There are struggles that the workplace inherently presents to most people (whether that workplace is in the traditional office space or in the home) that can lead to the too-familiar-to-some feelings of burnout. As these struggles aren’t likely going to go away at any point (never mind anytime soon), it is important that you have strategies to help minimize their impacts.

Let’s go over a few things you can encourage your team members to do so they can accomplish this for themselves.

How to Help Minimize Burnout

There are a few ways that you can reduce the amount of burnout that you and your team experience. For instance:

Take a Moment and Refocus Yourself

Mounting pressure can easily take you off your game, which should be seen as a signal that it is time for a break. However, not all breaks are as beneficial as others. Rather than pulling up your social media feeds and mindlessly scrolling, try taking some slow, deep breaths and clearing your mind for a few minutes until you’re ready to return to full productivity. Properly recovering from these moments will help.

Build Communications Between Teams

You know the old saying, “no man is an island,” that refers to the fact that each and every person relies on the network of people around them? While it’s a pretty safe bet that John Donne wasn’t thinking of the modern workplace when he wrote those words back in the 17th century, the same concept holds true. It is important that your different employees and even departments have the confidence that they can rely on one another as needed, so establishing the precedent of communication is crucial.

Basically, you want to take it upon yourself to encourage your employees to work with one another at every available opportunity. Not only will this help to lighten the workload on the team as a whole, but it will help form bonds between your team members that will help to reduce the likelihood of burnout.

Pick Up a Low-Pressure Hobby

A major contributor to feelings of burnout is the tendency many have to take the pressures associated with work into personal time—after all, if you never get any relief from stress, that stress is going to wear down on you faster.

To resolve that, recommend that your team members pick up personal hobbies or pursue interests—anything that gets their mind off of work, really—as these kinds of hobbies can help you recharge your batteries.

Establish Procedures to Reduce Stress

One of the nice things about workplace processes is that they tend to largely be the same each time you carry them out. This means that these processes can be streamlined and ideally automated, taking pressure off of your team members and simplifying their workflows. Both of these effects can benefit workplace engagement and slow down the “burn” of burnout.

Fighting Burnout is a Prescient Business Need

If you aren’t actively working to keep your team engaged, burnout will almost certainly start to creep in and negatively impact your operations. In addition to the above efforts, the right IT can help to keep your team engaged and effective—and we’ll help you put them in place. Give us a call at 810.230.9455 to learn more about the business solutions we have to offer.

Aug, 2022

Improve the Security of Your Wireless Network with these 4 Actions

It’s not always easy to build a network that is both robust and secure, but this doesn’t make it any less necessary, not with so many of your critical business functions relying on connectivity. With so many devices accessing your network at any given time, you need to have a concrete understanding of how to keep your network secure while still keeping your network running efficiently.

Your Wireless is Not Simply About Wi-Fi Connectivity

Your business’ wireless connection is much different from your home connection, and this extends far beyond just the data it sends. Start thinking about it not as a tool but as a part of your business’ foundation, something that it stands on and relies on. This is a far cry from how some organizations view their wireless networks with many viewing them as a secondary network, sidelining it in favor of the actual company network. This practice can be fatal.

Even if you have yet to experience a true data breach, this doesn’t mean that there aren’t currently threats out there who have set their sights on you. Most employees will have smartphones allowing them to access your company’s data or Wi-Fi during the workday, and most important of all, they expect your network to be secure, as they don’t want to put their personal devices or data at risk. To help you build a network that is secure and reliable, we’ve put together the following actions you can take today to protect your network:

Keep Guests on Their Own Network

If you want to keep your network as secure as possible, start by isolating your guest network into a subnet. Subnets are partitioned off from the rest of your network, allowing you to keep them secure through different settings or access controls. Some companies keep their guest networks open so people can use them as they see fit, and while this is certainly a fine practice, be sure that it’s not operating too close to your employees’ network. You never know who could be using your network for nefarious deeds.

Secure Your Routers

If you want to secure your wireless network, you need to make sure that the hardware powering it is in an appropriate location that is safe and secure from just anyone. Businesses opt for commercial Access Point (AP) technology instead of the over-the-counter router, as they provide better coverage and are often placed out of reach, attached to the ceiling or elsewhere. If your business still opts for the router, however, just make sure that people can’t mess with it while they are walking around your place of business.

Reign In Your Signal

You’ll want to have total coverage for your entire office if you can, but you also need to keep in mind that if your network extends beyond your walls, an unauthorized user could be sitting in the parking lot or across the road, ready to use your wireless network for their own purposes. You can manage your signal’s strength by placing them in locations where you are comfortable with letting your wireless signal reach.

Keep Software Updated

Routers have their own operating systems that are updated periodically by software developers, and as such, they also come with their fair share of vulnerability patches and updates. You’ll want to make sure that the firmware is updated for all of your wireless technology so that it is kept safe as can be.

NuTech Services can help you make any and all necessary adjustments to the way you utilize wireless technology. To learn more about what we can do for your business, contact us today at 810.230.9455.

Aug, 2022

Solid Practices to Improve Your Remote Team Management

After this prolonged pandemic, remote work has established itself as a key component of many organizations’ operational policies and infrastructures. However, it has added new levels of complexity that make managing a workforce more important than ever. Let’s discuss some ways management can improve the work experience for remote employees.

Establishing Best Practices for Remote Workers

Here are several opportunities you have to make work better and more efficient for your remote workers:

Implement Communication Standards

Clear and open communications are required if you want your remote employees to stay in the loop. You need to establish clear expectations for how often they need to communicate and collaborate with others within your organization, and be sure to encourage them to interact with your staff whenever possible.

Delegate Tasks and Responsibilities

It doesn’t matter whether your team is in-house or remote; the only real difference is where they are working. Naturally, this means that you shouldn’t have different expectations with responsibilities for remote employees compared to in-house ones by virtue of where they are working alone. Be sure to delegate larger tasks that might be challenging to pull off in a remote setting into smaller, more manageable work while providing team members with appropriate processes for how to go about the work.

Provide Appropriate Tools

Thankfully, many businesses have already made adjustments to their infrastructures to accommodate remote work, including the tools needed, like cloud-based software, storage, and mobile devices. We always like to recommend that businesses implement a unified communications and collaboration platform to provide you with one unified tool to aid in communication.

Understand that Overworking and Isolation Are Rampant

There’s a common misconception that people working remotely aren’t getting as much done throughout the workday, but this assumption is flat-out wrong in most cases. Remote workers might be subject to pressure according to the expectation that they need to work harder, and this can lead to negative feelings and burnout. You need to acknowledge this and clear the air to keep your team happy.

Support Your Team However You Can

Your team will need support to stay positive, even under the best circumstances possible. This also applies to your remote staff. Make sure they have access to both support that enables them to do their jobs properly, like IT support, but also emotional and mental health support. Remember, employees who feel well will be more productive, so it’s in your best interest to ensure your team feels supported in all they do.

Receive and Act on Feedback

To make sure you are approaching remote working conditions in an effective way, be sure to collect feedback from your remote workers to see what you are doing well and what can be improved upon. Asking them for their opinions is one of the best ways you can improve your operations. If you are scared they won’t answer honestly, you can use anonymous polling or one-on-one check-ins to get an idea of how you are doing.

Let Us Help You Get the Most Out of Your Remote Operations

To help your remote workers be as effective as possible, we offer technology services and solutions that can help your business flourish under this “new normal.” It doesn’t matter if your employees are in-house or remote—we’ve got solutions for you.

To learn more, reach out to us at 810.230.9455.

Jul, 2022

Creating Productive Workspaces Keeps Business Comfortable

Whether you are in the office or working remotely, there are many distractions that can derail your productivity. To set yourself up for success, we recommend that you follow the tips outlined in this blog. You might be surprised by how just a few simple adjustments can make a world of difference for your productivity.

Focus On What You Can Control

Your workspace is limited in its size, and in many cases, your office constraints will work against you. Some businesses have cubicles or an open floor plan, and depending on the approach, it could be designed to help you better interact with your coworkers. You might not be able to control the office layout, but you can control your desk space.

Do you keep a clean or messy desk? More clutter means less productivity. Make sure you have a system in place to keep your desk’s organization in check.

The temperature of your office can also factor into workplace productivity. Cornell University published a study that indicates a warmer office can improve typing speed by as much as 150 percent, all while reducing the amount of errors by 44 percent. The target range should be about 71º Fahrenheit.

Finally, consider the light levels in your office. Dimmer light can improve creative work, whereas brighter workspaces can increase analytical work. Natural light should be utilized whenever possible, as it can improve productivity and employee satisfaction. If natural light isn’t an option, we recommend you take breaks to get away from your screens from time to time.

Remove Discomfort

It might be a bit of a depressing reality check, but we spend at least a quarter and up to a third of our lives at work. This can naturally take its toll on your body in ways you might not have anticipated. Productivity is directly linked to how well you feel, so you will want to keep your body and mind sharp to optimize your productivity. Let’s take a look at how you can do this, even from your office.

Get Up and Move

That’s right—it’s time to discuss desk-ercises. These will help you get your blood pumping a little bit while also stretching out your muscles. If possible, you can also take a short walk around the block or the parking lot, and take the stairs whenever possible. If you can’t break free of your desk, here are three exercises that can help to improve your comfort at work:

Neck rolls – Relax and lean your head forward and slowly rotate in a circle for 10 seconds. Repeat it by doing it in the opposite direction.
Chair squats – Stand up at your desk and just lower your body down until you almost reach your chair. Do this 10-15 times.
Wrist and finger stretch – Place both hands on your desk with your palms down and your fingers pointed toward your body, lean slightly forward and hold for five seconds.

It’s also important to exercise your brain, especially if you are responsible for several tasks throughout the day that could be mentally draining you. Here are some ways you can refocus your mind:

Meditate – The easiest way to meditate is to simply sit back in your chair, close your eyes for a couple of seconds, and focus on your breathing. Breathe in through your nose, counting to four, hold it four seconds, then breathe out to the same four-count. Hold for four seconds with no air in your lungs, then repeat.
Change it up – Making small adjustments to your daily routine can make big differences in your mindset. You can try sitting in new places to get work done, shift your priorities around, or spend some time developing your networking skills. Breaking out of the routine can be a major way to transform your workday.
Fundamental skill development – Practicing the fundamental skills of running a business can help you in your day-to-day tasks. Simple things like working on your memory, typing skills, software skills, or even communication skills, can all help shake things up a bit throughout the day.

We know that work can be stressful, but if you approach it mindfully and incorporate the above techniques, you can make for a more comfortable and productive existence. What are some of your favorite ways to make your workday more productive and enjoyable? Let us know in the comments.

Jun, 2022

Computers Don’t Like Physical Persuasion

Sometimes it might be tempting to just smack your computer to make it work appropriately, and while it’s often a joke that this can fix the problem, it’s not something that we would recommend you get used to doing. Let’s discuss why it might not be a good idea to abuse your computer.

Repair-via-Violence is Sometimes Referred to as Percussive Maintenance

Yes, there is an actual term for hitting your technology to make it work. According to Techopedia, the definition is as follows:

“In IT, percussive maintenance is the art of shaking, banging or pounding on something, in order to make it work. Experts generally define percussive maintenance as the use of rough impact on physical hardware to solve some type of malfunction.”

It might work for you in your own life, particularly with technology like radios or televisions, but why shouldn’t you do this with your office technology?

Because It Can Break Your Business’ Technology, That’s Why

The reason why percussive maintenance might work sometimes is that issues can come about due to loose connections, and the impact could actually reposition the internal components. However, the opposite could happen, and you could damage your computer even more.

Comparatively speaking, the odds of making a problem worse through percussive maintenance are just as high as you resolving the problem. It’s not a risk that you want to take with something as expensive and important as your office technology. It’s like dropping your phone; your heart drops as you fumble with it, knowing full well that it will cause more harm than good if it hits the ground.

Even though percussive maintenance has been known to work on occasion, it’s not something that we ever recommend. You should leave your computer problems to us so that you don’t have to beat your technology to make it work.

With Managed Services, You’ll Have a Better Option than Just Hitting Your Device

NuTech Services can help you identify the causes of your technology problems and take the appropriate steps to resolve them. To learn more, reach out to us at 810.230.9455.

Apr, 2022

Setting Up Your Company’s Wireless System Should Be More Involved than Just Plugging in a Router

We live in a world that is constantly connected, be it through a wireless connection or through your smartphone’s mobile data. This makes it especially important to practice appropriate cybersecurity practices while you’re connected to a wireless network. Let’s go over some wireless cybersecurity best practices you can keep in mind when using your wireless technology.

Change Default Router Passwords

Generally speaking, many users will keep the same network names and passwords for their wireless networks, something which can be dangerous and exploited by hackers. If a hacker knows the device type, they can look up the default passwords online, making it all the more likely they can compromise the network. Be sure to change your network names and passwords so they are as best protected as possible.

Restrict Access to Your Networks or Set Up Guest Networks

Don’t let just anyone use your wireless network! You should restrict access to your network to only employees or on an as-needed basis. If you must give guests access to your network, set up a separate wireless network for them to do so; this gives you greater control and privacy on the network where most of your data is moving.

Patch your Access Points

Any devices accessing your data over your wireless network should be kept up-to-date and secured. This means making sure they are all equipped with appropriate security measures themselves, and while it can be challenging to keep up with patches and updates, it’s something that must be done to maintain optimal security. For example, you need to ensure all computers, including laptops and desktops, as well as smartphones and other mobile devices, are kept secure while accessing your company’s wireless network.

Implement Comprehensive Security Measures

The same network security measures used for your in-house network apply to your wireless network. This means implementing antivirus, antimalware, and firewalls to keep threats off your network and promptly eliminate those that do manage to make their way through.

Use a Virtual Private Network

A VPN can help by encrypting data sent to and received by your wireless network, protecting it from unauthorized onlookers. Essentially, it can no longer be spied on or stolen, as it will be encrypted; without the decryption key, it won’t be useful to anyone.

Let Us Help!

NuTech Services can help to equip your business with all of the technology it needs to remain safe and secure while off the safety of your in-house network. Whether it’s training your employees on security best practices or setting up powerful mobile security solutions, we’ve got you covered; just reach out to us at 810.230.9455.

Mar, 2022

How Proactive IT Management Works Better

How does your company manage its technology? Does it struggle with the idea of managing multiple workstations, server units, networking components, mobile devices, and more? If so, then read on—we have some tips to help you better manage the many different technological parts of your organization.

Keep in mind that this is general advice that can be applied to just about any company. If you want specific advice, we are happy to have a discussion with you with a network consultation!

Less Is More

The more complex an IT infrastructure gets, the more difficult it gets to manage. Therefore, in order to keep your infrastructure as easy to manage as possible, we recommend keeping things simple, or as simple as is appropriate for your business practices. The reason for this is that IT infrastructures with large amounts of varied software and hardware can be difficult to keep centralized and monitored without a dedicated technician to keep tabs on it.

Proactive is Better

If we asked you whether it is better to deal with problems that have derailed your productivity or to prevent them entirely and dodge that bullet, what would you say? Proactive maintenance is one of the most important parts of running any IT infrastructure. If problems persist and grow to be so bad that they cause downtime, then you are leaving money on the table and putting your business at risk. It’s better to just keep the issues from growing to become this bad in the first place.

Outsource When Necessary

We know that not all companies have access to the same talented group of IT technicians, and this lack of talent can often lead to businesses foregoing IT maintenance altogether or relying on existing resources that are not adequately trained or prepared to handle this responsibility. In situations like this, you can rely on outsourcing to an appropriate third party. Even if you have an in-house IT department, outsourcing can be a valuable investment to save your business

If you want to take the guesswork out of IT management, NuTech Services can help with that, too. Our trained technicians can provide all of the support you need to ensure maximum productivity and efficiency with your network and IT resources. To learn more, reach out to us at 810.230.9455.

Feb, 2022

It’s Important Not to Overdo Things When Working from Home

Contrary to what many might assume, remote work is commonly associated with overwork—employees working longer hours and having difficulties disconnecting from professional life during their personal time. This can have some serious consequences if not offset in some way, so let’s discuss how this can be accomplished.

Overwork is a Serious Issue, Especially for Remote Workers

Recent years have seen a lot of work and workplace-related issues come to the forefront that, quite frankly, this blog isn’t the place to discuss… things like racial imbalances and wage inequality have gotten more attention than ever. However, overwork is a challenge that we can tackle here.

There are many ways that your business could be influenced by the impacts of overwork. Your employees can quickly become burned out, as overworked employees experience anxiety and fatigue, along with physical symptoms like pain, headaches, and vision problems. Remote work can also become detrimental to the communications your employees share with one another… and we can’t forget all the added stress and pressure that the pandemic has brought.

All things considered, it’s no wonder that overworking could ultimately be a detriment to an employee’s overall performance and productivity. So, what can be done to prevent this kind of overworking?

Reducing Overwork in Remote Work

While it isn’t realistic that you can hold each of your employees’ hands throughout their workday (and doing so might result in more than a few HR inquiries), there are things you can do to help reduce how much your employees are held back by the tendency to overwork themselves—starting with your policies in and out of the office.

Encourage Schedules

In the home and in the office alike, adhering to a schedule is an effective way to keep the amount of time an employee commits to work processes in balance with their off-hours. This should include not only the time spent working in terms of keeping to their scheduled work hours, but also as a way to help them establish a routine in their personal life that helps them better prepare for their time working.

Track Their Time with Specialized Tools

While time tracking can help keep your team accountable to you, they also help keep them accountable to themselves. Giving them a referenceable way to gauge where they are in their day and their assigned tasks can be of great help. If you need assistance in establishing which of the available time-tracking tools would be best for your needs, we’re always here to provide this help to you.

Empower Your Team to Chime In

If your team members are becoming overwhelmed by their work responsibilities and simply cannot finish all they are assigned in the time available to them, you need to be sure that they know they can come to you to inform you of this. They also need to be comfortable doing so, so operational issues can be resolved as they are revealed.

If you are in need of the tools that can help encourage your team’s success, NuTech Services can help. Give us a call at 810.230.9455 today.

Dec, 2021

Here Are Some of the Best Outlook Shortcuts

Microsoft Outlook, just like its sibling solutions Word and Excel, has several keyboard shortcuts that are designed to make navigating and using the application easier than ever. We’ve put together a short list of the ones that you might need to know so that you can take your productivity to the next level.

We always like to recommend that you print out this blog article so that you can use it as a quick reference.

Basic Outlook Functions

Here are some of the basic functions of Microsoft Outlook

Create a message: Ctrl + Shift + M
Send a message: Alt + S
Insert a file: Alt + N, A, F
Delete an item: Delete
Reply to a message: Alt + H, R, P
Reply All to a message: Alt + H, R, A
Forward a message: Alt + H, F, W

Navigating Outlook

Here are some other shortcuts you can use to move around Outlook and examine it from different views.

Switch to Mail: Ctrl + 1
Switch to Calendar: Ctrl + 2
Switch to Contacts: Ctrl + 3
Switch to Tasks: Ctrl + 4
Switch to Notes: Ctrl + 5
Switch to Folders: Ctrl + 6
Switch to Shortcuts: Ctrl + 7
Switch to the next open message: Ctrl + .
Switch to last open message: Ctrl + ,

Creating Items or Files

You may need to make items within Outlook. Here are some of the ways you can do so.

Create an appointment: Ctrl + Shift + A
Create a contact: Ctrl + Shift + C
Create a contact group: Ctrl + Shift + L
Create a folder: Ctrl + Shift + E
Create a meeting request: Ctrl + Shift + Q

Obviously we cannot list them all here, so if you want to view even more Outlook shortcuts, visit Microsoft’s official website. What other tips should we cover on this blog? Let us know in the comments, and be sure to subscribe!

Dec, 2021

Remember These Tips if You Are Traveling During the Holidays

If you are traveling this holiday season to bridge the gaps created during the COVID-19 pandemic, then you’ll want to take specific precautions about your technology. Here are some of the best ways you can keep your technology secure while you travel from point A to point B, as well as how we can help you do so!

Be Cautious of Your Internet Connections

There’s nothing quite like a secure Internet connection, especially while traveling. Places where many people gather, like airports and hotels, are known to have spotty Internet reputations in terms of the connection quality and the kinds of security measures enabled on them. You can never know what threats are lurking on a network that is not as secure as your in-house infrastructure. When it’s not possible to get work done on your office network, we recommend using a virtual private network to encrypt your connection while traveling.

That said, there are significant differences between consumer-based VPN solutions and commercial-based ones. Some of the consumer-based solutions, like NordVPN, TunnelBear, ExpressVPN, and others are not designed with businesses in mind. These services do, however, lend themselves well for the purposes of traveling, as they encrypt your data when it is sent over Wi-Fi. This extra protection can go a long way when using a public network, but be mindful that the quality will most likely be determined by the price point. Even if they say they don’t store information about you, chances are they do.

We are happy to help you make the distinction between commercial and consumer-based VPNs. Give us a call at 810.230.9455.

Enable Multi-Factor Authentication and Location Services on Mobile Devices

Losing a device can be stressful, especially when you know it’s probably not stuffed down in the couch, outside your house in the yard, or somewhere else close to home. Therefore, you’ll need to take extra measures to protect your data, especially while traveling. Multi-factor authentication and location services can help you keep your device secure and potentially help you locate your device, should you lose track of it at any point on your adventures.

Establish Mobile Device Policies Ahead of Time

If you accidentally misplace your smartphone or another device while traveling (it can happen, airlines frequently misplace luggage, etc.), you’ll want to wipe that data remotely. This is done through device policies, and can be set up for every user on your network who uses their mobile device for work.

That said, losing a device means you lose the data on it, so you don’t want your data all in one place. Ensuring that critical information is always stored centrally on your network in a place that you are sure is getting backed up will mean nothing ever gets lost.

NuTech Services can help you travel safely and conduct business, even while out of the office. To learn more, reach out to us at 810.230.9455.

Nov, 2021

Our Technicians Can Deliver A Lot of Value

If you don’t properly maintain your technology, then it’s simply not going to be one of your company’s strengths. It’s a simple statement, but it’s one that many modern businesses fail to act upon. A managed service provider can make it much easier to get the technology maintenance your business needs to succeed. Let’s take a closer look at the people who deliver these services to your organization.

The Modern IT Technician

The accepted norm for years was that the computer technician’s job was to fix individual PCs. Unfortunately, as technology grew ever-more-complex, so too did the responsibilities of these positions. It’s not enough to have technical assistance these days; technicians must have knowledge which encompasses all facets of business technology.

Today’s technician must be hired outright or as a part of an expert team like those at NuTech Services, and to make matters more complicated, they must know all kinds of things about technology of varying complexities. They need to know how to fix a computer, as well as how to do it remotely, including how to manage and install networks, identify and mitigate threats, how to structure a business’ IT around their goals, and most important of all, how to do all of the above in a fast-paced environment.

Ultimately, a competent IT technician needs to be an effective problem solver and knowledgeable about a plethora of best practices. They may also need to pick up certifications in various skills and softwares. These certifications are not easy to achieve, either; they require a certain level of knowledge and expertise, to be sure. Here are some of the certifications you might expect from technicians:

CompTIA A+: Perhaps one of the most well-recognized certifications out there, CompTIA A+ certification means that the holder is competent across hardware, software, and problem solving in a variety of computing platforms. There is also a specific security certification (CompTIA Security+) for those who are competent in basic security practices and troubleshooting.
Microsoft Certified Professional: Microsoft is perhaps the most established software vendor for businesses, so holding certifications in these softwares is extremely valuable. Some of the certifications include Office Specialist, Certified Solution Developer, and more. A technician holding these credentials is a serious boon for any business that uses Microsoft products.
CISSP: Certified Information System Security Professional is one of the most recognized security-specific certifications a technician can earn.
Oracle or Microsoft SQL Certifications: Databases are not the easiest thing to manage, but they are important for any business. These certifications are perfect for technicians proficient in SQL management.
ITIL: Help desk technicians should have the Information Technology Infrastructure Library certification to show that they have a clear understanding of industry standard best practices.

If your technicians are certified, you’ll know that they have the skills necessary to help your business succeed. If you want more information on how our technicians can help your organization, reach out to us at 810.230.9455.

We also wanted to take this opportunity to thank our great techs at NuTech Services for their hard work and dedication!

Oct, 2021

5 Useful Technology Tips Your Business Should Consider

In order to get the most value out of your business technology, it’s important to understand best practices and how they can figure into your business operations. Let’s examine some of the most effective practices that you should include in your day-to-day operations and how they can benefit your organization.

Emphasize Security

Security should be a top priority for your company. Considering the fact that you can rarely turn on the news without seeing headlines of some major cybersecurity breach, you simply cannot underestimate hackers. Hackers consider data to be incredibly valuable, so you should treat it with the same value by protecting it as best you can. Plus, hackers who want to steal your data can do so from anywhere in the world under the right circumstances.

Your company absolutely needs to have sufficient IT protections in place to keep threats away, and your team should also be security-minded if you want to have any hopes of challenging these hackers. This is especially important as the world moves forward with remote and hybrid workplace policies.

Adopt Cloud Computing

Cloud-based options further augment your organization’s ability to handle remote work. Cloud-based options give you the ability to access data, solutions to process and utilize it, collaboration tools to stay in touch while out of the office, and so much more. The cloud can even help with business continuity through the use of cloud-based backups. There is no shortage of benefits to using the cloud in everyday business.

You would think that these options would cost a premium, but you can take advantage of the cloud with little-to-no maintenance needs for a small monthly fee that is easy to fit in any budget.

Automate What You Can

In terms of productivity, nothing helps more than automating specific processes so that they can occur more quickly and more accurately. Automation gives your business the ability to take many traditionally rote responsibilities and remove the human resource aspect of them, replacing them with computing resources.

Unfortunately, the term “automation” is often associated with downsizing and replacing workers with machines. We urge you to shift your mindset and instead consider it as an opportunity to free valuable human resources for other, more valuable tasks. In other words, you are using non-human resources to give people more opportunities to flourish within your organization.

Communicate

Whether you are streaming a video online or using your business’ Voice over IP phone system, your organization is using bandwidth, meaning that this resource will be incredibly valuable for you as you move forward. That said, bandwidth-demanding communication applications are notorious for eating up too much unless you take action to stop them from doing so. You must work with an IT provider like NuTech Services to ensure that your business’ bandwidth needs are being met.

Don’t Sacrifice Quality for Costs’ Sake

The most important takeaway for this blog is the following: make sure you get value out of your technology investments. This does not mean sacrificing quality for the sake of cutting costs. What we’re trying to say is that IT can be expensive, so you want to make sure that any new investments in hardware or other external resources will yield a return on your investment. Instead of cutting costs and settling for less-than-stellar resources, choose to identify inefficiencies and redundancies that can be addressed through implementation of new IT resources.

You can rest assured that NuTech Services is the best value out there for your business’s IT needs. To learn more about what we can do to help your business establish the above best practices, reach out to us at 810.230.9455.

Oct, 2021

Tip of the Week: The Best Practices of Adding People to Emails

Whenever you go to send an email, you might glance at the CC and BCC fields and wonder what they are used for, or perhaps you are an avid user of both. Well, let’s take a look at what CC and BCC are supposed to be used for and whether or not you actually use them for their intended purpose.

Where Do CC and BCC Come From?

CC and BCC are remnants from when paper communication ruled the roost. CC stands for carbon copy, a practice in which a document was copied by layering a carbon sheet between two pieces of paper. Writing utensils would then put pressure on the top sheet of paper with the carbon beneath it applying pressure to the second, creating what is essentially a perfect copy of the message.

In the context of email, CC is sending a copy of a message to another recipient. BCC (or blind carbon copy), on the other hand, allows you to send a copy of a message without the recipients seeing others on the email chain.

When Should You Use CC and BCC?

At first glance, there doesn’t appear to be a major difference between CCing someone and sending a regular email, but there is a bigger one than you might think—especially in terms of proper manners and etiquette. The “To” field and the “CC” field have two different uses. “To” is the field you use to send an email to its main recipients. “CC” is meant to be used when the recipient isn’t directly involved with the conversation, but still wants to be kept in the loop. You can think of CCing someone on an email as providing them with a copy of the email for reference.

BCC is best used when you don’t want other recipients to see who the email was sent to. It’s useful for when you want to respect the privacy of those involved or if you have a long list of recipients that does not necessarily require a mail merge.

Hopefully, this will help you use your email more effectively as a communication tool.

We can help your business learn more about communication solutions and understand how the many technology services you use work toward improving your business. To learn more, reach out to us at 810.230.9455.

Sep, 2021

4 Simple Tips to Secure the Data on a Lost or Stolen Device

With remote work still widely in place, the idea of lost or stolen devices has many companies terrified. Due to this security issue, you must consider what you might do should someone lose track of one of your company’s devices. Here are four ways that you can take preventative measures to ensure that lost or stolen devices don’t become a major security risk for your business.

Utilize Multi-Factor Authentication

First, you want to make sure that whoever finds your device cannot access any of the data found on it. Multi-factor authentication is valuable in this regard, and regardless, it just makes sense to have it enabled. With multiple measures keeping your device secure, like a PIN and a biometric authentication, you should have little trouble with security. Some multi-factor authentication methods also use a secondary device or account that can be just as effective for securing your device.

Turn On Location Services

Most devices have access to location services within their settings, so it’s important that you have these enabled. If you ever lose the device, the enabled location services settings should allow you to locate them, or at least give you an idea of where the device might be. Oftentimes this ballpark estimate is enough to help you figure things out, or at least narrow down the possibilities for where the device could be.

Back Up Your Data

In the event that you cannot locate or recover your device, you will want to know with certainty that your data is safe, even if you have to remotely wipe the device to keep said data safe. This is why we recommend that you always back up your data, even on a mobile device. The last thing you need when dealing with a device that is lost or stolen is data loss, too.

Utilize a Mobile Device Management Tool

We understand that you don’t want to think about what would happen in the event you lose a device, but it’s still something that you must consider. We can help you prepare for such an event through the implementation of a Unified Threat Management tool from NuTech Services. With our comprehensive mobile device management platform, you get all of the features above, plus some. It’s a great opportunity to optimize your odds of success should you lose a device.

If you take nothing else away from this article, we hope that you at least remember that the best way to combat a lost or stolen device is to adequately prepare for it. To learn more about how you can do so, reach out to NuTech Services at 810.230.9455.

Jul, 2021

How Often Should You Train Your Team on Cybersecurity?

Cybersecurity is an important part of running a business, especially in today’s age of ransomware and other high-profile hacks. It stands to reason that you periodically assess how effective your security practices are and how well-prepared your team is to respond to threats, but how often should you do so? Let’s take a closer look.

How Often Should You Train and Evaluate Your Team in Cybersecurity Practices?

With how commonplace security threats are today, you need to ensure that your security is as comprehensive as possible. While you can implement powerful security software that can alleviate some of the issues related to network security, it is crucial to remember that these solutions are only as effective as your staff’s understanding of network security. You must prepare your team to handle cybersecurity events appropriately. Here are some ways that you can make sure your cybersecurity training is up to snuff.

Regularity

Sharing training materials with your team is great, but the frequency at which it happens can make or break the experience. A once-a-year pow-wow is not going to do the trick, as cyberthreats are far too prevalent and constantly changing for an annual training to be effective enough. More frequent training is going to be more effective for protecting your organization’s network and informing your team on how to do their jobs in the most secure way possible.

Reinforcement

When we talk about reinforcement, we mean taking what is learned during these training sessions and applying it to real-life scenarios. In other words, showing rather than telling. If you simulate cyberattacks that show how real-life threats operate, you can test your employees’ abilities to react to them.

How Often Should You Train, and Test, Your Team?

Proper security training is not something that happens once; it’s something that happens regularly throughout an employees’ tenure at your organization. Today’s threat landscape is always trying to one-up security standards, and if you fail to keep up with these constantly evolving threats, you are placing your business at risk needlessly.

NuTech Services can help your business establish security standards and safeguards that can keep your business safe, as well as assist with the training of your employees to best understand these standards. To learn more, reach out to us at 810.230.9455.

Jul, 2021

Clean Up Your Computer with These Digital Clutter Practices

Computers are supposed to make life easier, and in a lot of ways, they do. However, using a computer can get complicated at times, especially when you are working with tons of files, applications, and resources on a daily basis. This can lead to a ton of digital clutter, which can be counterproductive and time-wasting. Let’s learn about how you can reduce digital clutter on your work PC.

Your Files

A common practice is to save files to the desktop so that they are easily accessible at a later date. While this does make things easier short-term, imagine saving one new file to the desktop every day for a month without removing any of the old ones. There is a saying: “A place for everything and everything in its place.” You can apply this line of thought to minimize your digital clutter. Set up a folder system for your files and make sure that you can store them in the appropriate places.

Keep in mind, most workplaces require that work-related documents get stored on the server. If that’s the case, you shouldn’t be keeping important or sensitive information on your desktop in the first place. Your server or network directory that is in place is likely being backed up and protected, while your desktop computer might not be in most cases.

You can also cut down on digital clutter by deleting unused or unnecessary files. One folder that is almost always cluttered is the Downloads folder. More often than not, you have files here that you haven’t looked at since you downloaded them, and there is almost certainly a better place for them all if they are even necessary in the first place. We recommend routinely cleaning up your files so that things don’t get too cluttered over time. For system files, however, do NOT delete these. If you ever have any questions about which files are okay to delete, you should contact your IT resource.

Your Programs

Sometimes you might download software because it solves an immediate problem at that moment, then never use it again. That application is now taking a little space on your computer and if you aren’t keeping it updated, it could lead to vulnerabilities. This is why we recommend that you uninstall unused applications. Ask yourself the same question as before; do you get value from this program? Have you used it at all in the past couple of months?

We do want to put a slight disclaimer here, though. You should always check with your IT staff or trusted IT resource, like NuTech Services, before ever trying to uninstall an app. This is especially true if you don’t know the purpose the application serves. It might actually be there for a very specific reason, so it is always better to err on the side of caution.

Your Media

As time progresses, you likely accumulate all kinds of media, from pictures to videos to music. All of this can create a lot of clutter on your device. The solution here is simple: ask yourself the question, “Do I get value out of this?” This question is at the heart of the minimalism concept and can be applied here, too. For example, you might have gone on vacation and captured a bunch of great photos, but we are willing to bet that you also captured a bunch of not-so-great ones. Why hold on to them?

It’s important that you have a place where you can store all of this media in a convenient and organized space. For this, as well as any other personal file storage needs, we recommend a good cloud solution. For business owners looking to securely store documents in the cloud, we can help with that too.

Implement a Cloud Solution

As you might expect, technology has provided a solution to many of the common problems that organizations run into. Chief among them is cloud computing and cloud storage, offering an excellent way to minimize digital clutter on your devices.

NuTech Services can work with your business to implement the best cloud solutions for your needs. Get started today by chatting with one of our skilled and knowledgeable technicians about how your organization can best utilize the cloud. To get the conversation started, reach out to us at 810.230.9455.

Jun, 2021

Use the SMART Model to Set Actionable Goals

When you started your business, you had a specific goal in mind. You wanted to prove something, to create something worth sharing with the world. We all have goals and aspirations, but it’s not always clear what the best path toward those goals is. Using a simple framework, you can maximize your odds of success and set great goals that you are much more likely to achieve long-term.

Created in 1980 by George Doran, SMART goals is a framework used for fleshing out goals that are Specific, Measurable, Attainable, Relevant, and Time-Bound. The idea here is that, by defining goals based on this acronym, you will have a greater understanding of the goals you seek to achieve, as well as how to achieve them.

One thing we would like to point out before diving into what makes a SMART goal is that goal-setting and habit-forming are two different things. The two are not interchangeable; strong habits are the impetus for achieving goals. Having solid habits is but one step toward achieving a goal, although it should be said that having a strong goal can provide motivation for building a habit.

Specific

The devil is in the details, or so they say. If you can answer a series of specific questions about your goal, then you will have a much better shot at achieving it. Here are some questions to consider for making your goal more specific:

Who is involved in making this goal a reality?
What is it you hope to achieve?
When do you want to work towards this goal?
Where is your goal taking place?
Why are you working toward this goal (this is perhaps the most important question of all)?

Measurable

A measurable goal is one that you can quantify somehow. In other words, you are using a unit of some sort to measure progress towards your goal. This might include profits earned, time spent, clients serviced, etc. You can also take this a step further by using milestones. For example, if you have a goal of replacing your office desktop solutions with new hardware, you could stagger progress toward this goal by department or units replaced.

Attainable

When asking yourself if a goal is attainable, consider just how far beyond your reach it actually is. Naturally, you don’t want to set a “safe” goal, i.e. one that you can easily achieve. While there is some merit to doing this early in the game, you should be challenging yourself and your business to extend beyond its reach. That said, your goal should not be so outlandish that it is impossible to reach. It should be just beyond your perceived ceiling.

Relevant

If a goal is relevant, this means that it is something that bleeds into more than one aspect of your organization. In other words, these goals are focused on what you truly want. This is especially helpful for getting your employees on board with the organization’s goals. If more profits mean more success for them and their careers, then they will be more likely to buy into the goals and strive to do their best to meet them.

Time-Bound

All good goals should have a concrete endpoint. Whether it is the end of the week or the end of the month, your goal should have an end date. You will either have completed your goal by this date, or you will have not completed it. You might be surprised by how much having an end date can influence your decision-making process while you are working toward the goal. You might find yourself making smarter choices, as no matter how much progress you are making, that end date creeps ever closer.

What Are Your SMART Goals?

Now that you know about SMART goals, what are some of your long-term goals to work towards? We bet some technology solutions and management from NuTech Services can help take some of the guesswork out of it. To learn more about how we can help you achieve your business-related goals, reach out to us at 810.230.9455.

May, 2021

Improving Your Business Communication for the New Remote Normal

The fact that many of their workers never see each other has led to some interesting shifts in the way that businesses approach communications. They used to just walk across the room and have a conversation, but as people try to make sense of the hybrid work environment, communications will continue to be a key. Let’s take a look at how your internal and external communications strategies will change to meet the needs of your roving workforce.

The Hybridized Has Created Certain Challenges

Your team has been using multiple modes of communication for a while. They utilize email, they send each other text messages and instant messages, they collaborate on files together, they’ve likely even spoken to each other on the phone. The one thing they haven’t been able to do since the pandemic struck in early 2020, is talk face-to-face.

You’re probably thinking that they’ve interacted face-to-face on video conference calls, but consider for a minute that a large percentage of communication is non-verbal, and we don’t mean Facebook Messenger texts, we mean from body language. That aspect has been eliminated completely, and some organizations have struggled without it.

So while communications may not be the same for every business, we can bet that if your team hasn’t seen each other in-person in months, there is probably something being missed. Here are a few solid practices that you can start to normalize communications in the new normal.

Internal Communication Practices

Lead by Example: When attempting to spur on better communications inside your business, you need to take the reins and lead by example. Not only do you need to communicate your expectations to your team, you need to be right there with them to ensure they are meeting those demands.
Personalization: Ditching the jargon-filled business productivity rants is a solid practice regardless of the situation you find your business in. Internal communications should be about collaboration and cooperation and clearing the air so there is less confusion and fewer impediments to progress.
Switch It Up: With so much in flux, it is important that you use all of your communications in a way that benefits the process it supports. For example, if you have a project team that can’t meet because it’s crewmembers aren’t in the office at the same time, make sure that there is a video conference meeting in lieu of a conference room meeting. Using all the tools at your disposal to normalize communications in your business can be a major benefit.

External Communication Practices

Keep Your Contacts Updated: Your business is making moves and it’s not a bad idea to share it with the people you depend on. Your clients appreciate being kept in the know, your vendors can use good ideas at their own business, and prospects will do more business with a company that keeps things transparent.
Empathize With Current Issues: We’ve all been dealing with major problems for more than a year, and if your business has been fortunate enough to come through it in good shape, make sure to let people know that you are ready to help in whatever way you can.
Speak Directly Whenever Possible: As long as it doesn’t hurt your business, being direct can really help move things forward. Sometimes people need to be handled carefully, but for the most part people respond to plain speaking and straight-forward messaging.

At NuTech Services, we can help your business sort through the many issues you will face by going hybrid. Give us a call to learn more at 810.230.9455.