Central Texas, particularly around Austin, is a pretty populous area, with lots of businesses functioning there. Just about all of these businesses will need to use IT, and will therefore benefit from a relationship with a trustworthy consultant who can help them both avoid risk and optimize their operations. Let’s go into what business owners and leaders in and around Cedar Park can do to find the best IT consultants for their needs.
To begin, let’s start by establishing what an IT consultant actually does.
As modern businesses rely more and more on their IT, the services of an IT consultant become all the more important. If your business utilizes computers, hosts its data on servers, accesses the Internet, and/or stores documents digitally, like many around San Antonio and Austin do, you would benefit from a relationship with an IT consultant.
Some businesses are in a position where they can hire a dedicated in-house IT manager, or even a Chief Information Officer (or CIO). Those small and mid-sized businesses that aren’t, however, can find extreme value in outsourcing these needs to the IT consultants provided by managed service providers.
A managed services provider—or MSP—is a business that provides sustained computer support and monitoring services to other businesses. Nowadays, when someone uses a term like “IT company” or “help desk” or “technology consultant” or even “computer company,” they’re likely referring to an MSP like us.
However, not all MSPs operate in the same way. Some may have stuck to the hourly support fees, others may work based on monthly agreements. Some, unfortunately, will do the bare minimum for their clients, while others elect to form mutually beneficial partnerships and commit to really optimizing their clients’ capabilities by caring for their IT infrastructures.
Let’s explore some of the needs that a good MSP can help a business meet.
Any business, big or small, startup or established company, can see significant benefits from a network that is designed well. From ensuring that your entire team has reliable access to their necessary resources through a stable connection to preventing obstacles like bottlenecks and cyberthreats from impeding business operations, an intelligent and strategic networking plan is a true asset that modern operations require.
This is especially true of the wireless networks that are oh-so-common nowadays, as they can be particularly temperamental. Trying to set up these kinds of networks and purchasing the hardware for it without some insight into your infrastructure can quickly become a money pit and time sink, making a wireless site survey an invaluable investment to avoid such obstacles.
The same can also be said about planning, maintaining, and improving your business’ server room and the critical infrastructure involved.
A business’ security needs can also be categorized between two labels. The first, cybersecurity, refers to all the methods that a business can (and should) use to protect itself from various cyberthreats, including ransomware, phishing attacks, malware, data breaches, and all the others. The second, physical security, refers to the protections that a business can (and again, should) use to protect its location from various issues, including defenses like security cameras, access control, and maintaining accountability within its walls.
Most of the attention is—generally speaking—put on the cybersecurity measures, particularly since it is the most rapidly evolving element of modern business protections. This is part of the reason why it is so important to thoroughly vet any prospective IT consultants to ensure they are in line and up to speed on current security trends.
Make no mistake: your provider needs to prioritize cybersecurity, hard stop. It cannot be seen as a “luxury expense” as it once was. It is now a hard business requirement, as a business will certainly see ramifications if it fails to implement it.
Don’t hesitate to reach out to us to find out more about our cybersecurity services, either by calling (512) 343-8891 or checking out some of the descriptions we have here on our website.
Stepping beyond the purview of an IT consultant, it is important that we address some of the other services that an MSP can provide—such as, for example, the on-demand support services your team will be apt to need throughout their time at the office. Providing them with a resource to turn to helps to create a more consistent and secure workplace. Over time, the MSP will also review past support requests to extrapolate ways to improve your network further.
Cloud computing and the many options it makes more accessible have been a major factor in many businesses’ continued capabilities to compete. Whether it’s being used for its efficiency boosts or its potential to eliminate some infrastructure costs, the cloud becomes all the more valuable when used under the guidance of a skilled consultant.
You could only do worse than choose us as your committed technology partner and support resource. There are a few reasons why this is the case:
If any of this sounds intriguing to you, don’t hesitate to reach out! We’d love to take some time and discuss what we can help you accomplish. Give us a call at (512) 343-8891 today.
About the author
Capstone Works, Inc. has been serving the Cedar Park area since 2001, providing IT Support such as technical helpdesk support, computer support, and consulting to small and medium-sized businesses.
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715 Discovery Blvd
Suite 511
Cedar Park, Texas 78613