3 Things You Can Do to Hold More Effective Meetings

Do you ever feel like your business’ meetings simply don’t go as planned? These are often the most dangerous kind of meetings, as employees who have better things to do may find that meetings aren’t a great way of using their time (or their skills) properly. If you are having meetings that just seem like a waste of time, it’s your responsibility to start thinking about how you can improve them. Here are a few tips:

Have Better Agendas
How does your business currently conduct meetings? Perhaps you go in with a specific topic in mind, or maybe they are weekly meetings that are held whether you have something of substance to say or not. Either way, it’s best to go in with an agenda (and stick to it) if you want the most productive meetings.

Use Better Technology
Technology can give your meetings a kickstart when they are otherwise simply people sitting around a table and having a chat. You can use media, including slideshows and infographics, to provide context for the conversation. Furthermore, if meeting in the office isn’t an option, you can implement mobile technology and web conferencing software to keep your team connected regardless of where they are located.

Hold an Open Forum
People like to feel involved in meetings, and they will enjoy them more when their involvement means something. You can open up your meetings at the end for people to voice concerns or make statements. This can, in turn, open up a dialogue that may not otherwise have been created.

Does your business need a hand elevating its meeting game? Net Activity can help.  To learn more reach out to us at 216-503-5150.

[INFOGRAPHIC] 5 Rules For Super-Strong Passwords

For the last several years, industry experts have been sounding the alarm about password security.  We’ve known for quite some time that one of the biggest weak spots in corporate security is the fact that employee passwords are notoriously weak. Millions have been spent on security education.  Seminars have been held on the dangers of using weak passwords and using the same password across multiple websites.

Endless rounds of training courses have been held trying to ram the point home.

The result? Not much has changed. According to a recent survey conducted by Google, two out of three users surveyed are still holding firm, using the same bad password habits they were before all the money and time was spent trying to convince them of the errors of their ways.

With that scary thought in mind…here are 5 really important rules to keep in mind when developing super-strong passwords.  It truly is the best way to protect your identity and your data.

2 Places You Should Never Cut Corners With IT

Today’s technology empowers business owners in ways that would have seemed incredible even 10 years ago. With a humming network connecting your team to the rest of the world, and with just a few simple keystrokes, your organization can complete tasks that used to take days.

However, the endless possibility that accompanies technological advancement comes with a catch: to be truly effective, IT requires investment – not just of capital, but of time and attention, resources all too dear to the harried entrepreneurs of the modern age. Perhaps this is why, everywhere you look, small to midsize business owners are not only failing to realize the full potential of their technology, but are unknowingly leaving massive gaps in their systems and processes for malicious entities to exploit. And so, budding companies that would otherwise dominate the market are prematurely stamped out by competitors with more tech savvy or are hamstrung by costly data breaches.

Even in the midst of this trend, we understand how easy it is to ignore your company’s glaring technological gaps. You imagine that you don’t have the time or money to address the issue, or that you’ll do it down the road once your business is better established. But no matter how big or small your business may be, there are two foundational tech concerns that you should never cut corners on.

1 SECURITY

Pretty much every successful company today is intimately intertwined with the technology on which it depends. So it makes sense that your primary worry should be protecting what’s yours from those who want to snatch it. Think of it this way: would you hire a $5 locksmith to secure your office? Of course not. Then why do so many business owners put their livelihood behind a flimsy, $5 firewall – or, even worse, a free antivirus? In 2018, it is more likely that your business will fall victim to a cyber-attack than it is that thieves will arrive at your office in the dead of night, according to a 2017 report from Kroll.

In 2015, SEC Commissioner Luis A. Aguilar wrote, “Cyber security is clearly a concern that the entire business community shares, but it represents an especially pernicious threat to smaller businesses. The reason is simple: small and midsize businesses are not just targets of cybercrime; they are the principal targets.” With this in mind, cyber security should always be one of your top priorities.

2 TECH SUPPORT THAT GOES BEYOND THE “BREAK-FIX” APPROACH

It’s difficult to overestimate the money, time and stress it can cost you when your technology breaks down. Between server downtime, haywire software, connectivity issues and myriad other potential problems, when your stuff breaks, it can cause more than a massive headache – it can put you out of business.

Most business owners realize this, but many still opt for the classic “break-fix” strategy. Unfortunately, “If it ain’t broke…” is a dangerous maxim by which to steer a ship. If you wait to address a problem until after it becomes an issue, you’re inviting a crisis into the equation that could easily have been avoided with a keen, proactive eye. And when your server fails, or your network experiences hiccups, or some other unforeseen issue rears its ugly head, an unfamiliar break-fix technician will take longer to fix the issue than an expert who’s been working with your specific network from start to finish and already knows it inside out. It’s just not worth it.

In addition, proactively managed service providers will consistently make recommendations to keep your company competitive. Whether it be a small upgrade to software here, a patch there or an overhaul of your server system, these moves can be invaluable in the breakneck marketplace. And, of course, since they’re keeping tabs on your tech at all times, any potential problems get addressed long before they hit your bottom line.

By leveraging technology, you and your business can do amazing things. Partner with a team of IT professionals like those at Net Activity who are actively invested in your success and confidently push your company into 2019.

Microsoft 365 or Office 365: What Product Is Right for Your Business?

As we’re sure you already know, Microsoft has become a juggernaut in the increasingly competitive business world with its countless solutions for organizations both small and large. With so many options, it can be tricky to figure out the right solution for your business. Thankfully, you don’t have to go about it alone. We’ll help you understand the difference between Microsoft’s Office 365 and Microsoft 365 solution… and yes, they are different.

Office 365
We’re sure you’ve already heard quite a bit about Microsoft’s productivity suite, Microsoft Office. In its most basic form, it consists of a word processor (Microsoft Word), slideshow creator (PowerPoint), and spreadsheet builder (Excel), among many others, depending on the subscription plan. Office 365 is essentially the Microsoft productivity suite, but in cloud application format. These services can be accessed either through the cloud or an on-premise solution, depending on where they are hosted and stored. Organizations that already have Windows 10 and other solutions for security can easily take advantage of Office 365.

Microsoft 365
Let’s say you wanted to upgrade to Office 365, but you don’t have the adequate operating system on your device. Maybe you simply want to upgrade to the latest version of Windows, as well. Microsoft 365 is for businesses that don’t want to purchase an operating system and all of the solutions in pieces, instead offering organizations the complete package in an easy-to-consume format. Here is a list of what Microsoft 365 offers organizations at its most basic level:

• The Office 365 suite
• 1TB of storage
• Device management capabilities via Microsoft Intune
• Basic data and app security

There are also enterprise offerings for organizations that have more than 300 users.

Which One is Right for Me?
In the end, it all depends on where your business currently stands. If you have solutions you’re happy with, as well as storage and data security, then perhaps Office 365 will be your preferred choice. If you have nothing and want to get going as soon as possible, however, Microsoft 365 might be worth investing in. If you’re not sure, Net Activity can help you determine what your best options are. To learn more, about our “No Servers Needed”  IT in a Box packages reach out to us at 216-503-5150.

Do You Know When You Need to Upgrade Your Business Computer?

It’s not something that business owners like to think about, but the fact of the matter is that no technology you implement will last until the day you close up shop for business. To mitigate the costs of your technology failing, you need to take measures now, including proactive monitoring for the various signs of failure. Be on the lookout for the following.

Physical Signs
When your technology starts to grow older, you might notice some signs of physical wear and tear, even if you can’t see it immediately. You might hear your hard drive humming a little louder than you’re used to, or you might hear a fan working a bit too hard. All of this could mean that your machine isn’t doing so well, especially if there is a considerable amount of dust buildup and it’s quite old. The older your devices get, the more you should be on the lookout for these warning signs–especially if it’s a hard drive over a solid state drive.

Digital Signs
Digital signs are one of the easiest ways to identify whether your computer is suffering from some kind of issue. If a good restart doesn’t affect the issue at all, then there might be something on the digital end that’s complicating it. Check to see how your computer handles its average workload. Maybe your computer has difficulty running two or more applications simultaneously. Or you cannot jump quickly among applications that are open on the operating system desktop. Sometimes all it takes is opening up too many tabs in your web browser, too many software solutions being open, or frequent crashes to clue you in that something is wrong.

What You Should Do
As soon as you notice something out of the ordinary with your device, you should reach out to your business’ IT resource. The issue with this is that some small businesses can’t afford on-site resources for this purpose, so critical maintenance might be ignored for too long. Downtime and data loss could occur if you wait too long to address issues with your business technology.

Therefore, we recommend that you reach out to Net Activity as soon as you think your technology might be on it’s way out. We can even remotely monitor your devices for operational deficiencies so you’re never surprised when your device is finished. You might even be prepared for it, too! To learn more, reach out to us at 216-503-5150.

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5 Solid IoT Trends to Look for in 2019

The Internet of Things is simultaneously the most remarkable and the most dangerous current IT trend. This is because it promotes the use of connected devices, while not supplying the integrated security necessary to keep all these new endpoints from stretching an organization’s network security thin. Today, we will look at five trending topics for the IoT, and what they mean for a business like yours.

New Security
It’s not exactly a secret that connected devices don’t always come with powerful security. In fact, the IoT has been looked at as a risk by IT administrators since its inception. After all, if there isn’t any strength to the integrated security of the device, it is a vulnerability that could, if leveraged as such, be a handle to pull an organization’s computing network down with. One of the biggest shifts we will begin to see within the IoT is a focus on device security. As it is right now, devices like wearables, internet-connected appliances, audio/media equipment, and other consumer-driven networked devices are designed to be easy to connect to. This makes them easy to exploit. More concerning are the devices designed for specific business tasks, such as factory equipment, automated utility infrastructure, security cameras, and more, all of which could cause trouble if they were accessed by an outside entity.

More Devices
Depending where you get your information, there are between eight and 25 billion IoT devices connected to the Internet. The smart money would bet on the latter number being more accurate. With that many devices, it’s hard to imagine any network being safe, right? The truth is that we’ve only hit the tip of the iceberg. Estimates put the number of Internet-connected devices at nearly 75 billion by 2025. If the industry is going to grow that rapidly, we’d like to see a whole lot less risk than there is with these devices today.

IoT Devices Will Do More
Most IoT devices do one specific task, and they do it well. With 5G networks right around the proverbial corner, it should usher in a whole new era for IoT. With the enhanced bandwidth afforded by 5G mobile network speeds, management of the endpoints created by IoT devices will suddenly be faster and more responsive. This will likely have a major effect on the security issue mentioned above as well as the limitations of capability that a lot of the devices that have been released thus far have.

It Will Come to Define the Automobile
IoT already has its place in the automotive industry, but as data becomes more and more important for automakers, the need for smart devices will enhance substantially. With the entire automotive industry on the precipice of being yet another data-hungry market, you are sure to see the use of innovative technologies like IoT grow precipitously.

Business to the Edge
Cloud computing has become one of the most important technology innovations of the 21st century (despite being developed in the 20th century). Today virtualized environments of all types provide countless options for the growing business to succeed. The cloud doesn’t work for everything however. Some parts of businesses simply don’t have any use for cloud computing per se. Logistics and shipping departments for manufacturers and distributors can benefit the from use of IoT technology. This is what is called edge computing, as they are important variables in a business’ operations, but aren’t core technology systems.

The Internet of Things will continue to be a major player in the way that businesses move into the information age. If you would like more information on the Internet of Things, and how your business should make IoT security a priority, call Net Activity today at 216-503-5150.

Network Security Automation is Getting Smarter

Researchers are always on the lookout for the latest and greatest in network security technology, and artificial intelligence is one of them. While it has the potential to be a major benefit to your business’ network security, it does so at a steep cost. Is there a way to meet somewhere in the middle?

First, it’s important to understand why A.I. might seem like the answer.

Why is A.I. So Appealing?
You would think that relying on automated systems to protect a network would be less than ideal, but there are a lot of reasons why technology specialists find it such an attractive prospect. For one, there is presently a significant lack of IT expertise in today’s modern business world. This makes it difficult to find workers who are technically skilled enough to provide adequate network security. Furthermore, with more devices connecting to the Internet than ever before, the idea of making network security and threat detection automated through the use of A.I. and algorithms seems like the right call. It makes the jobs of your in-house IT department much easier, but at what cost?

There are many reasons why artificial intelligence for network security should be approached with caution. Here are a few of them.

Consider How Threats Are Detected by A.I.
In order for artificial intelligence to detect threats, it somehow has to be taught how to recognize them. While machine learning can help it better determine the nature of threats over time, the point stands that it must be taught how to initially recognize the good from the bad. The MIT Technology Review explains, in this way, that A.I. is “trained” to detect threats based on tags assigned to specific data sets, which can be reverse-engineered by malware developers to create threats that are more difficult to identify by automated systems.

Over-Reliance on a Single Method
This segues into the next point quite nicely, as with only a single method of detecting threats, A.I. is particularly vulnerable. Imagine that your office has hired a single security guard to keep watch over the front door at night. You don’t have any other guards on-site in the building itself, and no security cameras to alert the local authorities should anything happen that’s not expected. While this is great for that particular entry point, it makes the entire system vulnerable if it’s compromised. Basically, if you rely on only a single platform to detect and eliminate threats, you are exposed if that system is unable to ascertain a certain threat.

Does your business want to optimize your security? Net Activity can help. Contact us at 216-503-5150 to learn more.

Technology Business Reviews: 4 Ways To Add Real Value to Your Business

Small- and medium-sized businesses don’t have the time to maintain IT infrastructure, let alone assess whether it’s still driving value for the company. However, if you want to ensure everything runs smoothly, it’s important to be proactive and conduct technology business reviews when you can.

What is a technology business review?
A technology business review reveals the strengths and weaknesses of your company’s IT framework. It’s often performed by a third-party IT consultant who will give an objective assessment of your technology and provide recommendations to help meet your goals. If done properly, technology business reviews allow you to:

Save money
Every review starts with a cost-benefit analysis to determine whether a solution you’ve implemented is worth the continued investment. If there are technologies costing you a fortune in management and maintenance fees, consultants will advise you to cut them from your budget. The best ones will even recommend cost-effective alternatives so you can do more with less.

Increase productivity
System-wide reviews of your IT infrastructure show you what processes are hindering operations and propose solutions that let you work faster and smarter. For example, if employees are mainly sharing files via email, consultants might suggest cloud collaboration platforms like Office 365 or G Suite that store data in a centralized location for seamless file sharing.

Enhance security and compliance
Technology business reviewers also uncover security risks within your business. Consultants scan for missed patches, poorly configured networks, and other software vulnerabilities that make it easy for cybercriminals to hack your systems.

They’ll then compile their findings to create a more robust defense strategy, usually one that involves implementing advanced solutions like intrusion prevention systems, file access restrictions, and patch management software.

If you operate a business that’s subjected to data regulations like HIPAA or PCI-DSS, consultants will also pinpoint IT practices and solutions that are noncompliant and customize a strategy that ensures the privacy, integrity, and availability of your data.

Implement technologies that fit
Considering that new technologies are released at a breakneck pace, it’s important you pick the ones that make sense for your operation, its goals, and the bottom line. Technology business reviews keep you up to date on the latest technology trends and gauge the impact of implementing them, so you can make informed decisions.

Whether your goal is to increase profits, productivity, security, or all of the above, technology business reviews can put you on the right track. Our seasoned IT consultants can conduct these reviews for you and develop a strategy that gives you an edge over the competition. Just give us a call.

Collaboration Is a Priority For Many Businesses

Innovation takes many forms, whether it’s implementing automated solutions to ensure tasks get done or implementing new ways to get work done by your in-house staff. Collaboration is one of the ways that your business can benefit from innovation, as the right solutions can make a world of difference. We’ll discuss some of the more innovative collaboration solutions that you can implement for your business.

Connecting Solutions
A business utilizes several different software solutions to connect your employees to each other. Some might utilize a video chat system like Microsoft Teams that has built-in communication features to facilitate productivity. Others might use Dropbox or other file sharing services to ensure anyone who needs to can access files. Either way, communication between various services is needed if your business wants to innovate and make progress. Integrating solutions with APIs can give your organization the edge to get as much done as possible with your in-house and cloud-based solutions. These APIs are largely responsible for making sure that all of your technology plays nice with each other.

Collaboration Suites
More businesses than ever before are relying on software to get work done. Collaboration suites take a lot of common features and create a single access point for them. Microsoft’s Office 365 platform offers several great tools to build on. You can create channels for each of your different departments to collaborate and communicate with one another. Of course, this is barely scratching the surface of what’s capable of being done with collaboration suites, but it’s essentially what can be called a workplace intranet. It’s a single application that allows access to all of your most needed information, the communications your business used, and the other applications it needs to effectively complete all of its tasks and projects.

Virtual Assistants
While one could argue that interacting with a virtual assistant over real human people is less fruitful overall, virtual assistants do provide a certain level of innovation to the workplace. For example, imagine telling your phone to inform you of meeting times or events throughout the workday. Imagine setting reminders for important tasks that need to be done. Virtual assistants can allow your organization to scour emails for important information that must be addressed, set up a to-do list, and so much more, making them great for not just collaboration, but overall workplace productivity.

Does your organization want to innovate through the use of technology? Net Activity can equip your business with all the tools it needs to succeed. To learn more, reach out to us at 216-503-5150.

Download Your Data From Google Plus Before It Gets Deleted

Google has kept no secret of their plan to eventually put an end to their social media experiment, Google+. In case you haven’t been keeping abreast of the company’s announcements where the service is concerned, be aware that it will be shutting down on April 2nd of 2019.

The closer we’ve gotten to that deadline, the more details we’ve gotten from the company about how the shutdown will go.

Just so you’re aware, this won’t be a simple matter of turning off access and freezing posts as they are, or essentially preserving them for all time. No, this is going to be an internet-wide absolute deletion of any and everything related to Google Plus.That means your posts, your comments to other people’s posts and your Google+ powered comments on Blogger and other blogging sites will all ultimately be deleted. If you want to preserve any of your materials, it’s long past time to start archiving. You’ve still got time of course, but the clock is ticking more loudly than ever now, and depending on how much content you’ve got, you’ll want to be quick about it.

Google+ never enjoyed the kind of popular success that Facebook and the other heavy hitters in the social media ecosystem enjoyed. It was more of a panicked reaction to the meteoric rise of Facebook, with the fear being that Facebook might kill search if everybody simply gravitated to asking their friends for recommendations.

Obviously nothing like that happened, but it was of genuine concern when the company launched the service, and it’s what prompted them to inject Google+ into every aspect of their product ecosystem, even in cases where it didn’t make much sense to do so.

Given this deep integration, shutting down Google+ and deleting all traces of it won’t be a quick or easy process, but it’s coming, and that starts on April 2nd. Note: The shutdown applies to consumers only. Enterprise users will still have access to Google+ functionality via the G Suite.